Public Safety is a group of police officers on campus that provides a variety of services for students and the community. As first responders, they provide medical services, attend to campus safety issues, and store items. They are on-call 24/7, including holidays and university breaks. Currently, they are located in the small house on the southwest corner of US-41 and MacInnes Drive. Students may also call (906-487-2216) or text (906-421-4911) to report issues.
Public Safety is present at campus events as a preventative measure. They attend everything from the cardboard boat races during homecoming to commencement ceremonies. Lieutenant Marc Geborkoff says, “The primary goal is the safety of the university of student life and the people that work and live here. We want to make sure day-to-day operations function properly, and all our officers live up to that goal.”
They also try to have a close relationship with the student body. Officers run self-defense classes that students can take as a one-credit co-curricular. Additionally, Public Safety is involved with the committee for student activities. “We like to get out there and get to know students on a personal level. We offer a broad range of student programs from alcohol awareness to safety,” says Geborkoff.
Public Safety stores both weapons and bikes for students. When the snow starts falling, Public Safety lists times for students to bring their bikes in for storage during the winter. They also store weapons as they are not allowed in the residence halls. Students who hunt or even play paintball can utilize this service and check out their weapons when necessary.
They will attend to any issue called into them. This may be a fire alarm wrongly going off, broken glass on campus sidewalk, or even bats loose on the third floor of DHH. Geborkoff says, “We’ve had a call for an injured chipmunk one time, and our officer took care of that.” A sergeant on the force has experience with wildlife rehabilitation and helped the chipmunk to recover.
Some of the officers are also Michigan Tech graduates. Students can ask them all kinds of questions, from getting to know the area to where they can park in an emergency situation. Further information about the services offered are located on the Public Safety and Police Services page on Michigan Tech’s website.
