Welcome from the Chief

Yolanda Smith, Chief of Police

Yolanda Smith
Chief of Police/Executive Director of Public Safety

On behalf of the dedicated members of the Tufts University Police Department, I thank you for viewing our website. As community members of Tufts, we strive to maintain high professionalism and engagement with our respective communities internally and externally; we continue the learning process by participating in a plethora of training that helps us interact positively with our community members and create successful relationships.

As a twenty-four-seven police department featuring a hybrid response to calls for service, our officers are certified, and TUPD is accredited by the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission.  Our Campus Security Officers are also trained and serve as a non-enforcement cadre of team members who will likely interface with community members for calls for service that do not require initial police officer presence. Our Dispatch division is the team's heartbeat as they take calls for service from all four campuses and dispatch the best response accordingly.  The Threat Assessment division and Tufts EMS work hand in hand with the officers to provide services to the community.

Public Safety is our charge, and we will always do what we can to keep our community safe; however, we all know that safety is everyone’s responsibility, and together we can create a university filled with collaboration, trust, accountability, diversity, inclusion, and belonging. As you view our website, please get familiar with our features and options, and let us know what you think. 

Tufts University Police Department is a tangible resource to the community; we do not take that honor lightly. We know our differences are our strengths, and "our ability to reach unity in diversity will be the beauty and the test of our civilization." – Mahatma Gandhi. 

Best,
Yolanda

Yolanda Smith
Chief of Police/Executive Director of Public Safety