Pepperdine University Announces New Public Safety Partnership

The Pepperdine University Department of Public Safety (DPS) has partnered with Covered 6, a national leader in private security and protective services with significant experience in higher education, in an effort to enhance the department’s goals of providing superior community-oriented public safety. The collaboration will provide the University with the resources necessary to reinforce the department’s mission of continued excellence while also stabilizing departmental costs.

Covered 6, a full-service security and training company, will provide DPS with core public safety functions, combining Pepperdine’s values and standards with additional safety expertise and more rigorous training protocols for campus officers. This new partnership expands the University’s relationship with the company, which has supplemented the University’s public safety officer roster with contract officers, special event support, dignitary protection, threat assessment, and imminent threat response training for more than 12 years.

"As a long-time security partner of Pepperdine, Covered 6 has a profound appreciation for the work of the University's entire Public Safety team," says Chris Dunn, founder and principal of Covered 6. "We look forward to continuing our service to the Pepperdine community as we work together to elevate the safety and security operations for the University's unique learning environment."  

While DPS will continue to be overseen and managed by University employees, the bulk of its operations will be performed by the personnel of Covered 6, a decision that reinforces Pepperdine’s commitment to ensure a safe and secure environment for the campus community while respecting and prioritizing the dignity of those utilizing University programs and facilities and visiting the campus.

“Public Safety plays a crucial role in the well-being and security of our community, and I am grateful to our officers whose friendship and service to Pepperdine run deep,” says Phil Phillips (’88, JD ’92), senior vice president for administration and chief operating officer of Pepperdine University. “Covered 6 has proven to be a premier organization that pursues excellence, embodies the values we promote, and remains an invaluable partner to the University. I am excited for this unique collaboration that will serve faculty, staff, students, and residents well as we continue to cultivate significant and abundant campus life.”