Each semester, tens of thousands of students flood BYU's 700-acre campus. At a school owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, safety isn’t just a priority — it’s a system.
That system is largely overseen by the BYU Police Department. Created in 1952 as a formal security force, BYU PD became a state-certified law enforcement agency in 1979, giving the department full policing authority on campus.
Policing at BYU extends beyond the officers on patrol — with training programs, support from other campus departments and federal reporting requirements.
Under the Clery Act, BYU, like all U.S. colleges and universities, must disclose campus crime and security policies. The federal law is designed to promote transparency and help students and campus visitors make informed decisions about campus safety. The most recent report, covering calendar year 2024, shows that many categories of criminal offenses on campus were reported as zero, with a few notable exceptions.
Fondling, defined as unwanted sexual touching, stands out as the most commonly reported offense, averaging about 15 cases per year on campus from 2022 to 2024. Motor vehicle theft and burglary are also among the more frequently reported crimes.
“Fondling is most often reported to us by the victim as a crime that occurs in private spaces (apartment, vehicle, etc), not out in the open,” Karen Ellingson, the BYU Police public information officer, said.
According to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education, 2023 data shows the University of Utah reported 55 fondling cases, compared to 17 at BYU. Many factors, including student population size, influence these numbers.
BYU Police say that theft and burglary are often crimes of opportunity.
“Taking steps to minimize opportunity can reduce the risk of becoming a victim of theft,” Ellingson said.
The department recommends locking windows and doors when leaving an apartment, securing your vehicle and keeping valuables out of sight. For personal electric vehicles, use a strong lock to secure them to bike racks outside of buildings and safeguard personal information like Social Security cards and passwords.
In addition to responding to crime, BYU Police emphasizes prevention through education and training along with other departments on campus.
BYU Student Wellness offers R.A.D. (Rape Aggression Defense) classes for women, taught by certified R.A.D. instructors, and cover women’s self-defense tactics.
BYU Police also provides online safety resources, including videos on active aggression scenarios and event safety, along with a campus safety guide.
Campus safety responsibilities are shared with BYU Security, a department created in 2020 to operate alongside, but separate from BYU Police. While BYU Police is a state-certified agency with full law enforcement authority, BYU Security focuses on non-criminal incidents, including building safety, parking and other campus operations.
BYU Police and BYU Security jointly offer campus safety training initiatives.
“These trainings cover multiple types of threats and personal safety topics,” Ellingson said.
Another tool available for anyone walking on campus is the SafeWalk feature on the BYU app. The feature allows a security dispatcher to monitor a user’s route in real time to ensure they reach their destination safely. To learn more about SafeWalk, visit the BYU Office of Information Technology website.
According to Niche, a research and review company, BYU has a third-place ranking for college campus safety, behind Joyce University of Nursing and Health Sciences in Draper, Utah, and Provo College, based on over 9,000 reviews of BYU’s main Provo campus.
According to BYU Police, the crime statistics reported in the annual security report are gathered from multiple sources on BYU’s campus, including the Title IX Office, BYU Housing and others. The BYU Integrity and Compliance Office compiles and produces the final report. Some victims choose to report incidents to other campus departments rather than the police.
“So, while we are aware of many of the crimes that are reported in the data, we are not always involved,” Ellingson said.
The next Annual Security Report, covering calendar year 2025, is required by federal law to be published by Oct. 1.
Together, these efforts reflect BYU’s approach to campus safety, with multiple departments working together to maintain a safe environment.