Welcome to the new Internet home of the Office of Protection Services (OPS). We are the largest unit at SI with over 850 employees.  Our staff is dedicated to the mission of ensuring that visitors, staff and collections at SI are safe and secure. 

OPS is often the first face of the Smithsonian -- the first person that visitors or staff see when they enter one our museums is an OPS Security Officer who can have a major impact on the visitor's overall experience.  Although security is our first priority, officers go through continuous customer service training to ensure that the visitor experience is a positive one. 

But while most staff and visitors recognize our officers, OPS is truly so much more ... we also provide K-9 services, ATV and boat patrols at the Smithsonian Environmental  Research Center, Police Officers at the National Zoo and oversight of the security at Smithsonian facilities in Panama.  To ensure all security and law enforcement officers maintain their proficiency we have a full training staff who conduct hundreds of hours of training, including but not limited to basic security training, firearms, CPR, emergency response and customer service.

We hope if you have a question, want to report a crime, or are seeking information on a lost and found item that this Web site will assist you. We also encourage you to visit our Smithsonian Alerts page where you can get up-to-date information on the latest issues that are important to your safety.

If you have any suggestions or comments, please let us know so that we can better serve you.

 

William T. Lynch

Director, Office of Protection Services