Public Safety Building project FAQs
What is the Public Safety Building (PSB) project?
As part of the 2017 voter-approved bond measure, the 2,500 SF building currently housing Public Safety offices at PCC’s Cascade Campus was identified as a facility in need of replacement. This project includes a feasibility study to determine an ideal location on campus for Public Safety offices in either a new building at the existing site or in a renovated space elsewhere on campus. The existing public safety building is at the corner of N. Killingsworth Blvd and N. Commercial St.
What is the mission of Public Safety at PCC?
The mission of the Portland Community College Department of Public Safety is to promote a safe educational environment in partnership with the community by providing exceptional public safety services through professionalism and dependability.
- Promoting a safe educational environment means maintaining a visible presence on campus properties, strengthening relationships with college staff, students, and visitors, and using incident data to recognize and respond to trends. It includes not only the acts of reporting, investigation, and warnings, but also educating the community about their rights and responsibilities.
- In partnership with the community means being a full and active partner with the college, surrounding neighborhoods, and local public safety agencies. It also means assisting campus staff, students, and visitors in a knowledgeable manner.
- Providing exceptional public safety services means treating others the way you want to be treated.
- Professionalism is the foundation of our department and it requires conscientious, competent, and ethical public safety service.
- Dependability means that the college can count on the services provided; we maintain complete integrity, honesty, and accountability and serve with dedication and effectiveness.
How does PCC define a safe educational environment?
Many factors contribute to the creation of a safe educational environment for students and staff, including but not limited to:
- Access to food, shelter, and rest
- Protection against bias based on race, gender, ability, sexual identity, and age
- Protection from threats to property and person
- Protection from harassment and trauma
- Physical health
- Mental health
- Financial security
What programs and services at the PCC Cascade Campus support a safe campus environment and student and staff wellness?
Among the many programs and resources that support a safe campus environment are:
- Public Safety
- Counseling Center
- Facilities Management Services
- Cascade Diversity Council
- PCC Office of Equity and Inclusion
- Financial programs
- Student Resource Centers
- Wellness facilities, including a gym
What are the services that Public Safety offers students and staff on campus?
- Public Safety Dispatch Hotline for day-to-day operational routine calls to include:
- unlocking buildings or rooms
- safety escorts
- vehicle assists
- medical calls
- Facilities access control: Public Safety staff makes sure that approved personnel have access to buildings for business purposes, and that buildings are secured
- Clery reporting compliance, which is required by federal law
- Timely warnings and emergency notifications
- Emergency preparedness and response plan for the college
- Conducting training for emergencies, e.g. evacuations
- Lockdown and active shooter response
- Visible foot and vehicle patrols
- Investigation and written reports for low-level property crime investigations, with no suspect information
- Coordination with local law enforcement for more serious, personal crimes (assault, harassment, sexual assault, intimidation, etc.)
- Coordination with first responders, including law enforcement, concerning behaviors reported to staff and students (e.g. threats, weapons on campus, suicidal or homicidal ideation, or activities occurring in the neighborhood that could impact the campus)
- Participate in and support the student conduct and community support process when needed
What else should we know about PCC’s Public Safety officers?
- Public Safety officers are PCC employees and follow the same policies that all PCC employees must follow.
- PCC Public Safety officers are unarmed.
- PCC Public Safety officers are not sworn law enforcement officers and do not have police authority or the same level of training, resources, and/or equipment available to law enforcement officers.
- PCC Public Safety officers cannot investigate sexual crimes; those require investigation by a sworn law enforcement agency under the Violence Against Women Act and Title IX.
What is required of PCC Public Safety?
- The Clery Reporting Act is a federal law requiring colleges to report crimes that occur on campus and in the immediate area. It also requires training of staff and reporting about efforts to improve campus safety. Failure to comply with Clery can result in fines of $58,328 per violation. Recently, the University of California Berkeley was fined $2.4M and two years of monitoring for violating the Clery Act. Learn more about Public Safety reporting information.
- Kaley’s Law requires campus safety to make a clear distinction from law enforcement, among other requirements. Public Safety staff are not certified police officers. Their initial training includes a brief overview of criminal law. Their role is to observe and report. They do not carry firearms, nor do they have defensive tactical training.
What kinds of training do Public Safety officers receive?
- The State of Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training requires all Public Safety officers to undergo state-mandated training to be certified.
- Autism response training.
- Crisis response training.
How does PCC envision Public Safety’s work evolving over the next 5 years?
Active threat preparedness
Since the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, which left 32 people dead, there has been more focus on addressing concerning behaviors exhibited by students, staff, and campus visitors. As a result, behavior intervention teams have been created. This development complements the addition of enhanced technology safety measures such as access control which can quickly secure campuses, along with immediate notification platforms for staff and students on campus.
Emergency response – all-hazard approach
There is ongoing work to prepare colleges and universities with an all-hazard approach to emergencies. This means that colleges and universities need to train key staff with the NIMS (National Incident Management Systems)/Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) standardized approach to emergencies, and the functions of command, operations, planning, logistics, and finance. This is a nationally recognized standard for emergency response.
Clery Reporting Act
We continue to improve our ability to comply with the Clery Reporting Act. This is a federal law that requires colleges to report crimes that occur on campus and in the immediate area. It also requires training of staff and reporting about efforts to improve campus safety.
