Issue link: https://let.epubxp.com/i/254119
7 www.officer.com February 2014 Law Enforcement Technology PUBLIC SAFETY their campuses. With a large popula- tion of Black Panthers and a sizeable Native American presence, KU needed to address the changes in their environ- ment. The city agreed. "It was in the late '60s, early '70s that [the city of ] Lawrence (Kansas) said you aren't giving any taxes, so you need to provide your own law enforcement," explains Phillips. "State legislators passed a law that started the police department at the university. Then we started our own PSAP." Lawrence was the pilot city for Southwestern Bell's basic 911. Located on the main campus of KU, this non- traditional PSAP has one administrator, one supervisor, and eight 911 operators, with two more positions pending. In fall 2013, 27,939 students were enrolled with their campus positioned directly in the middle of a city of 92,000. The main campus is around 1,000 acres. Phillips, who spoke at APCO 2013 on a panel titled, "Non-Traditional Communication Centers and NG911" told the audience, "If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck and acts like a duck, you figure out the rest." One if by air, two if by sea Another non-traditional PSAP, the Port of Seattle, serves not only the seaport but also Seattle-Tacoma International Airport with over 33 million people traveling through their jurisdiction every year. "While we are considered a non-tradi- tion, we function more like a traditional," explains Kathy McCaughan, communi- cations manager. With 16 full-time dis- patchers, two shift supervisors and one IT support person, the Port of Seattle PSAP is located in the airport and serves as primary for landlines and wireless calls that fall into their jurisdiction. They also serve as a secondary PSAP to cell phones for King County (Wash.) Sheriff 's Office. Seattle has 53 miles of seawater shore- line and the port ranks eighth largest in the U.S., hosting 21,000 jobs. Sea-Tac ranked as the 15th busiest airport in the U.S. in 2012, serving 309,597 aircraft operations and moved 283,500 metric tons of air cargo. In addition, this non- traditional will be offering services to a local jurisdiction in the near future. Population served "Our customers have a different dynamic," Phillips explains. KU's com- munity is younger, with an average age of 22 to 23, has a higher educa- tion level, and less poverty issues than those facing the population served by traditional PSAPs. "Our whole com- munity is a little different. We have kids that have never been away from home before," she explains. " We have individuals to whom the whole culture seems strange. The things we think of as being pretty routine if you were born in the U.S., are kind of weird." The fact that the population is transient also affects non-traditionals with airport populations that change daily, hospitals whose demographics shift every three to four days, and uni- versities that evolve every three to four years, not to mention each semester. McCaughan agrees a diverse popula- tion makes serving as a non-traditional unique. "We don't have major residen- tial areas. Our customers are our ten- ants, employees and travelers," she says." These factors make non-traditional customer service unique as well. Port of Seattle PSAP is the primary answering point for 911 calls at SEA-TAC International Airport, the Port of Seattle, and soon will take over calls for a local jurisdiction. Photo courtesy of the Port of Seattle Police Department LET_06-10SeaAirportCities0214.indd 7 1/24/14 12:36 PM