The Safety and Security Conference Subcommittee of the Campus Security Committee held a meeting on Thursday with representatives from multiple schools across the UNC system to discuss the upcoming 2019 UNC-system Safety and Security Conference.
The conference includes training and guidance sessions for safety personnel to work in security, student and employee safety and emergency management on college campuses. Held in June, last year’s conference included sessions on environmental health, law enforcement and Title IX.
The conference features speakers from various organizations and universities across the country, as well as from the UNC system’s 17 campuses. In 2018, Mary Beth Koza and Stan Harts, the executive directors of UNC-Chapel Hill and UNC-Wilmington's respective Departments of Environment, Health and Safety, spoke in a session on the environmental health and safety issues prominent on college campuses.
Last year's conference sessions also centered on the Clery Act and university compliance with it. Signed in 1990 and enforced by the U.S. Department of Education, the Clery Act requires universities to disclose crime and security information. The Clery Division of the U.S. Department of Education also enforces the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to promote campus safety.
Gina Maisto Smith, chairperson of Cozen O’Connor’s Institutional Response Group, was the keynote speaker of the 2018 conference. Smith gave a talk titled “Creating a Culture of Compliance,” addressing interpersonal violence at institutions.
This year’s conference will include a focus on risk management, and will be hosted at UNC-Asheville in May 2019.
“I think we’re all in agreement that UNC-Asheville has stepped up big time,” said Wesley Chancey, interim university compliance officer for the UNC system. “They did it last year. They’re doing it again this year. We appreciate you hosting this again and all of the amenities you’re providing to us.”
Lynne Sanders, vice president for Compliance and Audit Services, expressed a similar sentiment.
“It’s going to be really nice to be there again this year, and we appreciate their dedication to helping pull this off," Sanders said. "I know it’s a lot of coordination and effort.”
The Safety and Security Conference Subcommittee will continue work to finalize this year’s conference as registration begins in February.
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