The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign tries its hardest to create a safe environment on and near campus each year. With mandatory sexual harassment training for all students and deployed police that patrol the campus at all times, there are many steps the university takes to maintain a safe environment. Obviously, the university cannot control everything that happens, so it's up to the students to try to protect themselves from whenever the university can't.
These are a few simple tips students can follow to limit their risk of being put in a dangerous situation.
1. Share your location
Sharing your phone's location with close friends and family can be one of the easiest ways to ensure someone will always know where you are. There are plenty of apps on smartphones that allow you to share your location as you please, including Find Friends and Life360. It may not be ideal to be sharing your exact location with your parents all the time, but if something were to happen, you'll be glad you did.
2. Never walk alone at night
Spend some extra time with your girl gang after a night out at Kam's and walk home together. Sketchy things are less likely to happen when there is a group of people walking together. There really is power in numbers! Making sure all your friends get home safe is also a crucial part of ending a night out.
3. Trust your friends
If you don't surround yourself with people you can trust, things may end badly. It should be universally known that you should never leave your friend at a bar without them knowing. If it looks like she's busy with Brad from Phi Delt, go up to her and make sure she knows you're leaving, even ask if she wants to come with. If you go out with people you don't trust, you risk getting into a number of sticky situations.
4. Tell someone where you're going
If you're leaving your apartment or dorm, tell your roommate where you're going. If you're going somewhere after class, text at least one person where you're headed and when you'll be back. Long story short, in case something happens en route to your destination or after, someone at least knows where you were going and with who. It may seem monotonous to text someone every time you make a move, but I guarantee your friends won't mind, and if they do, find new friends.
5. Self-defense
Taking a self-defense class or watching self-defense videos online is a great idea. It's smart to learn how to protect yourself and fight back in alarming situations. Plenty of students carry around pepper spray or whistles to harm an offender or call attention to a situation. In case those things are out of reach, simple self-defense moves will help a lot. There's even a self-defense class taught on campus!
6. Stay off your phone!!
Whether it be walking to meet your friend at Lion or driving down Green Street to pick up your Burrito King order, stay off your phone until you've reached your destination. It's super important to be aware of your surroundings at all times, and it's hard to do that when you're texting Becky about Jeremy's new girlfriend.
7. Use the campus resources
SafeWalks and SafeRides are two courtesy services provided on campus. All a student has to do is call the hotline with a 15-minute notice, and escorts will come to walk or drive you home. Put those numbers in your phone! It's best to be prepared and never use those numbers rather than needing the numbers and not being prepared. There are also emergency phones located around the campus that connect you directly to the campus police dispatcher. If you ever find yourself in a situation of sexual assault, you can visit http://wecare.illinois.edu/ to report an incident, talk to someone, or find out what to do next.
Have fun this year but remember to stay safe!
