To help colleges and universities be more safe and secure, the VTV Family Outreach Foundation (VTV) released a new integrated framework for improving campus safety called the 32 National Campus Safety Initiative (32 NCSI).

This first phase of 32 NCSI provides universities with a series of free, confidential, online self-assessment tools to improve comprehensive campus safety programs. Several institutions including the University of Florida and George Mason University have already completed pilot versions of 32 NCSI.

VTV is a national non-profit organization founded by the families of the victims and survivors of the Virginia Tech tragedy. Using the VTV's tools, colleges and universities will be able to better self assess safety measures across nine important areas: alcohol and other drugs, campus public safety, emergency management, hazing, mental health, missing students, physical security, sexual violence, and threat assessment.

"Institutions are sometimes criticized for campus safety efforts," says Peter Lake, the Chairman of 32 NCSI's Advisory Council and a professor of law at Stetson University. "For the first time, there is now a tool to help campuses implement effective programs across a wide variety of safety metrics."

"The 32 NCSI is designed to bring professionals together with a multi-department team approach that breaks down potential school silos," says Jen Day Shaw, associate vice president and dean of students at University of Florida. "Institutions will benefit from doing the process together as a team. Institutions will also benefit from the assessment results – determining areas that need improvement, prioritizing those, and utilizing the VTV panel of experts and professional staff to receive resources to address those priorities."

Universities can sign up for the program at www.32ncsi.org.