Safety Tips
General Safety Tips
• Keep book bags, purses, and other personal belongings in your view at all times.
• When walking, try to walk in groups or with someone.
• Walk in areas that are well-lit and well traveled.
• Walk confidently and assertively.
• Be alert. Know your surroundings.
• Do not hitchhike.
• Do not listen to earphones while walking, driving, bicycling, or rollerblading.
• Walk facing traffic if possible.
• Have keys in hand before reaching vehicle.
• When parking a vehicle at night, try to select well-lit areas.
Suspicious activity may signal potential criminal conduct. Remember, safety is everyone’s responsibility. If a student notices any suspicious activity, he/she should contact a Campus Safety Department officer or a college official immediately. Some activities that should arouse curiosity are:
• Vehicles moving slowly without lights or with no apparent destination.
• Persons wandering or loitering, with no purpose, in or around buildings and parking lots.
• A stranger sitting for an extended time period, for no apparent reason, in a parked vehicle.
Theft Suppression
• Never leave your book bag, laptop computer, purse, cell phone or other property unattended.
• Purses and backpacks should be carried close to the body and under one arm.
• Keep valuable property serial numbers recorded; mark articles that do not have serial numbers with your driver’s license number.
Vehicle Safety
• Always lock your car doors.
• When you return to your car, have your key ready to open the door.
• Keep your windows rolled up while parked, even in the summer.
• Do not leave valuables in plain view in the vehicle.
• Check the car interior before entering.
• Park in an area that is well lit.
Dating
• When making plans for a date, decide ahead of time where to go and let someone know your destination.
• Learn to make responsible decisions about whether to drink alcohol and/or use drugs.
• You have the right to decide who can touch your body. Set sexual limits and stick to them.
Basic Safety Techniques
• If you have a choice, walk with others.
• If you think someone is following you, turn around and check; surprise someone with a hostile look or assertive words such as “don’t follow me.”
• Walk or run toward people, also if you can call 911.
• Trust your intuition.
• If you are sexually assaulted, report it immediately to the Campus Safety Department or a school official.