UPbeat

News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.

public safety

Electric Car Charging Station Rule Changes Effective Jan. 13

Plug-in hybrid or electric car being recharged. 3D illustration.

The University’s ChargePoint electric car charging stations located at the Clark Library and LP Tennis Center parking lots have been well used. The public safety office is updating the station rules to ensure that the charging stations are accessible and rotating effectively for all UP student, faculty, and staff electric car owners.

Starting on January 13, 2020, students, faculty, and staff can charge at the stations free for the first four hours, with a fee of $1.75 per hour after four hours. Campus guests will pay a fee of $3.00 per hour with no free period.

To access your free charging please email public safety prior to Monday, January 13 for a pin number to update your ChargePoint account. Please provide your UP ID and parking pass number in your email.

For more information contact public safety at x7161 or publicsafety@up.edu.

 

Welcome Back and Be Safe, Please

A painted wall with a rainbow and be safe, be respectful, be responsible motivational words

With the beginning of the spring 2020 semester, the public safety office asks that faculty, staff, and students keep the following safety precautions in mind, according to marketing and communications vice president Michael Lewellen:

  • Be mindful of your surroundings and report any unusual or suspicious activity to public safety.
  • Carry your student, staff or faculty ID card with you at all times.
  • As always, all residence halls are ID card accessible 24 hours a day.

As part of UP’s safety protocols, please note the following access information for other campus buildings:

  • Academic buildings will have open access from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., with ID card access only from 5 p.m. to midnight.
  • The Chiles Center will have open access from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • The Beauchamp Recreation & Wellness Center is ID card access only.
  • Doors to Waldschmidt Hall will have ID card access during the business day (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) for all students, faculty, and staff.  Visitors and guests will enter through the main entrance where a building concierge can provide assistance as needed.
  • The Clark Library will have open access from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., with ID card access from 5 p.m. until 2 a.m. for late-evening study.
  • On weekends, academic and office buildings will be ID card access only from 7 a.m. to midnight.

If you have any questions about this information, please contact public safety at x4444 or publicsafety@up.edu.

St. Anthony, Public Safety: What Was Lost Now is Found

All faculty, staff, and students are reminded that the public safety office maintains an official lost and found in their main office in Haggerty Hall. If St. Anthony hasn’t pointed you in the right direction it never hurts to check there for lost items. The office is open 24/7 so seekers can visit any time.

For more information contact public safety at x7161 or publicsafety@up.edu.

Annual Security and Fire Report Available Now

In compliance with the Campus Crime Reporting Act and the amended Higher Education Opportunity Act, the University of Portland’s Annual Security and Fire Report was published and made available to all members of the University community, and to prospective students and employees.

According to public safety director Sara Westbrook, the report includes statistics for the previous three years concerning reported crimes that occurred on-campus, in certain off-campus buildings or property owned or controlled by the University of Portland, and on public property within, or immediately adjacent to and accessible from, the campus.  You will also find statistics for fires that occur in residence halls and polices relating to fire safety and preparedness.  The report also contains institutional policies concerning campus security, such as policies regarding sexual assault, emergency response, and other matters.

You can obtain a copy of the Annual Security and Fire Report by contacting public safety x7161 or by accessing this link. Please note: Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view this file. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can download it here.

For more information or questions contact public safety at x7161 or publicsafety@up.edu.

New Public Safety Director: Sara Westbrook

The Division of Student Affairs welcomes Sara Westbrook as the new director of the Department of Public Safety. Westbrook comes to UP with over 33 years of law enforcement experience, with 25 served in the Portland Police Bureau. She served as Commander of the Central Precinct, East Precinct, and the Transit Police Division. Westbrook is passionate about serving people and helping create a safe community for all of us to live, work, and study. We thank her for coming out of retirement to take on the great work of public safety at UP. All are invited to stop by and say hello to her at her office or as she is out and about getting to know the campus community.

For more information contact Fr. John Donato, C.S.C., vice president for student affairs, at donato@up.edu.

Clery Act Information Request: Please Report by May 31

To comply with federal law, specifically the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, the University of Portland is required to report “statistics concerning the occurrence of the following criminal offenses reported to local police agencies, or to any official of the institution who has significant responsibility for student and campus activities: murder, sex offenses, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft,” according to Gerald Gregg, public safety. In 2015, the Violence Against Women Act added dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking to the list of crimes that must be reported. The University must also report any of these offenses that were hate crimes, as well as any other hate crimes that may have resulted in bodily injury or fear of bodily injury.

