"The Campus Walkway as Classroom: Teaching Belonging Through Care-Centered Public Safety"

Abstract: On many urban public college campuses, Public Safety staff are among the first and most consistent institutional representatives students encounter during moments of transition, uncertainty, or stress. While these interactions are often framed through an operational or enforcement lens, they also function as powerful teaching moments that influence students’ sense of belonging, trust, and agency within the campus community. This session reframes campus safety as a human-centered pedagogical practice by examining how community police practices and presence along the Lehman College campus walkway transform a shared space of movement into a space of connection. As one of the most visible and frequently used areas on campus, the walkway has become a living classroom where daily social interactions—greetings, informal conversations, wellness check-ins, and proactive support—shift perceptions of Public Safety from authority figures to approachable partners in student success.