Strengthening Our Commitment to Campus Safety: Establishment of the Public Safety Oversight Committee

Dear WesternU Community,

At Western University of Health Sciences, the safety, security, and well-being of our students, faculty, staff, and visitors remain among our highest priorities. A safe, welcoming, and supportive environment is fundamental to our mission, and essential to ensuring that every member of our community can learn, teach, work, and thrive with confidence.

As our University continues to grow and evolve, so too must our approach to public safety. Maintaining a safe campus requires more than responding to immediate concerns. It requires thoughtful planning, sustained investment, collaboration, continuous evaluation, and, most importantly, a willingness to listen to the experiences and perspectives of those we serve.

Over the past several weeks, members of University leadership have held meaningful conversations with students and employees about campus safety. These discussions have reinforced the importance of a comprehensive public safety strategy, one that addresses physical security needs while also fostering greater confidence, accessibility, and reassurance throughout our campus community.

Today, I am pleased to share several important developments that reflect our continued commitment to strengthening public safety at WesternU.

Establishment of the Public Safety Oversight Committee

To provide sustained leadership, coordination, and oversight of our public safety efforts, I have established the Public Safety Oversight Committee (PSOC).

The Council brings together University leadership and key stakeholders to take a coordinated, strategic approach to evaluating and advancing public safety initiatives. Its formation reflects our recognition that campus safety is a shared institutional responsibility, one that requires collaboration across multiple divisions and an ongoing commitment to the evolving needs of our community.

The PSOC will build on the substantial work already underway. It will provide an additional structure through which we can assess emerging concerns, evaluate existing practices, identify opportunities for improvement, and thoughtfully consider recommendations from students, faculty, and staff.

Importantly, the Committee will also strengthen communication, accountability, and responsiveness. We want every member of our community to know that public safety concerns are taken seriously, that feedback is valued, and that University leadership is committed to turning these conversations into meaningful action.

The Committee’s work will focus not only on immediate operational priorities, but also on the longer-term development of a sustainable, integrated public safety strategy that supports WesternU’s continued growth.

Recognizing the progress we have made

Over the past several years, WesternU has made significant investments to strengthen and modernize our public safety infrastructure. These efforts reflect a deliberate transition toward a more comprehensive, technology-enabled, and coordinated approach to protecting our campuses.

Advancements already in place include expanded campus camera capabilities, the establishment of our Security Operations Center, continuous 24-hour monitoring, enhanced incident response capabilities, and strengthened coordination with the Pomona Police Department.

These improvements have substantially expanded our ability to monitor campus activity, identify potential concerns, coordinate resources, and respond to incidents.

While we are proud of this progress, we also recognize that public safety is an ongoing responsibility. No single investment, technology, or initiative can address every challenge. An effective public safety program requires multiple layers of protection, continuous improvement, and the flexibility to adapt as circumstances and community needs change.

The establishment of the PSOC represents the next important step in that evolution.

We Heard You: Responding to our University Community

One of the most important responsibilities of University leadership is to listen.

Through recent conversations with the Student Government Association, Public Safety sessions, and feedback shared directly by students and employees, one message has been especially clear and consistent: the visible presence of public safety personnel matters to our community.

We have heard your concerns, and we recognize the importance of responding in a thoughtful, meaningful, and timely way.

Public safety has more than one dimension. There are the systems, technologies, and operational capabilities that help protect our campus. And there is the personal experience of feeling safe as students and employees move between classrooms, offices, parking areas, and other University facilities.

Both are essential.

Technology provides capabilities that personnel alone cannot deliver, including continuous monitoring, expanded situational awareness, and the ability to identify potential concerns and coordinate responses. At the same time, visible public safety personnel provide something equally important: a recognizable, accessible, and reassuring presence within our campus community.

Seeing familiar safety personnel throughout campus builds relationships, encourages communication, and gives students and employees greater confidence that help is readily available when needed.

Our goal is not to choose between these approaches, but to bring them together in the way that best serves our campus community.

Taking Action: Increasing Public Safety Visibility

In response to your feedback, one of the first priorities taken up by the newly established Public Safety Oversight Committee was how to strengthen the visible presence of public safety personnel throughout campus.

I am pleased to announce that, beginning the week of October 26, 2026, WesternU will implement an increased visible security presence on campus.

The increased visibility will complement, not replace, our existing investments in security technology, continuous monitoring, and coordinated response capabilities.

