Purpose

Beloit College is committed to enhancing the quality of campus life by integrating the best practices of safety and security with technology. Video camera utilization is a critical component of a comprehensive security program. Camera coverage of public areas is intended to deter crime and violations of campus policy while providing college security and others a valuable resource for investigating crimes and other incidents that have occurred on campus.

These guidelines for camera installation, footage access, and use address the college’s safety and security needs while respecting individual privacy of those attending, working, or visiting Beloit College. To ensure the protection of individual privacy rights and to ensure compliance with related state and federal laws, this statement will guide the process of installing surveillance equipment on college property. Additionally, these guidelines cover the viewing, retention, dissemination, and destruction of recordings.

Installation Procedures and Locations

Security camera use is limited to those areas that do not violate a person’s “reasonable expectation of privacy”, as that term is defined by law. In accordance, the college will limit camera positions and views of certain areas where there is a reasonable expectation of privacy.

Permanent camera locations will be made available to the campus community via signage and/or an internal access-only web page. All security cameras, including any in temporary locations or college owned cells phones used for monitoring, will only be installed or used with the advance approval of the Director of Security and the appropriate college senior staff members which may include the Dean of Students, Human Resources Director, or others depending on the proposed location.

College owned security cell phones will typically only be used as temporary body cameras if officers respond to an escalated and/or criminal incident where there have been issues with identifying individuals, repeated conflicts, or where there could be difficulty corroborating events in credibility contests. Footage acquired through these means will be saved and backed up to the college network to ensure the safety and accountability of everyone involved. Security cameras must be used in a professional, ethical, and legal manner consistent with all existing college policies. 

Security cameras and software will be installed and configured to prevent tampering with or duplicating recorded information. All new camera installations must connect to the college’s camera server, and management software.

Viewing

The existence of this policy does not imply or guarantee that cameras will be monitored in real time, however the college reserves the right to do so. Only authorized personnel as determined by the Safety and Security Director and appropriate college senior staff members have access to camera feeds and/or recordings. Only the Directors and Assistant Directors of the Safety and Security, and Information Technology Departments will have administrative access to system logs. Typically, footage review will only occur in conjunction with criminal or disciplinary investigations.

Retention and Release of Information

Images obtained through video camera recording normally will be retained for a minimum period of thirty (30) days. Recordings more than 30 days old will be overwritten unless required for criminal and/or judicial investigation in accordance with this policy. Video recordings will be stored in a secure location with access by authorized personnel only.

All information and/or observations made during the use of security cameras are confidential and can only be used or disseminated for official college, law enforcement, and/or judicial purposes. All requests from sources external to the college for the release of information and results obtained through surveillance monitoring or recording must be submitted to the Director of Security. All dissemination must be authorized by the Safety and Security Director, Communications and Marketing Director (for non-law enforcement release outside of campus), the Dean of Students, or other appropriate senior staff depending on the nature of the request.

Camera Locations

Available at request via Security to any valid Beloit College ID-carrying campus member.