Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.)

UPD is always open: 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

It depends. During business hours (Monday – Friday, 8am – 5pm), contact Plant Operations to unlock a building: 826-3646. During non-business hours, a member of UPD will respond to an unlock request when they are available. Our officers may be responding to an emergency, so please be patient. You will need to show ID and have an authorized reason for entry. 

No: Our Dispatchers need to be available for emergencies. Use the A-Z Index online, or call the campus operator. Off-campus: 826-3011. On-campus: 0 or 3011.

No. Facilities Management is responsible for issuing and recording the issuance of all University keys and access cards: 826-3646. The Housing Office in the Jolly Giant Commons handles these responsibilities in the residence halls: 826-3451.

Yes. The department has paid, part-time student-assistants that work in LiveScan (fingerprinting) and serve as Public Safety Ambassadors. All majors and career interests are welcome to apply. UPD also partners with the Sociology Department to offer internships. 

Yes. Ride-alongs are generally reserved for people within the police academy, potential applicants, students enrolled in criminal justice courses at Humboldt, and students who may be interested in a law enforcement career. We have a ride along application that is to be completed prior to scheduling any ride-alongs.

Please visit the Parking website for answers to your Parking questions. 

There are different statistical reports required by law and by California State University policy. The University Police Department is required to report crimes monthly to the state Department of Justice, and annually to the California State University Chancellor's Office and the Department of Education. Additionally, UPD annually publishes the Cal Poly Humboldt Annual Security Report to comply with the Jeanne Clery Act and can be viewed on our Clery Report webpage. The Daily Crime Bulletin is available here. For more information contact our Records Supervisor.

No. The CSU directs all 23 campuses to follow the federal law which does not recognize or permit "medical marijuana" under California's Proposition 215. Anything less than a total ban on all marijuana on campus could jeopardize Humboldt's federal funding, including many types of financial aid to our students. If you are a "medical" marijuana user, you must store and use your marijuana off-campus. Anyone who possesses or uses marijuana at Humboldt will be cited and have their marijuana and paraphernalia seized as evidence.

California State University police officers are state-certified peace officers, with all the training, certification, and authority that a City police officer or County Sheriff has. This includes patrolling, making traffic stops, responding to crimes in progress, conducting investigations, writing citations, detaining and arresting violators, etc. At Cal Poly Humboldt, as a service-oriented department, our officers assist people with a variety of non-criminal calls on campus, and are also first responders to medical, rescue, and fire emergencies. University police also possess special authority to initiate sanctions against persons interfering with Humboldt's academic mission, including ordering dangerous or disruptive persons off-campus, and reporting violations of the Student Code of Conduct to the Dean of Students.

University police are empowered with legal authority as state peace officers and Cal Poly Humboldt staff members through the California Penal Code, the California Education Code, and the California Code of Regulations. University police at Humboldt and every other CSU campus are armed when on duty, in accordance with Chancellor's statewide directives first issued in 1975.

The primary duty area for Humboldt police is the main campus and the area within one mile of the campus (includes all of Westwood, Sunset, Northtown, Plaza/Downtown, and much of east Arcata and the Community Forest). Humboldt's officers are most often seen on the main campus and in central Arcata, but UPD authority can extend to the Marine Lab in Trinidad, the Observatory on Fickle Hill Rd, the Aquatics Center in Eureka, or any place in the State that the officers' duties take them.

Because so many students, staff, and faculty live, shop, and recreate in the area immediately around the campus, the University does what it can to make that area as safe for our community. This includes helping APD whenever UPD can, especially when APD does not have enough available resources to handle all the demands for service they might receive. In return, APD is always ready to go the extra mile to help Humboldt with an emergency situation on campus, a missing student in the forest, a serious crime investigation involving a student victim, etc. We regularly meet to train together, improve our operational relationships, and share valuable information about crimes, crime trends, and violators on and off-campus that could pose safety concerns to the larger community.

CERT is Cal Poly Humboldt's Campus Emergency Response Team, comprised of trained volunteer staff, faculty & students from many different departments and divisions. CERT members are trained to provide assistance to local fire and police departments in emergency situations. Visit the CERT website for more information.

Cal Poly Humboldt has multiple ways to communicate emergency information:

• Posting information to the Humboldt homepage
• Posting signs at campus entrances
• Alerts via Humboldt the RAVE Guardian App, email and text messages to your cell phone. 
• Posting to Humboldt's Facebook and Twitter page

Firearms, ammunition, switch-blade knives, dirks, daggers (knives with more than one edge sharpened), ice picks, non-folding knives with fixed blades longer than 2½”, bows & arrows*, swords*, nunchaku, metal knuckles, belt buckle knives, billy clubs, slingshots, air-powered (airsoft) replica guns, BB devices/guns, spot markers or paintball guns, laser guns, stun guns, Tasers®, and less lethal weapons.

*except for authorized Humboldt classes & recognized official Humboldt clubs. Arrows and swords may not be stored in Humboldt’s residence halls.

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