Safety Tips

Campus Safety encourages the entire campus community to partner with us to promote and maintain a safe and secure campus environment. This mission can best be attained by immediately reporting any suspicious persons or activities to Campus Safety.

Adhering to basic rules of safety and following these safety tips can reduce your odds of being victimized.

Safety while walking on campus:

1. Have a plan, be aware of your surroundings, walk with confidence.
2. Walk with a friend whenever possible.
3. Avoid dark areas, high shrubbery, and shortcuts.
4. Try to walk facing oncoming traffic.
5. Maintain a secure grip on purses and purchases.
6. Keep your cell phone at the ready.
7. Pre-program Campus Safety and other emergency numbers.
8. Familiarize yourself with the emergency call box locations on campus.
9. Be wary of newly acquired acquaintances.
10. Don’t reveal personal information to new found friends.

Safety in the residence halls:

1. Never give your key to anyone.
2. Never open your door to strangers.
3. Never leave your door open or unlocked, even for a short period of time, when no one is in your room.
4. Keep all laptops, electronics, jewelry, and expensive items out of sight.
5. Request I.D. from people you don’t know.
6. Close your blinds or shades after dark.
7. Never “prop’ the entrance doors to the Residence Halls.
8. Never let anyone “piggyback” into the Residence Halls when you swipe in.
9. Don’t leave keys under the doormat, or in other “hiding places” and don’t leave notes.

Safety in the laundry room:

1. Be cautious.
2. Try to never be in the laundry room alone.
3. Remove clothes promptly from washers and dryers.
4. Consider folding your clothes in your room.

Personal safety:

1. Do not walk alone. Walking with one other person reduces your chances of being assaulted by 70%.
2. Avoid walking through dark streets or alleys. The shortest route is not always the safest route. Avoid short cuts.
3. Pay attention to your surroundings. Do not walk while talking on the phone or with your I-pod in your ears. Listen and pay attention.
4. Be aware of deserted laundry rooms, parking lots, etc., especially at night.
5. Only walk or jog in well-lit, populated areas. Vary your route. Shred documents that have personal information on them.
6. Report broken locks, dead lights, overgrown shrubs, etc. to your landlord immediately in writing. Walk in the middle of a sidewalk to avoid people hiding in parked cars, bushes, or cars pulling up and abducting you.
7. Ignore strangers who call out to you.
8. Be aware of your body language. Walk confidently and briskly.
9. Never hitchhike.
10. Do not traverse unfamiliar neighborhoods.
11. If you are being followed on foot, do not be afraid to cross the street or change direction. Enter a well-lit store or knock on a door and call the police. Join a group of people. Do not go home.
12. If you are being followed in a car, turn around and walk the other way. Go down a one way street. Get the license and call the police.
13. Always let a friend know where you are going and when you expect to return.
14. Let people know when you arrive where you were headed.
15. Have your keys out before you get to the door.
16. If you are on campus and need assistance, go to one of the Blue Alert emergency phones to speak immediately with Campus Safety.
17. Stay sober and coherent. People under the influence of a substance are much more likely to be the victim of a serious crime or to victimize others.

Off-Campus housing and apartment safety

Moving off-campus adds new safety concerns that on-campus students often do not have to think about.

1. First, you need to make sure the dwelling is safe and legal.
2. Do not let service or repair personnel into your dwelling. Leave them outside while you call their main company to confirm their legitimacy.
3. Most burglaries result from unlocked doors. Keep your interior and exterior doors locked at all times, even when you are there.
4. Always keep windows locked, even when you are in the house. Windows should be able to be locked even when they are open a few inches for ventilation.
5. Never leave doors propped or a key for a roommate outside of the apartment.
6. Doors and windows should be visible to neighbors and the street.
7. Talk to your roommates when someone is having guests. Make sure guests are not left alone in your dwelling. Keep valuables locked up. Do not leave important items out in the open.
8. Keep a list of your serial numbers for electronic equipment in a separate location in case something gets stolen. This will help identify your lost or stolen goods.
9. Do not let strangers in.
10. Keep a list of emergency numbers in your cell phone and in your apartment.
11. Leave a radio on low and a light on when you go out so people think someone is home.
12. When you leave for holiday breaks take your valuables with you (TVs, radios, jewelry, etc.)
13. Use an electrical lamp timer when you will be away.
14. Get to know your neighbors and their schedule when they will be home.
15. Make sure your landlord provides lighting to outside doors and driveways. Make sure it is motion censored.
16. Let your landlord know when bushes and shrubbery become overgrown.
17. Call the police if an unfamiliar person is hanging around outside of your building.
18. Question unescorted people in your building. If you do not feel comfortable, call the police.
19. Try not to enter an elevator with another person. If you do, stand next to the emergency alarm. If there is a problem, push the alarm and as many floors as possible (but not the stop button).
20. Close window shades at night.
21. Call the police if you receive an obscene phone call.
22. Do not give solicitor phone calls any personal information.
23. Have a peep hole, a chain lock, or a slide bar on your front door.
24. Doors leading to garages or basement should be metal-clad or solid wood and have working deadbolts.
25. Sliding glass doors should have locks and dowels or pins must be installed to keep the doors from being shoved aside or lifted off the tracks.
26. During move-in and move-out keep your apartment and car locked. Move-in, move-out, and holiday breaks are high crime times.
27. If you get an alarm system, register it with the Campus Safety department.
28. Have only your house number on your mailbox, not your name.
29. Make sure the house number is visible from the street so police and fire departments can see it in case of emergencies.
30. Make sure there is a carbon monoxide detector near sleeping areas.