Council of Trustees Approves Arming of Campus Police

Info Source:  Office of Media Relations, Michelle Fryling, Director

September 15, 2006

Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Council of Trustees approved a resolution to authorize IUP President Tony Atwater to begin the process of arming IUP’s police officers.

The resolution calls for the president to “take necessary steps to provide for the arming of IUP police officers with appropriate equipment, the offering of mandatory training certifications for officers, and the implementing of a Standard Operating Procedures Policy Statement associated with this resolution.”

IUP currently has 22 full-time police officers at the Indiana campus and at IUP at Punxsutawney.

“I want to thank and recognize the members of the Council of Trustees for taking this stand and for their continued commitment to the safety of this university community,” said President Atwater. “I believe we are a safe campus, but as a public university, we do not always have full control of who comes onto our campus. I believe that our students and parents have an expectation that our police officers can make an immediate response to dangerous situations requiring firearms.”
Currently, IUP police call on Indiana Borough Police or Pennsylvania State Police to provide assistance in cases in which armed officers are needed.

“We have highly trained and skilled police officers on this campus, but the one tool they are lacking is the ability to carry firearms,” said David Burdette, vice president for finance and administration.
Burdette will be staging several “town hall” meetings during the fall semester to offer information to the university community about the issue and the process.

IUP police officers will be required to complete training and annual certifications and examinations related to carrying weapons, and there will be careful study on the appropriate types of firearms and ammunition for the IUP police officers before officers are armed, which is expected to happen sometime in the spring semester, Burdette said.|

In addition to training and the Standard Operating Procedures Policy Statement with specific requirements relative to training and weapon qualification, IUP will establish a Firearms Review Board and a Police Advisory Board to review all incidents relative to weapon display and to ensure that all appropriate procedures are enforced.

The issue of arming campus police was addressed recently by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Bill 509, approved Dec. 5, 2005. This Bill amended Act 188 (the1982 legislation which established the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education) by authorizing Councils of Trustees to determine by resolution if university police forces should be armed. Prior to House Bill 509, a decision to arm campus police was at the discretion of the university president.


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