Bruin Family Connect

Dear Bruin Parents and Families,

My name is Steve Lurie, and I am the inaugural Associate Vice Chancellor, leading UCLA’s new office of Campus and Community Safety.  The Bruin Family Connect Newsletter has offered me the opportunity to introduce myself and my teams, share our philosophy on a holistic approach to safety on campus, and discuss our goals for the future.

I am, in my heart, a Bruin for life.  I graduated from UCLA with a BA in cultural anthropology in 1994, and went on to a 28-year career with the Los Angeles Police Department.  During those years, I attended Loyola Law School and was admitted to the California Bar in 2002.  My police career took me to all corners of Los Angeles, from South Los Angeles to Bel Air, from the San Fernando Valley to San Pedro.  I was fortunate to have a broad, varied, and enriching leadership journey, culminating at the rank of Commander, where I led police service delivery on the west side of Los Angeles.  I was in this role when the conflict in the Middle East led to nationwide protests and demonstrations, including on our UCLA campus, and was called upon to lead the law enforcement response to address the tremendous campus safety issues these presented

As I drove away from campus after coordinating the removal of the Royce quad encampment, I told myself that if there was ever a possibility – any chance – that I could help enhance public safety at my beloved UCLA, I would jump at the opportunity.  And then I returned to Los Angeles and continued my LAPD journey.

As UCLA recovered from the fallout from the encampment and related activities, it became clear that an improved, streamlined public safety apparatus was urgently needed.  The Office of Campus and Community Safety was created in late 2024.  I was humbled and honored when, in February 2025, Chancellor Julio Frenk offered me the leadership of this entrepreneurial, first-in-the-nation effort. I report directly to Chancellor Frenk, and the teams that keep UCLA safe report directly to me.  This streamlined decision making has already yielded benefits to our community.

Chancellor Frenk has described campus safety as his meta-priority. Bruins cannot excel in the classroom, the operating room, the laboratory, on the field of sport if they are not safe.  It is my charge to coordinate the many teams that work to provide this blanket of safety.  At UCLA, this means so much more than the absence of crime.  In fact, we have a campus that is historically – and remains - extremely safe in the traditional sense.  The Office of Campus and Community Safety seeks to move well beyond the basics.  We aim to have all in our Bruin community feel safe, and have the intellectual and emotional freedom to do their critical work.

To keep our community safe, we rely on two exemplary organizations.  The Office of Emergency Management (OEM) works to prevent and prepare for major events and crises on campus.  Our campus has faced floods, wildfires, and earthquakes. We regularly welcome tens of thousands of fans to Pauley Pavilion, and will soon host the world’s athletes for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic games.  Emergency managers in our office provide training and planning expertise to every community member so UCLA can be ready.  When the inevitable does occur, OEM activates and manages our Emergency Operations Center, where UCLA coordinates response activities in order to return to status quo as soon as possible.

The UCLA Police Department is a state-certified full-service police agency providing 24/7 patrol and emergency response to Bruins throughout Southern California.  When a community member dials 9-1-1 from campus or from a UCLA property near campus, our own team of professional communications operators answers their call and dispatches our UCLA officers to help.  This system ensures that the officers can quickly respond to our community’s call for help and are specially trained and have a deep understanding of the unique UCLA culture.  The UCLA Police Department also manages several other safety programs, often dispatching Public Safety Aides or student Community Service Officers to handle non-emergency calls for service. 

The synergy between these entities consistently leads to UCLA being better prepared to respond to a variety of emergencies, having more rapid response times, and higher community satisfaction with public safety than in the broader LA community. 

In closing, I would like to share some important campus safety resources with each of you:

Bruin Alerts:

To receive emergency updates identical to those your student or family member does while on campus, please join our Bruin Alert system by texting “Bruinalert” to 888-777.  These alerts, while rare, offer emergency notifications and instructions to community members.

Bruin Safe Online:

The Bruin Safe Online website, at bso.ucla.edu, offers as 24/7 safety information portal.  When a major event potentially effects UCLA, the world is watching.  This can often lead to rumors, incorrect social media posts, and other inaccurate news. Please use Bruin Safe Online as a place to access facts about safety on campus.

Bruin Safe App:

The Bruin Safe App, available for iOS and Android, is an information resource intended for all Bruins to learn more about services available to them.  It also has a location sharing feature and the ability to summon emergency responders in real time.  All Bruins should have this app available on their mobile devices.

UCPD Instragram:

Our community consumes so much of its important information from social media, and we aim to be present in that space as well.  Please follow UCPD on social media to stay in touch with campus safety events, emergencies, and other critical information.

I am thankful and full of optimism as I return home to UCLA.  I, and the OCCS family, will continue to work 24/7 as we innovate and improve.  We are dedicated to a safe UCLA, where Bruins live, work and play in an environment that supports excellence and provides a campus, and a broader community, where they are safe, they feel safe, and they can continue to thrive.

Best regards and Go Bruins!

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