August 1, 2011

Safety programs honored by international police chiefs

Programs operated by Homewood Campus Safety and Security Services and by Johns Hopkins Medicine Corporate Security in partnership with the Baltimore City Police Department have been selected by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to receive the Michael Shanahan Award for Excellence in Public/Private Cooperation.

Johns Hopkins is the first university to win the award, which was created in 2006 to recognize agencies that have demonstrated outstanding achievements in cooperative efforts in public safety.

Homewood was recognized for the Johns Hopkins University Community Safety Program, which comprises the Hopkins Crime Watch Program, a collaboration with the city’s Block Watchers Program that provides extra “eyes and ears” for reporting suspicious activity or crime; and Hopkins Neighborhood Walkers on Patrol, which organizes foot patrols in neighborhoods surrounding the Homewood campus.

On the East Baltimore campus, the award recognizes the Baltimore Police Department/Johns Hopkins Medicine Corporate Security Public Safety, Shared Information and Technology Partnership. Among its many collaborations are Johns Hopkins’ Off-Duty Police Officer Program, which provides enhanced safety and security to the neighborhood; Operation PULSE, a crime prevention program; monthly meetings for exchanging information; participation in local community development ventures, such as HEBCAC and EBDI; and the sharing of video surveillance systems.

The Michael Shanahan Award for Excellence will be presented at the annual IACP convention being held Oct. 23–26 in Chicago.