Safe Santa Fe

Please be aware of your surroundings and take the proper precautions to help us insure your personal safety while visiting our campus. Keep your personal belongings in sight or in a secure location. Park in designated areas and lock your vehicle if left unattended. In secluded areas be sure to walk with a friend. If at any time you feel uncomfortable walking alone, call 352-395-5519 and we will provide you with an escort.

FAQs

Safe Santa Fe App

What should I report?

Immediate Threats

If you see behavior that indicates a potential for violence or threatens anyone at or on Santa Fe College, please dial 911 or call the Santa Fe College Police Department IMMEDIATELY at 352-395-5555 and report the behavior with information including location, date and time, persons involved, descriptions, and witness. 

If you see behavior that indicates a potential for violence that concerns you call the Santa Fe College Police Department 24/7 at 352-395-5519 or the Santa Fe College Counseling and Wellness Center Mon-Fri 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. at 352-395-5508.

You can also get more information on the Assisting Students in Distress Resource Guide or download printable PDF version here.

How to Report

Please complete this online Say Something Report if you observe concerning or threatening behavior that suggests harm to SF students, staff, or visitors. 

What you need to know

No single tool or profile accurately predicts a person's potential for future violent behavior. On the one hand, individuals may exhibit one or more of the behaviors listed below and never respond with violence. On the other hand, someone may act violently without ever displaying any of these behaviors. Nevertheless, experience suggests the following behaviors may serve as warning signs of a potential for violence.

What is Your Role?

“If you see something, say something.” Your job is to report behavior that may be harmful to yourself or others. Warning signs can manifest themselves in many forms: one-on-one settings, group interaction, public behavior, letters, emails, blogs, websites, social networking sites, photos, phone calls, or text messages.  Student should inform any college employee or use this online Say Something Report.  College employees should tell a supervisor and report it directly using the online Report Form any behavior that may be cause for concern.

Do not ignore or downplay direct or indirect threats from any person, as they could escalate into serious incidents later on. To prevent the escalation of such incidents, every member of the campus community should learn to recognize and report behavior that is disruptive, intimidating, or could potentially lead to violence.

Warning Signs

The following list of “warning sign” behaviors is not intended to be fully comprehensive, but should help guide your reporting behavior:

  • Absenteeism (Unexplained)
  • Academic Decline
  • Alcohol/Drug Abuse
  • Anger/Rage (Excessive)
  • Anxiety (Excessive)
  • Appearance/Hygiene Decline
  • Behavioral Changes (Significant)
  • Bizarre Behavior/Statements
  • Bullying/Intimidation
  • Cutting Behavior
  • Depression
  • Disruptive Behavior
  • Disturbing Written/Oral Material
  • Domestic Violence
  • Fixation with Offenders of Violence
  • Fixation with Perceived Injustices
  • Homicidal Expression
  • Instill Fear in Others
  • Obsessively Suspicious/Paranoid
  • Physical Attack
  • Plans for Violence/Weapon Use
  • Sexual Assault
  • Social Isolation/Alienation
  • Stalking/Cyber Stalking
  • Statements about Doing Harm
  • Suicidal Expression/Attempt
  • Weapon Obsession

FAQs

Q1: What does SF do to keep its students safe?

  • SF is one of only four Florida College System institutions with sworn police officers on their staff.
  • SF PD has Mutual Aid agreements with ALL local law enforcement agencies in the community, including Alachua Sheriff’s Office, Bradford Sheriff’s Office, GPD, UPD, and City of Alachua PD, and FL Highway Patrol. 
  • SF PD provides “escorts” for students in the evenings from their classes out to their vehicles
  • SF PD provides RAD (Rape Aggression Defense) Training open to all female students & staff.
  • SF PD extends its reach through the Volunteer in Police Service (ViPS) program, whereby students receive training and provide auxiliary support to the sworn officers.
  • This week is “Safety Week” with SF PD spending extra time on all SF locations, speaking to students about how to keep themselves safe on campus and in the community
    • This website (Safe Santa Fe) and all its pages provide tips for personal safety
    • Say Something campaign makes it easy to report suspicious or concerning behaviors

Q2. What resources are available to SF students?

  • SF's Safety Awareness Week
  • Blue phones (Emergency Phones) are located throughout campus to use in the case of an emergency
  • SF has volunteers in Police Service
  • Safe and Secure Safety Tips
  • Rumor Control hot line 866-UFFACTS (866-833-2287)
  • Santa Fe Police Department
    • 352-395-5519 - non-emergency
    • 352-395-5555 or 911 - emergency

Q3. What preventative measures can students take to protect themselves?

Plan ahead by:

  • Being aware of available resources such as:
    • Who to call – SF PD 352-395-5519 or in the case of emergency 352-395-5555 or 911
    • Where the Police Department is located
  • Commuting and/or walking in groups rather than alone (where possible)
  • Notifying others of your intended whereabouts
  • Being aware of your surroundings

Q4: What is my role as a parent to help ensure my child’s safety?

  • Be aware of your child’s schedule (where possible)
  • Have regular communications with your child
  • Be aware of area events that your child may attend (where possible)

Q5. How is SF monitoring the assault cases?

SF’s Chief of Police and Student Affairs/Crisis Response Team are partnering with all local law enforcement and UF’s Crisis Response Team to do all we can to keep our students and community safe.

Q6. How is SF working with UF?

SF’s Chief of Police and Student Affairs/Crisis Response Team are meeting & coordinating with UF’s Team.

Q7. How is SF informing students and their families about safety?

SF utilizes these systems for timely warnings:

  • Notifications to students and staff via SF Email
  • A Banner on the SF webpage
  • Social media (Facebook, X (fka Twitter))

Q8. Why is SF not texting students and families?

While SF has an Emergency Notification System (ENS), it is only used for imminent threats, not timely warnings.  Timely warnings are handled by Notifications to students and staff via SF email, and to the community at large via social media.

Q9. These incidents happened at UF – just a few blocks from the Blount Center; what is being done to keep SF students safe at the Blount Center?

SF is one of only five Florida College System institutions with sworn police officers on their staff.  SF PD has a presence at the Blount Center the entire afternoon & evening when classes are in session, and they stay until the last student & staff leave the facility after 10:00 PM.