Calloway leads the way to safety at FAMU
Photo by Vaughn Wilson
By Vaughn Wilson
Special to the Outlook
When it comes to accolades at FAMU they are plentiful. It is one of the most decorated HBCUs in the country. Currently ranked nationally as the No.1 Public HBCU, it is now also recognized as one of the safest campuses in the country.
In a graduated effort to increase the organizational structure, policies, communications, personnel and emergency response equipment to the highest standards, FAMU has been on a path to excellence since hiring Terence Calloway in 2013. Calloway, who had served as Chief of Police at Austin Peay State University in Tennessee, has ambitions of making FAMU a model HBCU campus.
He is well on the way. FAMU Police Department was awarded an Advanced Law Enforcement accreditation on Nov. 13, by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc.(CALEA).
<iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/
That makes FAMUPD the first and only HBCU police department to be accredited by three separate law enforcement accrediting agencies: Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation, Inc., (CFA), International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Accreditation (IACLEA) and CALEA.
“When I came to FAMU the first thing I had to do was get buy-in from our officers,” Calloway said. “That was followed by support from my boss Dr. William Hudson and Dr. (Larry) Robinson. Getting this accreditation was a long journey. In our first assessment for accreditation last May, it was not good. We were told that we weren’t ready.”
That turned out to be the motivation that FAMUPD needed to press through and prepare for full accreditation.
“We were angry,” Calloway said. “We decided that no one was going to tell FAMU that we can’t do something.”
The enthusiasm worked. What ensued was a dedicated effort to put the proper protocols in place to attain the accreditation and make history by attaining three of the highest accreditations available to campus law enforcement.
Calloway is well aware of the emphasis that campus safety plays when parents have to decide where to send their children to school. The advancement of the FAMU Department of Public Safety has been acknowledged by Alarms.org, an international public safety resource. Alarms.org ranked 490 college campuses in America and FAMU chimed in at No. 201. It’s a great achievement considering that community colleges and small private institutions were included in the study.
Appointed to Assistant Vice President of Campus Safety to add to the chief of police title, Calloway is committed to continuing FAMU Public Safety through technology and interaction.
“When I came to FAMU, students would say that they never saw FAMU police officers unless they were responding to something,” Calloway said. “One of the first things I did was direct our officers to get to know the people around campus and most importantly the students. There is a bond of trust that develops from visibility in this instance.”
One of the biggest assignments for FAMU PD during this pandemic has been assisting with the operation of the COVID-19 testing site on campus at Bragg Memorial Stadium. Particular strain was placed on the traffic control division of the department and Calloway commends them for outstanding service.
“First, I would like to send a special commendation to Tanya Tatum and her team for working tirelessly every day since March to make sure that all aspects of operating the COVID testing site on campus went smoothly,” he said. “It is a great asset for our faculty, staff and students to be able to walk down to our own football stadium and get the necessary testing.
“Second, for our officers of FAMU parking services, they put in the effort to ensure a smooth traffic pattern to facilitate successful implementation of the testing site. We’ve transported students in our buses from our transportation department, so it’s a collective effort to make sure that we are one FAMUly.”
