The Committee seeks ways to improve relationships, communication, programming, and operational activities of the Campus Safety Department for the benefit of the Oxy community.
A Message from Committee Chair Rick Tanksley:
Since arriving at Oxy in January of 2018, I have made it the mission and priority of Campus Safety to serve the community with compassion, excellence, equity, and integrity as part of our commitment to maintain a safe and secure campus and community. As further background, especially for those of you who might be new to Oxy, it’s important to note that Campus Safety staff are not a sworn police force. As a result, we do not carry firearms, we do not have the power of arrest, and we only have the same “police” powers of any other private citizen. In short, we are charged with serving the Oxy community, and maintaining a safe environment for every member for the Oxy community and their invited guests.
Among the charges of the Campus Safety Advisory Committee, created in 2016, is to review current Campus Safety practices and make recommendations for future policies and procedures. The nine-person committee (listed below) is comprised of three representatives from the faculty, from students, and from staff. Over the past two years, the committee’s agenda has included items such as the need to increase the number of blue light emergency phones on campus, increased training for Campus Safety personnel, parking-related issues, as well as determining ways in which Campus Safety can proactively interact with students in order to build trust and respect between Campus Safety and the rest of the Oxy community.
Our agenda items for the Spring 2021 semester will include, but are not limited to:
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Bias, equity, and justice concerns
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Examining Campus Safety uniform and titles
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Continuing to build stronger relationships with students
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Further enhancing the College’s emergency preparedness planning
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Furthering our relationships and connections with the Oxy community overall
The staff at Campus Safety welcomes voices and input from all campus constituencies. If you have feedback, concerns or ideas, please feel free to email Rick Tanksley or contact any of the Advisory Committee members if you so choose. Your input is important to help us achieve our mission. We also plan to increase the student representation on the committee from 3 to 4 this year and are working with ASOC to identify additional candidates. The Advisory Committee meets on a monthly basis, and beginning the spring semester, meeting minutes will be made available online.
Current membership
Rick Tanksley, Director, Campus Safety, Committee Chair
Van Nguyen ‘22, Student rep
Lena Sullivan ’23, Student rep
Mario Bonilla, Cleaning Services Manager
Lauren Wagner, Athletics
Robert Torres, Campus Dining
G. Elmer Griffin, Department of Critical Theory and Social Justice
James Sadd, Department of Geology
Adam Schoenberg, Department of Music