The University of Texas at Austin is reshuffling how it handles campus safety, rolling the UT Police Department, the Office of Emergency Management, and the West Campus Ambassadors into a single new unit that reports directly to the president. Jay Swann, a veteran of Austin law enforcement, has been tapped as interim executive director while the university searches for a permanent leader to guide coordination and long-term safety planning on and around campus.
What the new office will oversee
UT President Jim Davis framed the move as a push to put all the major safety levers under one roof so they can work in sync instead of in silos, according to FOX 7 Austin. Under the revamped structure, UTPD, the Office of Emergency Management, and the West Campus Ambassadors will sit in a cabinet-level portfolio that advises the president. The university says it is already recruiting for a permanent executive director while Swann oversees the early rollout and basic groundwork for the new setup.
Built on prior West Campus changes
This reorganization did not come out of nowhere. It follows a summer ramp-up in West Campus patrols and related safety spending that created a dedicated West Campus patrol district and substation in the neighborhood, with officers from UTPD and the Austin Police Department coordinating patrols and cross-training together. UT officials said that the effort brought roughly two dozen officers into the mix and drew new patrol boundaries as part of a multi-million-dollar safety initiative. Details of that West Campus expansion are laid out by UT Austin News.
Interim director's experience
Swann arrives with a long resume in local policing. He is a former Austin police officer with decades of investigative and tactical work, and the Texas Attorney General lists him as a member of its cold-case advisory committee. Public records and biographical notes cite assignments in homicide investigations, special investigations, and tactical units, experience that advocates say could help connect day-to-day policing with broader emergency planning. Texas Attorney General provides an overview of Swann's law-enforcement background.
Reaction from student advocates
Campus safety advocates are cautiously optimistic, saying the new structure looks promising as long as it comes with follow-through and stable funding. "To have a president not only say that they support public safety but then keep taking actionable steps to show that through action is phenomenal," Joell McNew, president of SafeHorns, told FOX 7 Austin. Advocates also say that a central office could make it easier to track what is working, especially for programs like the West Campus Ambassadors, and to line up city and university resources instead of leaving them scattered.
What’s next for students and neighbors
UT says the search for a permanent executive director is already underway and that the interim office will focus on coordination, long-term sustainability, and community engagement while it finalizes roles and reporting lines. Students and West Campus residents will be watching to see whether the new office brings clearer accountability between UTPD and Austin police and whether all the new investments show up as measurable improvements in safety. Coverage from the Daily Texan and other local outlets has followed both the earlier West Campus patrol expansion and the neighborhood concerns that helped drive this latest decision.
