Temple University Reports Progress on 2023 Public Safety Audit: 56 of 75 Recommendations Completed

This article was originally reported in June 2025. A latest update from November 2026 has been added at the end.

On June 2, 2025, Temple University reported that more than 95% of the 75 recommendations from its 2023 public safety audit had been completed or were in progress. The university’s online Safety Initiatives Dashboard listed 56 recommendations as fully completed (Temple Now, June 2, 2025).

The 2023 Audit

The audit of Temple’s Department of Public Safety was carried out by 21CP Solutions, the firm of former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, and released in April 2023. The 131-page report made 75 recommendations. In September 2023, Temple launched the Safety Initiatives Dashboard, a public web page that shows the status of each recommendation (same source).

By June 2025, completed recommendations named in the university’s update included 12 on training and development, 11 on collaboration and communication, 10 on strategy and administration, four on policies and procedures, four on technology and infrastructure and one on personnel. Those categories add up to 42; the article did not explain how they relate to the dashboard’s total of 56.

What Changed

Training and emergency planning. Temple police received training on responding to on-campus protests and demonstrations, and more new training in early 2025. In summer 2024, nearly 50 university leaders took part in a First Amendment tabletop exercise, and the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) ran incident response training for university leaders in August 2024. A second tabletop exercise with several scenarios was planned for summer 2025. OEM also drafted a new emergency operations plan, which President John Fry approved in January 2025. “It was a big success and we’ll continue to hold these,” said OEM Director Len Clark.

Staffing. The department hired 19 police officers over two years and had four cadets in the police academy. It created new positions including a deputy director of organizational affairs, an associate director of administrative operations, a captain of professional standards and advocacy, a director of tactical and professional development, and a captain of the engagement unit and security operations. Officers moved to 12-hour shifts, made permanent in November 2023.

Patrols and technology. The “Park and Walks” program, launched in October 2023, increased foot patrols, adding about 130 patrol hours a month. Under a new annual upgrade process, several hundred security cameras are replaced each year.

“We are proud of the significant progress made to Temple Public Safety over the last two years,” said Jennifer Griffin, then chief of police and vice president for public safety. President Fry said the progress since the audit “has helped guide the Department of Public Safety’s operations” (all from Temple Now, June 2, 2025).

Safety Resources for Temple Students

Temple’s main campus is in North Philadelphia, a dense urban neighborhood. New students, including international students, should set up these university services before classes start (Temple University Public Safety):

TUalert: the university’s emergency notification system. Register your phone number to get alerts.
TUsafe: Temple’s personal safety app, with one-touch access to the university’s safety resources.
Walking escorts: students can request an escort on Main Campus and the Health Sciences Campus. Contact numbers for Temple Police, EMS and escorts are on the department’s Contact Us page.
Flight: a nighttime fixed-route shuttle run by Campus Operations.
Crime data: like all U.S. colleges that take part in federal student aid programs, Temple publishes an Annual Security and Fire Safety Report under the Clery Act, and the department posts patrol maps. Checking these before choosing off-campus housing is a good idea.

Latest Update (November 2026)

On November 6, 2026, Temple announced that Joel Dales, a 36-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department, would become vice president for public safety on December 7, 2026, after a national search. Dales was serving as a deputy commissioner overseeing the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility. Denise Wilhelm, interim vice president since July, will continue as executive deputy director. The announcement said all key recommendations of the 21CP audit have been implemented (Temple Now, November 6, 2026).

About Temple University

Temple is a public research university in Philadelphia. It is ranked No. 109 among national universities in the 2027 U.S. News Best Colleges ranking, according to Forward Pathway’s ranking database. Admissions, cost and enrollment data are on our Temple University school page.

References

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