You have a giant test tomorrow, and it's cram time at the library. Before you know it, it's 3 a.m. and you need to get some sleep. If you're like me, and have given up on trying to find good parking, now comes the dreaded walk home. Just because there are lights on around buildings doesn't mean the entire campus is safe. Tragically, we learned this the hard way with the death of fellow student, Jonathan Krueger, this past April. The majority of students live off campus, which means either a long walk home, or a drive. Far too often, we find ourselves in situations where there kind of isn't another option. We have pepper spray in our bags, hold our keys in between our fingers, or have our phone's flashlight on while nervously looking around.
You may have texted a friend to let them know you're walking. But, now, there is an app that allows that friend to see exactly where you are, and to virtually walk you home. Similar apps exist, but Companion is the first one designed by students, for students. Companion was created by five students from the University of Michigan. One of the developers, Lexie Ernst, says "We would always see these crime alerts, whenever something goes wrong on campus, there’s an assault, there’s a rape, there’s a robbery, we’re all notified and detailed via email and it’s very scary to say the least."
So whether you're walking home in the middle of the night from the library, from the bars, or from a basketball game, now you can have the assurance of someone virtually there with you the entire way. They even put a button to let your companion know if you feel nervous, or if police need to be called. The best part is that the companion you are contacting does not have to have the app to walk you home. Here's how it works:
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