Safety Resources
Your safety is our priority.
Creighton is committed to providing resources to ensure our community is safe. Below you’ll find information related to incident reporting, personal safety devices and safe transportation options, and a wide range of other safety-related resources. We’ve also provided guidance on what to do in active shooter situations and severe storms, as well as what to do if required to shelter in place.
If you have an emergency
- Call Public Safety on the Omaha campus at 402.280.2911
- In Phoenix, call 911
Incident Reporting
The Department of Public Safety dispatcher is available 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. To report an incident on campus, request assistance or ask a question, please call the Department of Public Safety using one of the numbers below. For quick access when needed, we recommend you add these numbers to your cell phone’s contact app.
Emergency Line: 402.280.2911
Business Line: 402.280.2104
To report an incident in person, visit the Public Safety office in the Schneider Building at 2222 Burt Street. Visitors can park in Lot 38, which is located on the west side of 23rd Street, just north of Burt Street. There is always someone on duty at this location to assist the Creighton community.
Tell Someone
If you want to privately express concern for a fellow member of the Creighton community or report harassment, discrimination or grievances, visit the Tell Someone website, or call the Tell Someone reporting line at 402.280.4400. Note that to file a secure report on the website, you will need to log in with your NetID and Blue password.
Tell Someone should not be used to report an emergency—any emergency should immediately be reported to the Department of Public Safety at 402.280.2911 in Omaha or 911 in Phoenix.
Additional Reporting Resources
The Office of Title IX and Civil Rights Compliance works to foster an environment that is welcoming and inclusive to all Creighton community members. In addition to using the Tell Someone online form, you can report harassment and discrimination by calling 402.280.3189.
Creighton’s Risk Management Office seeks to pursue open communication, cooperation, collaboration and proactive risk management with administrators, trustees, officers, faculty, staff, students and the public. For more information, call 402.280.5833. You can also report an incident online.
To report sexual violence, contact the Office of Title IX and Civil Rights Compliance at 402.280.3189. If you, or someone you care about, needs additional resources related to sexual violence, contact the Violence Intervention & Prevention (VIP) Center at 402.280.3794.
Students who need to report a complaint about a specific office or department—or have not been able to resolve a concern with another resource at Creighton—can file a complaint with the university. Visit the Student Complaints page to learn more and submit a complaint.
POM: Peace of Mind in The Palm of Your Hand
The POM device is your complete personal safety system designed to give you methods to proactively and reactively protect yourself. This key-fob sized device (and related smartphone app) can give you instant access to Creighton University Public Safety or your friends and family—anytime, anywhere.
How POM works
The POM provides three essential functions when needed in an emergency: a 911 phone call, geolocation tracking, and personal profile information.
- POM is activated with three clicks on the fob button—there’s no need to carry your phone in-hand, remove your gloves, or unlock your phone.
- A speaker and microphone in the rechargeable fob allow you to speak directly to the dispatcher.
- Your exact geolocation and personal profile (including medical info) will be transmitted to the dispatcher via mobile data or WiFi.
- Emergency calls made outside campus boundaries will go to a 911 dispatcher, anywhere in the United States.
- A secondary alert can send a predefined text or email to a friend by holding the button for five seconds.
Additionally, the walking escort feature sends an alert if you don’t reach an intended destination in a timeframe you define.
Get Your POM!
Creighton wants to help both our students and employees easily get the POM. You can either log into the NEST to order it, or you can purchase it directly with a credit card from Card and Parking Services in Harper 1090. The cost is $150 per device for the life of the POM. You will receive pickup instructions via email within 1-2 business days. If expedited service is required, please call Public Safety at 402.280.2104 after making the purchase.
Transportation
We offer a variety of transportation options to help ensure your safety after hours.
- JayRide: This free transportation service is offered in Omaha from 9 p.m.–2 a.m. Fridays and 11 p.m.–2 a.m. Saturday through Thursday. Transportation is available anywhere within the area bound by Dodge and Cuming streets, from 15th to 38th streets. You can contact JayRide at 402.546.8294.
