The University Police Department is a familiar sight on Ball State's campus. They patrol the square around campus — from Wheeling Avenue to Tillotson Avenue to White River Boulevard to McGalliard Road.
Muncie Police Department, on the other hand, has jurisdiction all through the city.
But even with UPD's smaller area of jurisdiction, UPD officers get more training and are paid more.
The Ball State Daily News reported a two-part series on the differences, why Ball State officers receive more training and are paid more than their Muncie counterparts. We used records UPD, MPD and from the Ball State Board of Trustees and the City of Muncie to produce this series.
University gets more training than Muncie officers
By Casey Smith
They patrol what amounts to a small city, but there’s nothing small about the long hours of training that campus police have to complete in order to carry their badges — requirements that often exceed those in the surrounding city of Muncie.
“The officers are always expanding their knowledge and their abilities,” said Lt. David Bell of Ball State’s University Police Department. “We have some officers who have over 200 hours of training. It definitely prepares those in our department for a wide range of scenarios.”
The University Police Department and others like it around the country have a come a long way from the days when many schools simply hired security guards. Today, they’re sworn officers – and like police everywhere, their role sometimes falls into sharp public focus ...
Ball State officers get paid more than Muncie police, despite having a smaller jurisdiction
By Casey Smith
University police officers are often paid more than their city counterparts, despite having a smaller area to patrol.
Ball State UPD officers are no exception, averaging higher salaries than those working for the Muncie Police Department, in addition to the extra training they receive.
Between Muncie and Ball State police departments, pay wages vary amongst positions and levels of leadership. While Lt. David Bell of Ball State’s University Police Department said there are many new recruits coming into UPD, other officers have been with the force for more than two decades ...
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