University of Alberta Safety and Security Committee

Safe communities rely on cooperation, understanding, and a willingness to collectively care for one another. That’s why the University of Alberta Safety and Security Committee (UASSC) brings together a diverse set of perspectives from across the U of A’s community to assess the effectiveness of safety and security measures on our campuses.

The committee makes recommendations and develops strategies under several categories as part of an integrated safety and security plan.

Supporting the U of A Community

Inspired by a holistic approach to safety, the U of A Safety and Security Committee seeks to regularly assess the successes, challenges, and current state of safety and security across the U of A’s campuses. The committee reviews security performance through the following sources:

• UASSC safety and security survey results
• Other university surveys and reports
• Security incident information (provided by U of A Protective Services)
• Security infrastructure reporting through University Services, Operations and Finance and additional university offices
• Education and communication plans
• Additional internal and external sources/groups

UASSC provides updates on safety and security in a quarterly report highlighting developing areas and, where appropriate, efforts with other stakeholders.

Reports

• Report to our Community: Safety and Security Committee, August 2023
• Final Report of the Campuses and Facilities Safety and Security Working Group, 2019
• Safety and Security Quarterly Progress Report Fiscal year 2024-25 Quarter 1
• Safety and Security Quarterly Progress Report Fiscal year 2024-25 Quarter 2

Surveys

To better understand how the broader U of A community feels about the state of safety and security on the U of A’s campuses, the Safety and Security Committee conducts an annual survey. All information is collected anonymously and provides students, faculty, and staff with an opportunity to share their personal experience and perceptions of campus safety directly with the committee. Survey results are reviewed and help the committee identify areas for improvement, education, and resourcing.

Invitations to participate are shared with students, faculty, and staff via email once a year. Results from the survey are made available through the Safety and Security’s annual report to the community.

Note: due to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the annual survey was suspended in 2020 and 2021.