As we move forward, WesternU will continue to advance an integrated guarding systems hybrid public safety model built on four essential components:

• Technology and Infrastructure: Camera systems, monitoring capabilities, and other security technologies that strengthen campus-wide awareness and protection.
• Remote Guarding: Our Security Operations Center and 24/7 monitoring capabilities, which support the proactive identification of concerns and timely coordination of responses.
• Visible Public Safety Personnel: A greater presence of trained, accessible safety professionals throughout campus to support community engagement, deterrence, and immediate assistance.
• Coordinated Response and Partnerships: Stronger collaboration among University personnel, contracted security partners, and local law enforcement agencies to support effective incident response and emergency preparedness.

Together, these components create a more comprehensive and adaptable approach to public safety, one that draws on the strengths of both personnel and technology.

Looking Ahead: Building a dedicated WesternU Public Safety Team

Increasing security visibility is an important immediate step, but our commitment extends well beyond the actions announced today.

As part of our longer-term strategy, WesternU intends to continue developing a dedicated team of University-employed public safety professionals, gradually building our internal capabilities while strategically reducing our reliance on contracted security services where appropriate.

This direction reflects our belief that public safety personnel are not simply individuals assigned to protect our facilities. They are valued members of our University community who contribute directly to the environment and culture we seek to create.

A stronger University-employed public safety team offers several meaningful advantages.

• First, it promotes consistency and continuity, allowing students and employees to become familiar with the people responsible for their safety. Familiar faces build trust, encourage communication, and create a stronger sense of connection.
• Second, it allows deeper relationships with our campus community. Public safety professionals who are directly connected to WesternU develop a greater understanding of our students, employees, campus activities, institutional culture, and unique operational needs.
• Third, it strengthens accountability and alignment by integrating public safety personnel more directly into the University’s mission, values, expectations, and operational priorities.
• Finally, it allows us to integrate our personnel more effectively with the sophisticated safety infrastructure already in place, including our Security Operations Center, monitoring capabilities, and emergency response procedures.

This transition will be thoughtful and deliberate. Contracted security partners will continue to play an important role in our overall safety model, particularly where specialized coverage, supplemental resources, or operational flexibility provide meaningful value.

Our objective is to establish the right balance of University-employed personnel, contracted resources, technology, and community partnerships, creating a sustainable public safety program that is both effective and responsive to our institutional needs.

The PSOC will play an important role in evaluating this longer-term direction and supporting recommendations that strengthen the University’s overall public safety capabilities.

A Shared Commitment to Continuous Improvement

As President, I firmly believe that a safe and supportive University environment is built through shared responsibility, open communication, and a collective commitment to one another.

Public safety is not defined by any single program, technology, department, or individual. It is a comprehensive system of people, resources, infrastructure, partnerships, and practices that must work together to protect and support our community.

The establishment of the Public Safety Oversight Committee reinforces our commitment to approaching this responsibility with the seriousness, collaboration, and sustained attention it deserves.

It also reflects our commitment to listening.

You told us that greater public safety visibility matters, and we are taking action. You told us how important it is to feel safe and supported throughout campus, and we are incorporating those perspectives into our planning. You asked for continued attention to these issues, and we are establishing an institutional structure dedicated to advancing that work.

As the Committee continues its efforts, we will keep evaluating our progress, communicating meaningful developments, and identifying new opportunities to strengthen our public safety practices.

I encourage every member of our campus community to stay engaged, to share concerns through established University channels, and to keep participating in the conversations that help make WesternU a safer and stronger institution.

Moving Forward Together

WesternU has always been defined by its commitment to Humanism, collaboration, and care for others. Those same values must guide how we approach the safety and well-being of our University community.

Our responsibility is not simply to respond to concerns as they arise, but to anticipate changing needs, invest thoughtfully in our capabilities, and continually strengthen the systems and relationships that support our students and employees.

The actions we are announcing today are both an immediate response to community feedback and a reaffirmation of our long-term institutional commitment.

I am grateful to our students for sharing their perspectives, to our faculty and staff for their continued engagement, to our Public Safety professionals for their dedication, and to the members of the newly established Public Safety Oversight Council for their leadership and willingness to serve.

Your voices matter. Your safety matters. And our commitment to protecting and supporting the WesternU community remains unwavering.

Thank you for your continued trust, partnership, and commitment to Western University of Health Sciences.

With appreciation and warm regards,
Robin Farias-Eisner, MD, PhD, MBA
President

Western University of Health Sciences