Department growth
At PCC, these evolving priorities have required PCC to create specific positions to ensure this work is being done including an access control specialist, emergency manager and preparedness coordinator, and Clery compliance specialist.
Campus resource center and conference room
Public Safety is looking for opportunities to more closely align and integrate with the campus community. New office space may allow for the opportunity to provide a resource center for students and staff around safety needs as part of the reception in the new office space.
Cross-training opportunities
PCC’s first responder training programs like EMT and Fire Protection Technology may provide opportunities for cross-training with the Office of Public Safety.
How does PCC see their Public Safety team coordinating with the Portland Police at the new office facilities?
Keeping PCC campuses safe for staff, students and visitors is Public Safety’s top priority. Every review and study following a disaster or school shooting recommends preventive measures but also addresses having good working relationships and ongoing communication with first responders.
Planning and coordination
Public Safety needs to coordinate with the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) and other first responders on a variety of campus safety events and incidents. This includes planning for future emergencies and coordinating for the immediate response to events that are happening in real-time.
Office space
The PPB currently has access to the Public Safety offices at Cascade Campus and can enter without assistance from Public Safety staff. They have a touch-down desk available for their use and have access to PCC video surveillance files and live streams. The college does not have formal intergovernmental agreements with any law enforcement agencies that cover the sharing of resources or services.
In the new facility, Public Safety’s goal is to have adequate space where the team can continue to meet with police and other first responders, community members, staff, students, and others. This would require a conference room space that is separate from the workspace of the Public Safety officers.
Albina-Killingsworth Safe Neighborhood Commission
PCC took the lead to create the Albina Killingsworth Safe Neighborhood Commission (AKSNC). This group met monthly under the leadership of PCC’s campus president and included representation from Jefferson High School, Rosemary Anderson School, Office of Neighborhood Involvement, PPB, and others to address safety and neighborhood livability concerns that directly impacted the Cascade Campus. In 2015, the AKSNC received recognition for its efforts as part of the annual Herman Goldstein Award for Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing, a worldwide competition among innovative community policing initiatives.
First responder channels
Public Safety has access to first responder radio channels and utilizes these to communicate with other responders in active emergency situations.
How are equity, shared prosperity, and accessibility centered in this project?
Consultant and contractor recruitment
The contractor and consultants chosen for this project were considered for their expertise in producing exceptional design and construction projects along with their track record for being committed to an equitable community engagement and design process. The project team includes Dao Architecture, We All Rise outreach consultants, construction contractor O’Neill Walsh Community Builders (OWCB) along with PCC staff.
Critical Race Theory (CRT) training
The project team completed CRT training specific to this project, continuing to build awareness of how safety is related to one’s social identity and that design influences inclusivity and safety across race/gender/ethnicity/bodies. CRT further informed an inclusive outreach approach developed by the project team and it will be used as a framework for decision-making.
Accessibility
This project will ensure that accessibility is centered at every point in the design process. This refers not only to physical accessibility, a requirement of the ADA, but also to the accessibility of information, resources, and opportunities. An accessible design process takes into account the wide variety of stakeholders who might interact with the Public Safety Department or Public Safety officers, practices transparency, encourages honest communication, acknowledges community concerns, and incorporates community feedback.
Community engagement during design
Students, staff, and neighbors are invited to learn more about the project and provide input in a variety of ways. Students, staff, and neighbors were notified of the project via an email to students and staff and a mailer was sent within a one-half-mile radius to Cascade Campus neighbors. The notifications include an invitation to take an online survey, join an online community forum, and share feedback directly with PCC. The project team is also meeting students and staff where they are by visiting existing meetings within the PCC community including the Cascade Diversity Council, District Council (student government), and student affinity groups.
Minority-owned contracting firm goals (COBID-certified firms)
The project has goals to support the utilization of minority-owned contracting firms. The project goal is that 20% of subcontracting opportunities should be awarded to COBID-certified firms, with no more than 14% going to firms only holding the Emerging Small Business certification.
Construction workforce equity goals
The project has workforce equity goals that will be tracked by our internal project team. Deficits will be met with support or corrective action. Our workforce equity goals:
- 20% utilization of apprentices in each trade
- 20% BIPOC workers
- 15% women workers
Safe From Hate
The PCC office of Planning and Capital Construction is signatory to the Safe From Hate pledge and is active both on the Steering Committee of the Safe From Hate Alliance as well as leading the Public Owner’s Sector of the Safe From Hate Alliance. The groups are working across sectors to influence the development of equitable outcomes and respectful, collaborative workplaces.
Respectful workplace training for construction job sites
PCC construction projects over $5 million require the implementation of approved respectful workplace training. “Approved” means that it falls into one of the programs deemed effective by the Respectful Workplace Review Committee Recommendations report. Harassment and discrimination on construction job sites create hostile work environments that disproportionately harm women, Black, Indigenous and other people of color (BIPOC) in the construction industry. Positive jobsite culture, which provides a workplace free from harassment and discrimination improves performance, supports safety protocols, enhances employee engagement, supports retention of a skilled workforce, increases the health and wellness of workers, and increases overall productivity. PCC’s internal team will be attending RISE Up training. OWCB has also chosen the RISE Up training model for this project.