ASU PD, international students help keep campus safe through revived program
Tempe Campus Safety Aides (from left): Talent Goremusandu, Anirudh Lalichetti, Tarun Kumar Konka, Chief John Thompson, Director Robert Brems, Yogesh Kiran Masamsetty and Anderson Chigora. ASU photo
With four campuses spread across metro Phoenix and an in-person student population exceeding 78,000, the Arizona State University Police Department is charged with safeguarding a community that is easily comparable to that of a small city.
“ASU strives to be one of the safest communities out there,” ASU Police Chief John Thompson said. “This goal requires a communitywide commitment to safety.”
Though the department is nearly fully staffed, an unexpected but welcome development, according to Thompson, has been the strong involvement of international students in the Campus Safety Aide Program.
“It’s created new avenues for connection,” he said, “and allowed our officers to engage with international students in ways we hadn’t anticipated.”
Safety first
In the summer of 2022 — with funding supplied by ASU’s University Housing — Thompson, who at the time served as assistant chief, and Director of Office of Strategy and Innovation Robert Brems worked together to revive and modernize the Campus Safety Aide Program, which had been dormant for over 20 years.
The Campus Safety Aides are student workers trained by ASU police to conduct perimeter security walks of residential halls and key campus areas, assist students and visitors with directions and basic safety-related knowledge, and serve as a point of contact for officers giving real-time situational awareness. Once in place, this program quickly showed its value as calls for service for uninvited visitors, safety hazards, policy violations and theft throughout the residential halls lowered.
Although this program is opened to all ASU students, it has been the international students who have taken the lead, showcasing the power of initiative and service.
In fact, 24 of the 27 Campus Safety Aides are international students, including Ansh Gopinath, a student from India graduating this May with a bachelor’s degree in computer science.
When asked what motivated him to sign up for the program, Gopinath stated, “As a dorm student, I know how important safety felt. I wanted to help others feel that same sense of security.”
“I’ve built amazing connections with the housing staff, and it’s made every shift feel meaningful,” he added.
This May, 11 other Campus Safety Aides will also graduate.
Anirudh Lalichetti, also from India, said, “Student jobs like CSA help international students integrate better into the campus community, improve their communications skills and gain real-world work experience in the U.S.”
"These roles build confidence, foster cultural exchange and provide financial support. For me, it was also a great way to give back to the community and be part of something meaningful outside of academics,” Lalichetti said.
Talent Goremusandu, a student from Zimbabwe attending ASU for its strong global reputation, added, “One of the most important lessons I have learned working as a CSA is that safety is more than a task; it is a relationship. It requires approachability, vigilance and compassion. Working closely with the ASU Police Department allowed me to see the human side of law enforcement and how trust is built through service, integrity and community connection.”
Brems said: "The CSAs have fundamentally transformed the culture within our residential halls and across campus — an achievement that’s nothing short of remarkable. They’ve helped foster a safer, more connected community. Thanks to the dedication of these students, the program has been a resounding success on both the Tempe and Downtown Phoenix campuses."
He emphasized the scale and importance of the initiative.
"Our university is the size of a small city, and community involvement is essential to our success. We simply couldn’t do this without our committed, forward-thinking students. I couldn’t be prouder of what they’ve accomplished."
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