For the purposes of the Clery Act, the law broadly defines campus security officials as an employee of the institution who “has significant responsibility for student and campus activities.” Pastoral or professional counselors are exempt from reporting these crimes. Yet, in the interest of providing a more complete picture of campus crimes, pastoral and professional counselors may voluntarily share information with security/police to include in the statistics. You do not need to identify the victim.

If you are not exempt from reporting and are aware of any crimes that occurred from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018 that were not reported to law enforcement, the Health Center, Campus Ministry, or the public safety department, it is important you forward that information to Gregg no later than May 31, 2019.

Please include the location of the incident, and it would be very helpful to provide the date of the incident. In addition, a brief description of the incident is needed so it can be properly classified following guidelines established by the FBI Uniform Crime Report program. A Crime Statistic Report Form and the Crime Definitions that should be used to report the incidents can be found here and here.

If you have any questions about this request, or if you would like to discuss the specifics about an incident, please contact Gregg at x7161 or via e-mail to gregg@up.edu.

Tri-Met Passes No Longer Available at Public Safety

For many years, the University has been able to sell Tri-Met bus and light rail passes through the Office of Public Safety, including subsidized monthly passes. Unfortunately, due to the imposition of new federal taxes on transportation discounts and changes in Tri-Met administrative processes, we can no longer offer this benefit to our students, faculty, or staff. There is a limited inventory of books of 10 individual tickets that public safety will sell until they are gone.

Tri-Met passes and tickets are still available at a variety of locations for those who wish to purchase them, and Tri-Met’s new Hop Fastpass system may be of interest to our community members (links below).  Questions about this change may be directed to Eric Barger, controller’s office, at barger@up.edu.

  • Where to buy link here.
  • Hopcard link here.

Your Feel-Good Story For Today: Kitten Rescue!

A report from Heidi Keller, financial aid: “Today when Janet Turner and I went out for our walk, we bumped into another University of Portland employee (I wish I knew his name), and he said “Hey, look at that kitten under the car.” When we looked the kitten had climbed up into the engine compartment. Janet and I walked into the Beauchamp Center to write a note to the owner of the car and let them know about the kitten. On the main drive we ran into Lori Watson from the controller’s office and asked if she was going to the Beauchamp Center, and she said yes, so we told her about the kitten. When I got to my office I ran into Manu Jauregui, one of our wonderful public safety officers, and I asked him if he could save the kitten. He located the student, asked her to come to her car, had her pop the hood, then reached in and rescued this little gem. The happy ending is that Lori decided to adopt the kitten and took it home with her!” Thanks for caring, Heidi and Janet and Manu and Lori, we do indeed have a remarkably wonderful crew here.

Campus Parking, Fall 2018

With the coming of fall semester, students will be returning to campus, and many will be living off campus and commuting to their classes. As in past years, parking at the University is very limited. This fall, commuters will find the parking availability further stressed. Construction of Dundon-Berchtold Hall will limit parking along the main entryway and create traffic issues until completion in 2019.

Students who commute to campus are required to park on campus, not in the surrounding neighborhood. We offer a Franz Campus Parking Incentive for students who are willing to park in the Franz Campus parking lot (previously called the River Campus parking lot). The University is offering 100 free parking permits limited to that lot only. These permits will be available on a first come, first served basis beginning August 15.  There is a shuttle that runs to and from the Franz Campus parking lot to the Pilot House and back, hours yet to be determined. Students and faculty and staff are also encouraged to explore other options for their commute, including carpooling, cycling, or public transportation.

Please contact public safety at publicsafety@up.edu for more information.

Nightmarish Summer Commute Times Approaching

According to media reports and the Oregon Department of Transportation, a number of bridge and freeway closures are likely to impact commuting times for those traveling to and from campus this summer. Public safety director Gerald Gregg recommends that employees and students who drive to campus check the ODOT link here and plan accordingly to avoid significant delays in traffic.

For example:

  • From July 8 to 23, the southbound ramp from I-5 to I-84 eastbound will be closed entirely at all times.
  • From July 25 to August 6, the ramp from I-84 westbound to I-5 northbound will be closed entirely at all times. During one of those weekends, ODOT will also close I-5 north between the Marquam and Fremont Bridges for paving.
  • From July 27 to August 27, I-84 westbound from Lloyd Center to I-5 south will be reduced to one lane of traffic.
  • Estimated I-84 commute from I-205 to I-5 between the hours of 5 a.m. and 11 p.m. is three hours. Congestion could start as far east as Troutdale, north as far as Glenn L. Jackson Memorial Bridge, and south as far as Sunnyside on I-205.