Roles, Challenges, and Institutional Responses of Security Personnel in Ensuring Campus Safety at Tangub City Global College

Abstract

Abstract. Campus safety is a fundamental concern in higher education institutions worldwide, yet the roles, experiences, and operational challenges of security personnel in government-funded Philippine higher education institutions remain underexplored. This qualitative descriptive study examined the roles, responsibilities, challenges, and institutional responses of security personnel at Tangub City Global College, a government-funded institution in Misamis Occidental, Philippines. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten (10) purposively selected security personnel, including both gate and roving patrol personnel with direct responsibilities for implementing campus safety and security operations. Data were analyzed through six-phase thematic analysis. Five overarching themes emerged: (1) Strict Enforcement of Safety Protocols and Institutional Policies, highlighting participants’ responsibilities in access control, campus patrols, and policy enforcement; (2) Difficulties in Managing Non-Compliant Students and Outsiders, reflecting the interpersonal and behavioral challenges encountered in maintaining campus order; (3) Institutional and Operational Challenges, encompassing personnel-related issues, theft incidents, resource limitations, and communication gaps; (4) Continuous Professional Development and Institutional Safety Strategies, emphasizing institutional initiatives that strengthened personnel competence through training, safety orientations, and competency certification; and (5) Inter-Agency Collaboration for Campus Safety, illustrating how partnerships with government emergency response and law enforcement agencies enhanced the institution’s overall safety capacity. The findings demonstrate that effective campus safety extends beyond routine security functions and depends on sustained institutional support, continuous professional development, and collaborative governance. By providing an in-depth qualitative account of security personnel’s experiences in a regional government-funded higher education institution, the study contributes to the growing body of literature on campus security management in resource-constrained educational settings and offers practical insights for strengthening institutional safety policies, organizational resilience, and community-oriented security practices in comparable contexts. Keywords: campus safety; higher education institutions; institutional safety management; qualitative research; security personnel