Colleges & Universities

Case Studies

Dowling College Transitions from In-House to Contract Security

Situation

Founded in 1955, Dowling College, www.dowling.edu, is an independent,
coeducational college that serves more than 6,500 students at its historic Rudolph Campus on the banks of the Connetquot River in Oakdale, NY, the 105-acre Brookhaven Campus in eastern Long Island and a business center located near the Nassau-Suffolk border in Melville. Dowling offers Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral degrees in several disciplines through its four schools: Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business and Education. In 2007, Dowling College decided to transition from an in-house security program to a contract security provider and initiated a full review process.

“Our previous security regime was not particularly cost-effective, and we were looking for ways to streamline without sacrificing quality,” said Eric A. Kopp, Vice President for Administration at Dowling College. “We concluded that aligning with a contract security service that could provide a complete program tailored to our unique campus needs was the best way to get the desired return on our security investments.”

AlliedBarton Security Services, www.alliedbarton.com/highered, was selected for the physical security needs of the two busy campuses in Oakdale and Shirley, NY.

“We wanted our new security team to be woven into the fabric of our academic community,” said Ralph M. Sommer, Director of Compliance, Student Services, Dowling College. “While our in-house security team did a good job keeping the college population safe, we wanted our new provider to be more approachable and oriented to working with our diverse community. We also demanded comparable or better results from AlliedBarton with a special eye towards training and preparation for incidents and emergencies.”

Challenge

“There is nothing more important than ensuring that students are safe and ready to tackle the challenges of college life, so it is vital that well-trained, experienced and outgoing security professionals are in place,” said Jim Grant, Vice President of Operations for AlliedBarton. Recognizing the leadership challenge to building a responsive, respected and respectful staff, Grant appointed Michael Blangiforti, a former Detective Squad Commander for the NYPD, as Account Manager.

“After the team assessed the existing security program, we recommended that additional security personnel were needed as well as an established supervisory line of command,” said Blangiforti. “While working on a college campus is quite different from the day-to-day of municipal law enforcement, we knew that a strong well-prepared organization was common.” Roles were clarified and the competency and capacity needed for each was laid out in a clear and concise organization.

Flexibility to have the capacity for both scheduled and emergency needs was also top criteria for the contracting decision. The security program needed to support Dowling’s high profile campus events, including the school’s commencement ceremonies on the new athletic fields and social events.

“It is of vital importance that events held on our grounds go off without a hitch,” said Sommer. “We want everyone to be safe and secure and trust our security program.”

Solution

AlliedBarton presented a comprehensive security plan that ensured complete supervisory coverage and the necessary staffing for the campus posts. “We recommended promoting select officers to supervisory positions and created a platoon commander position to oversee each shift on each campus,” said Blangiforti. “We added bench-strength to the team with the addition of more officers and supervisors with strong security and law enforcement backgrounds. We reoriented the team through our training and day-to-day management to embrace a service culture.”

The Dowling College security program includes community patrols, managing all access control on campus including the residential dormitories and all other security operations.

“Dowling College believed in our program and sanctioned the lion’s-share of our recommendations,” said Blangiforti. “Because of that, we have the resources necessary to maintain a safe and secure campus. If students have late classes and are uncomfortable walking to the parking lot after hours, we provide an escort to take them safely to their car. Our officers walk the grounds regularly and are a visible presence. We are often the first face that someone sees on campus, and it is important that we are viewed as a trusted part of the Dowling College team.”

“Prior to joining Dowling College, I dealt extensively with public safety during my tenure as Chief Deputy of Suffolk and Nassau Counties,” said Kopp. “I understand the significance of having well-trained people on my team who are equipped with a solid, actionable plan. AlliedBarton presented a highly committed, well-trained security team, going above and beyond for our community each and every day.”

“Every single officer is fully trained and accredited to provide First Aid, including Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) and CPR and have these credentials before they begin work on our campuses,” said Sommer.

“We have an outstanding team of security professionals, many of whom have law enforcement backgrounds, and have established supervisory policies that ensure that there is always complete security control on campus,” said Blangiforti.

Result

The transition from in-house to contract security has elevated the level of service and quality as well as moved the program in the direction the college desired. Selecting a contract security provider with extensive experience in higher education was important to the program’s success. AlliedBarton’s knowledge of the higher education market, coupled with more than 50 years of security expertise, allowed the security team to become fully immersed in the campus’ culture and an integral part of daily operations.

Training and quality are reflected in the heroic actions of Security Officer James Cariddi who responded quickly when a vehicle carrying two infants went into the Connetquot River that flows along the Dowling campus. The two infants were rescued by Cariddi and their mother. Cariddi, a retired corrections officer from the New York City Department of Corrections, is a four year veteran security officer at Dowling College.

“Our security officers are the school’s first and primary line of defense and work in partnership with local law enforcement,” says Blangiforti. “Cariddi’s heroic actions represent the talent we have on this team.”

“Before joining forces with AlliedBarton, there was a regimented and distant feeling that existed between security and the constituency they served,” said Sommer, who was a community affairs police officer prior to joining Dowling College.

“AlliedBarton’s security team is highly experienced and well-trained, yet approachable. The security officers have a mentor-like relationship with our students and are highly respected and well-regarded on campus. They truly deliver service with a smile.”

“At our commencement ceremonies on our new athletic grounds, we needed to ensure the safety and security of our students, teachers, parents and visitors,” continued Sommer. “The graduation ceremonies were handled flawlessly with AlliedBarton woven into the fabric of the event. AlliedBarton delivers outstanding service each and every day while keeping costs under control. The AlliedBarton security team is a respected, valued and instrumental part of the Dowling College family.”

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