The University of Houston’s Police Substation serves students at the Welcome Center on Saturday Feb 21, 2026, in Houston, Texas. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
On Jan. 20, UHPD inaugurated a new police substation in the Welcome Center retail space facing Martin Luther King Boulevard.
The substation was opened to provide a convenient location for students, faculty and staff to connect directly with UHPD.
“As part of our long-term effort to strengthen campus security, the substation will increase officer presence, improve response times and make it easier for community members to connect directly with UHPD,” said chief of police Ceaser Moore.
The substation is part of the University’s ongoing plan to improve campus security and address student concerns.
Over the past year, the University has added 80 safety and security personnel to increase on-the-ground coverage, upgraded and repositioned more than 120 cameras for improved real-time monitoring, launched a project to enhance emergency call for assistance stations across campus and accelerated a $21 million campus lighting project.
Some students said the University implements security measures only after incidents occur rather than taking preemptive action.
“The whole University wasn’t built yesterday so I feel like the UH has had ample time to think about what they could do to prevent offenses from happening to students,” said management information systems sophomore Asahbi Olaniyan. “But every attempt that they have made at increasing police and security presence has only been reactive and not ever preemptive.”
Over the past year, students have voiced concerns about campus safety, pointing to thefts and assaults that have left many feeling vulnerable, particularly during evening hours.
Some students also said the University appears to prioritize renovation projects over safety initiatives.
“It’s betraying because you pay all this money, you come here thinking it’s safe and they’re not putting priority on the things that matter, which is student safety,” said atmospheric science junior Virginia Davis. “They’re not prioritizing that enough. If that requires allocating more money toward that, then I think they should do that.”
UHPD said it remains committed to investing in the safety and well-being of students, faculty and staff and that the substation reflects that commitment.
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