Vanderbilt Police Department (Tennessee)

The Vanderbilt University Police Department is the primary provider of law enforcement services for Vanderbilt University and areas immediately adjacent to university property in Davidson County, Tennessee. The VUPD covers a total area of approximately 0.75 square miles (1.9 km2) that primarily consists of dense urban locations. All officers for VUPD are commissioned by the Metro Nashville Police Department and carry special police powers, and operate under the authority of the Metro Nashville Police Chief.

Vanderbilt University Police Department
AbbreviationVUPD
Agency overview
Formed2001 (2001)
Preceding agency
  • Vanderbilt Security Department (1873–c. 2001)
Employees263 (as of 2017)
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionVanderbilt University, Nashville, USA
Size0.75 square miles (1.9 km2)
PopulationApprox 40,000 (2015 est.)
Legal jurisdictionDavidson County
Primary governing bodyVanderbilt University
Secondary governing bodyMetro Nashville Police Department
General nature
Operational structure
HeadquartersNashville, Tennessee
Police Officers92
Community Service Officers (CSO)s113
Agency executive
  • August Washington, Associate Vice Chancellor & Chief of Police
Precincts
3
  • Campus
  • Medical Center
  • 100 Oaks
Facilities
Buildings4
Marked Police Vehicles25
Canines4
Website
http://police.vanderbilt.edu

Composition and organization

The department has nearly 260 personnel, including over 90 full-time sworn members. The department responds to more than 100,000 police calls per year on average between the college campus, the medical center and the 100 Oaks shopping center. The department also responds to police calls off property in accordance with a Memorandum Of Understanding with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department.

The department is configured in a decentralized format, providing its precinct commanders with control of their own resources to address issues and crime trends in their areas. The department is divided into three precincts: Campus, Medical Center, and One Hundred Oaks. A precinct is designed similarly to a small-sized police department with uniformed police officers and uniformed non-sworn community service officers.

The precincts are supported by the Administrative Division, Criminal Investigations Unit, and the Special Operations Unit, all in an effort to deter, detect, prevent, and respond to criminal trends in the precinct areas. The department's entire focus is on how to quickly identify trends and implement initiatives that address them.

Rank structure
Title Insignia
Associate Vice Chancellor & Chief of Police
Assistant Chief
Major
Captain
Lieutenant
Sergeant
(collar)
Corporal
(collar)
Police Officer None
Police Officer Trainee
Community Service Officer II None
Community Service Officer None

As of 2017, 113 of VUPD's 171 non-sworn (civilian) employees are Community Service Officers (CSO). The CSOs augment the police force by providing a variety of services that do not necessitate police action, such as providing a security presence at certain locations (dorms, libraries, lobbies, parking lots, etc.), jump starting vehicles, unlocking or locking doors, etc. Additionally, select CSOs operate as shuttle van drivers for a student shuttle service provided by the university.

Accreditations
  • CALEA accredited
  • ICALEA accredited
  • TLEA accredited

See also

References
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.