Often times, when a student lives on campus, they take their safety for granted. Take it from me- I lived in Washington DC from 1994 – 1998 at The George Washington University. During that time, DC was the murder capital of the USA. But, how often do you think my door was locked while I was in my room? Hardly ever. And, believe me, I paid the price.
THE DORM ENTRANCE
I would be willing to bet that in the front of every dormatory at every college and university in the United States, you will find some sort of security. It might be a card reader to open the door, a lock, a call box or even a security desk. Shoot, at The George Washington University, it was a combination of all four of those things.
Believe it or not, this security is there for a reason. It is to keep people out of the dormatory that do not belong there. This is what a portion of your tuition and dorm fees go to. DO NOT “sign in” people that you don’t know. DO NOT hold the door for people that you don’t know. DO NOT let people you don’t know into the elevator. Sure, you might feel like you are being rude. Who cares? YOU DON’T KNOW THAT PERSON!!! What do you care what they think of you? You can be protecting someone in the dorm from an abusive ex-boyfriend. You might be preventing a really bad situation. Have respect for your fellow residents. Don’t allow strangers into your building.
YOUR FRONT DOOR
Yes, I know that a dorm is a very social place. I know that you want to make friends with your neighbors. I know that you want to have people in your room. Trust me– I lived in dorms for 4 years during undergrad and a semester when in grad school. It is SO tempting to leave your door unlocked while you’re not there– or even open while you are there.
While I was in my dorm during my freshman year, I would leave my door wide open. I had a lot of friends, and many would stop by and just walk in. One day, I was hanging out in my room, studying, when this guy just walked in. I knew him– he was president of the Student Association. Long story short, he grabbed me from behind and started groping me. I yelled for him to get off. Tryg was next door and heard the struggle. He came to my rescue and got the guy out of the building. Needless to say, my door was locked from then on. Don’t let something stupid like that happen to you.
THE FIRE ALARM
This one is brief, and it is sad that I even have to write it. DO NOT SET OFF THE FIRE ALARM IN YOUR DORMATORY. It is not funny. Quite frankly, its pretty darned juvenile and a major annoyance. If you even think about doing this, you shouldn’t be in college in the first place.
DORM PROTOCOL
There is a proper chain of commend to follow if there is an emergency in your dorm. Make sure you get this information at the informational meeting your dorm will hold at the beginning of the school year. In the event of an emergency, contact your Resident Advisor. If they are not available, contact your Residence Manager. If you can’t get in touch with them, call Campus Police. If all else fails, call 911.
CONTACT NUMBERS
It is important for you to have the phone numbers of the following entities:
* Your Resident Advisor
* All other Resitend Advisors in the building
* The Residence Manager of your dormatory
* Campus Police
* Campus Security (if different from Campus Police)
* Non-emergency Local Police phone number
* Poison Control
Hopefully, you will never have to use any of those phone numbers.
Do yourself a favor and follow the guidelines I set forth for dorm safety. If you do, things may be a bit safer for you in your college home.
