The Oakland University Police Department (OUPD) partnered with OU Housing to create a training video, updating crime reporting protocol. 

Campus security authorities (CSA) are required to report any crime on campus, according to the Clery Act (1990). This includes any campus officials with significant responsibility for students — resident assistants, academic peer mentors, student discipline officials or anyone involved in campus judicial proceedings. Oakland University has over 600 CSAs that have to be on the same page. 

Hence, a video is a convenient way to “reach as many people as possible” and allow them to “refer back to the video anytime,” according to Lt. Nicole Thompson.  

“We are required to have complete transparency when it comes to publicly reporting crimes that are reported to OUPD and other campus personnel,” Thompson said. “This information allows our future students and their parents to make educated decisions regarding [campus safety].” 

Although the new video training has been in the works for eight years, the release will be timely because of the current growth of Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. One aspect the BLM movement has highlighted is “police and criminal justice reform,” according to NPR.  

Accurate crime reporting and transparency is only a fraction of the criminal justice system. During these updates, Thompson ensured OUPD kept the BLM movement and OU’s campus life in mind while creating the video. 

“We made sure to include diversity in our video because it is important that we are reflecting OU’s diverse population on campus,” Thompson said. 

The content of the video focuses on methods to contact OUPD and resources for anyone impacted by a crime. Additionally, the video featured many housing employees and OUPD officers with various locations on campus as the background. Elliott Tower and Oak View Hall were additions that weren’t featured before.

“The video had to be short enough to keep the viewers’ (who are mainly CSAs) attention but long enough that it provided enough information [so] a CSA knew what was expected of them when a crime was reported to them,” Thompson said. 

The last video was published in 2014, and it is viewable on oupolice.com. The latest video is in its final stages with OU’s Video Services Department and will replace the current video on the website sometime in November. 

“Oakland University’s campus is really everyone’s responsibility,” she said. “The OUPD relies on our community partnerships to tell us when they see or hear suspicious activity so collectively we can keep the campus safe for all.”