- CHI Health Clinic Transportation: If you need non-emergency transportation to the CHI Health Priority Clinic outside of the hours our campus shuttle operates, call Public Safety at 402.280.2104. The dispatcher will send a vehicle to your location; please allow up to 30 minutes for the vehicle to arrive.
Environmental Health and Safety works to protect Creighton’s people, research, and the environment. We provide training and services to help with safety compliance across campus.
Mary Duda, MS, CHMM
Laboratory and Chemical Compliance Program Manager
mjduda@creighton.edu
402.546.6404
John Baxter
Program Manager
jtbaxter@creighton.edu
402.546.6269
Phoenix Support
Michael Ochs, MPA, CIH, CSP
Summit Health & Safety, LLC
summithealthsafety.com
480.760.5260
To stay safe from fires, we encourage all students, faculty and staff to review the resources below.
- Fire Safety Handbook: This resource contains general fire prevention tips and emergency procedures for the entire campus. It also includes a section focused on fire prevention in our student residential facilities.
- Open Flame Regulations: This document provides mandatory procedures for those who plan to burn an open flame or use a recreational fire pit on campus grounds.
402.280.2104
If you need a student health provider, counselor on duty, residence life, campus minister or other university responder—for non-emergency reasons—call Public Safety at 402.280.2104.
If you’re experiencing a mental health crisis, you can also call Student Counseling Services, which offers crisis services to students during business hours, as well as after-hours support for risk assessment and crisis stabilization.
- During business hours, call 402.280.2256 (or visit our office in Markoe Hall) and indicate to the front desk staff that you are in crisis.
- After hours, call 402.280.2256 and select the option for after-hours crisis support. Anyone who has a concern about a student can use this resource.
The Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) Center is a free, confidential resource for Creighton students, faculty, and staff. We support individuals following incidents of sexual assault, dating or domestic violence, stalking, and other related issues. This support is for both primary survivors (individuals who have experienced an act of violence) and secondary survivors (friends, roommates, parents, etc.).
To speak with us 100% confidentially, email our team or call 402.280.3794.
Active Shooter or Assailant Situations
On a national level, active shooter or assailant situations have increased and are becoming serious threats to any facility that is open to the public. At a college or university, these situations occur when an intruder enters a campus building or grounds and threatens the personal safety and welfare of the students, faculty, staff, and guests. The events are usually unpredictable and evolve rapidly, demanding response decisions that can be influenced by different variables. Additional characteristics of these situations are:
- The threat posed by the intruder (i.e., suspect) is not immediately contained, and there is risk of death and injury
- The situation leaves little or no time for proper planning and requires law enforcement to take immediate action
- As law enforcement responds to the scene, the suspect is actively killing or causing serious, life-threatening bodily injury to multiple victims; the suspect’s overriding objective appears to be mass murder rather than other criminal conduct
- The situation can—and often does—involve the suspect taking hostages when law enforcement arrives
- It is considered the greatest threat to a campus community
Creighton faculty, staff, and students should immediately report any potentially threatening persons on campus who appear to be armed (with a bladed instrument or firearm). This is true crucial even if the person is not currently engaged in an act of violence.
- Call Public Safety at 402.280.2911.
- Secure doors if possible and move out of sight—away from doors and windows; if you can’t lock the door, attempt to barricade it with furniture as safely as possible.
- Turn the lights off and close any blinds or curtains.
In this situation, it’s important to trust your instincts and take action to protect yourself and survive. Generally, you’ll have three options, and each poses its own question.
- Run: Can you safely escape? Make sure to leave your belongings behind—except your cell phone if it’s within reach.
- Hide: Is there a good place to hide? Look for a hidden location or find something to hide behind.
- If you’re outside, be prepared to drop to the ground or run to a safe place for cover. Move or crawl away from gunfire, trying to utilize any obstructions between you and the gunfire. Remember that many objects of cover may conceal you from sight but may not be bulletproof. When you reach a place of relative safety, stay down and do not move. Do not peek or raise your head to see what may be happening.
