Swarthmore College is a highly selective liberal arts college located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, whose mission combines academic rigor with social responsibility. Swarthmore has a strong institutional commitment to inclusive excellence and nondiscrimination in its educational program and employment practices and encourages candidates who will further advance the goal of fostering a diverse and inclusive community. As one of the nation’s finest institutions of higher learning, Swarthmore College is global in outlook and draws students from around the nation and world. The 425‐acre campus is a designated arboretum, complete with gardens, rolling lawns, a creek, wooded hills, and hiking trails in the Crum Woods.

The opportunity:

The CRO is responsible for the safety and wellbeing of Swarthmore College students, campus property, community members, and visitors. The officer will be responsible for courteous and active engagement with the community. As an officer, you are the first responders to incidents involving the College and provide a service for routine and emergency calls to the College. You will conduct initial and follow-up investigations as needed and will respond to medical, fire, and intrusion alarm incidents. You will also need to be able to have clear communication, verbally and written, for making reports on incidents and investigations.

In this role, you will also be responsible for the efficient and effective operation of the multi-faceted Swarthmore College Communication Center, which will require multitasking by controlling incoming calls and management of outgoing calls to other campus departments. Officers will be responsible for courteously providing information and assistance via telephone, radio, or in person to faculty, staff, students, and visitors of the College. Officers will dispatch internal communications from the monitoring of CCTV, Access Control, from both fire and intrusion alarms, as well as key control of organizations’ keys for campus use. Public Safety is a 24/7/365 operation requiring coordination of communication and/or responding to incidents under demanding emergency conditions, such as inclement weather, as an essential skill. Public Safety will also provide ongoing training in a variety of areas, such as CPR/First Aid/AED, Stop the Bleed, De-escalation, and Mental Health First Aid.

This position has a comprehensive field training schedule for the first four weeks, where you learn and work on each shift and shadow an officer during this time, and at the completion, you will begin your designated shift.

Essential Responsibilities

• Patrol the campus on foot, by motor vehicle, or bicycle to deter criminal and traffic violations, detect safety hazards, facilitate the safe movement of traffic, detect and investigate criminal activity, and provide general assistance to students, faculty, staff, and visitors. Observe and report unsafe conditions, such as fire and safety hazards, lighting outages, and security violations.
• Promptly respond to reported incidents and calls for service and take appropriate action in the context of the situation and within the guidelines contained in the department’s Standard Operating Guidance and Field Training program.
• Immediately respond to building fire alarms or to areas within buildings that are protected by intrusion, panic, sprinkler, or other assistance alarm equipment.
• Immediately respond to fire and medical emergencies, investigate, and request fire/EMS department support as needed.
• Document complete and accurate reports concerning incidents and calls for service, including the investigation and conducting of interviews to ensure thorough reports of criminal acts, vehicle, and pedestrian accidents, complaints from community members, injured persons, suspicious activity, etc.
• Consistently enforce campus traffic safety and parking violations.
• Provide escorts and protection as assigned for students, employees, dignitaries, and movements of hazardous or highly valuable materials, and provide crowd control management duties at public events and direct motor vehicle and pedestrian traffic when large crowds attend special events, and other job-related duties as assigned.

Who you are:

• Excellent oral, written, and verbal communication skills to convey clear and concise information to management, the general public, staff, and students, such as giving directions, writing reports/incidents, explaining policy and procedures, and encouraging others to comply with requests.

What you bring:

Required Qualifications

• High School diploma or equivalent with a minimum of three years of experience in the security, public safety, law enforcement, and communications field, preferably in a college or similar environment, and/or experience in a busy office setting in a call-taking environment or an equivalent combination of education and/or experience.
• Valid Driver’s License and ability to operate motorized vehicles.

Preferred Qualifications

• College degree
• PA Act 235 Certification or PA Act 120 Certification
• De-escalation certification, mental health first aid certification
• APCO Public Safety Telecommunicator 1 certification

Physical Demands

• Must be able to: sit or stand for long periods of time; walk, run, climb, bend, stoop, and lift weights proportionate with the need to perform medical assistance; wear a uniform and equipment; and operate a motor vehicle.
• Lifting, pulling, or pushing heavy objects up to 40 lbs.
• Prolonged periods of sitting, standing, and walking.
• Bending at the waist, kneeling, or crouching.
• Must be able to traverse all types of terrain, including up and down hills and on off-road uneven surfaces.
• See objects in detail under various conditions (i.e., at night, up close, far away, and peripherally).

Working Conditions

• The position requires the Community Resource Officer to be exposed to environmental factors such as inclement weather, extreme heat and cold, and hazardous materials.
• Based on College necessity, shift schedules changes may result and overtime may be required.
• Required to be available to work during inclement weather or other emergency situations, even if the campus has otherwise canceled operations, in order to ensure continuous protection of the college community.

What You Will Get:

You’ll work at one of the world's most renowned liberal arts Colleges, with incredible benefits, a stunning 420-acre campus, and a collaborative work environment. Join a team of passionate, creative people who work hard and have fun supporting the College students, faculty, and staff.

We want to hear from you if you are excited about this role! For full consideration, submit applications with an uploaded resume. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the job has been filled.

The pay for this position is $23.58 per hour, which represents the College’s good faith and reasonable estimate of the range at the time of posting.

Act 153 Clearance Required by Position 

This position may regularly interact with minors. Under Pennsylvania Child Protective Services Law, (23 Pa. Cons. Stat. §§6301, et seq.) employees who have direct contact with minors are required to obtain the following background clearances prior to the start of employment:

• Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History (PATCH) through the Pennsylvania State Police
• Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance (PACA) through the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services
• FBI Criminal History Background Check (FBI Fingerprint).

MVR Clearance Required by Position

Due to operating a College owned motor vehicle while performing essential job responsibilities for this position, a motor vehicle report (MVR) clearance is required prior to the start of employment.

Preview our Benefits Flyer. We offer benefit plans starting at zero cost! Upon benefit eligibility, the College contributes 10% of an employee’s salary to their retirement account. Employees are 100% vested in their accounts on the date participation begins.

2025 Swarthmore Benefits Guidebook

Retirement Plans

Tuition Grant Program

Tuition Reimbursement Program

Paid Time Off (Staff)

Holiday Schedule

Swarthmore College actively seeks and welcomes applications from candidates with exceptional qualifications, particularly those with demonstrable commitments to a more inclusive society and world. Swarthmore College is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply.