The Volunteer State Community College Campus Police Department has been recognized as one of the top college law enforcement departments in the nation. The website Bestcolleges.com ranked the Vol State police as number fourteen in the nation for campus security, using 2016 data. In addition to the crime data used in the study, the report also cites sex assault and theft awareness sessions held on campus, and an emergency alert system as reasons for the ranking. That alert process not only includes text messaging to students, but also an indoor and outdoor public address system for emergencies. Police hold regular drills at all of the college campuses to test the systems, and provide response training for faculty, staff and students.
The Vol State Campus Police Department, led by Chief Angie Lawson, is an independent law enforcement agency, responsible for providing police and security services for the Gallatin, Highland Crest, Livingston, and the Cookeville Higher Education (CHEC) campuses.
“Campus Safety is everyone’s responsibility,” said Chief Lawson. “I appreciate our faculty, staff, and students, and the role they have played in reaching the mark of the fourteenth safest campus in the nation.”
The department has full-time and part-time patrol personnel, which includes sworn and non-sworn officers. The department also employs a full-time administrative assistant and two full-time dispatchers. Police officers are on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week at the Gallatin campus. For more information visit https://www.volstate.edu/campuspolice