- If you’re indoors hide in a room with a door that locks; blockade the door with furniture or other heavy objects; close the blinds; turn off the lights; remain quiet, spread out from other individuals in the space; and stay on the floor away from doors and windows. If you can safely and quietly do so, report the location of the assailant and plan with others in the room about what you’ll do if the assailant enters.
- Fight: Can you immobilize the assailant? An individual must use their own discretion about when to engage an assailant for survival.
In these situations, try to warn others, help others to escape and stay calm, and help the injured in whatever way you can. Report an incident on the Omaha campus to Public Safety at 402.280.2911. In Phoenix, call 911 to report an incident. Do not assume someone else has reported the incident and be persistent until the call goes through since phones may be jammed.
When a dispatcher responds to your call, calmly identify yourself, provide your exact location, and answer the dispatcher’s questions. If it’s safe to do so, take the time to get a good description of the assailant. Note height, weight, sex, race, approximate age, clothing, method and direction of travel, and (if known) the assailant’s name. If the assailant is entering a vehicle, note the license plate number, make and model, color, and any notable characteristics. All of this takes only a few seconds and is of the utmost help to the responding officers.
When arriving, first responders’ priority is to identify the assailant. To prevent being mistaken for the suspect, do not scream, yell, point, wave your arms, make sudden movements or run toward law enforcement. Do not hold anything in your hands that could be mistaken for a weapon (including cell phones). Be quiet and compliant, showing officers your empty hands and following their instructions. Provide as much information as you can, including the number of assailants, their location, physical descriptions, and the number and types of weapons being used. When it is safe to do so, you will be given instructions as to how to safely exit your location.
In the case of severe weather, it’s vital that everyone in the Creighton community knows what to do and where to go. Familiarize yourself with the locations of storm shelters in the buildings you frequent before an emergency. During a tornado warning or severe storm warning, go to a building’s lowest level, away from windows, and into an interior room or hallway. If you are outdoors and unable to reach shelter, lie flat in a ditch or low spot and cover your head with your hands. If you’re indoors, monitor a weather radio or cell phone until the storm warning has expired.
If you are injured or need help during a storm, call Public Safety at 402.280.2911 for emergency assistance.
Severe Storm/Emergency Weather Information
In the case of severe weather, it’s vital that everyone in the Creighton community knows what to do and where to go. Familiarize yourself with the locations of storm shelters in the buildings you frequent before an emergency. If you are not near a storm shelter during a tornado warning or severe storm warning, go to a building’s lowest level, away from windows, and into an interior room or hallway. If you are outdoors and unable to reach shelter, lie flat in a ditch or low spot and cover your head with your hands. If you’re indoors, monitor a weather radio or cell phone until the storm warning has expired. For additional information, call 402.280.5800.
If you are injured or need help during a storm, call Public Safety at 402.280.2911 for emergency assistance.
Guidance on Sheltering In Place
Shelter-in-place refers to the need to remain where you are for your own safety. While Creighton employees and students generally cannot be forced to shelter-in-place, there are circumstances when university officials and emergency personnel will order that everyone must stay where they are for their own safety and well-being. Some of these circumstances include:
- Severe weather
- Hazardous materials
- An intruder on campus
- A hostage situation
- Any situation where it is best for you to stay where you are to avoid a threat
The reason for the shelter-in-place order may not be immediately communicated to everyone. If a shelter-in-place order is issued, be prepared to:
- Stay alert for instructions and updates as they become available from the emergency personnel and university administrators
- Do not leave if class is in session; faculty should not allow any students to leave if possible
- Those in other buildings, such as dorms, should remain there and encourage others to do the same
- Remain calm and attempt to keep others calm
- Stay away from windows, doors, and outside walls
- Remain where you are until you’re told everything is all clear by emergency personnel; but do not leave until you are sure of the identity or source of the person making the announcement
Contact Information
Emergency: 402.280.2911
Business: 402.280.2104
Schneider Building
2222 Burt Street
Omaha, NE 68178
