Campus Safety and Policies
EMERGENCY ALERTS
- Safety Officers at Furman University receive their law enforcement authority from the State of South Carolina (Title 59, Chapter 116).
- This law provides campus police officers with law enforcement jurisdiction on the campus at which they are employed and the streets and roads through and contiguous to the campus property.
- The officers must complete the law enforcement officer’s certification training at the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy in Columbia, SC prior to performing police duties just as other law enforcement officers in South Carolina.
- Responsibility for campus safety and security resides in the Public Safety department.
- Staffed 24 hours a day, each day of the year, the staff is committed to providing courteous, excellent service to the Furman community.
- There are emergency telephones in all campus elevators, campus parking lots and campus walkways
The university subscribes to an emergency notification system called, “Immediate Response Information System” (IRIS) to provide quick communication, through email and telephone, to the campus community for emergency or urgent information. This includes severe weather, situations where the campus community could be at risk, clarification information regarding an emergency on campus and similar situations. Members of the campus community have the capability to review and update their contact information through Furman’s Web Advisor link.
GRIEVANCE PROCESS
Disputes may occasionally arise between members of the Furman University community. Students having serious complaints about any matter at the university are strongly urged to attempt an informal reconciliation with the parties involved. Complaints should be presented openly, without fear of reprisal and as soon as possible following an incident. If a student elects not to pursue the matter informally or if the informal resolution does not resolve the differences, the student may initiate a formal written complaint to the Vice President for Student Life. Written complaints which involve only students will follow current Individual Conduct regulations as stated in The Helmsman, www.furman.edu/helmsman. Written complaints submitted which involve a faculty or staff member will be referred to the Director of Human Resources or the Executive Vice President and Provost. (See Furman University Policies and Procedures Manual, Section 095.1, numbers 1 through 3.) If, at any step in the process, a designated decision maker was involved in the substance of the grievance, those individuals will not participate in any way in the disposition of the grievance. Anyone who submits a good faith complaint, either informally or formally, will be protected from retaliation or discipline. Anyone who willfully makes accusations that are proven to be false will be subject to disciplinary procedures as outlined in The Helmsman, www.furman.edu/helmsman.