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survival
guide
Campus safety
everyone's job
By Alisha Gomez
Special to the On-line Forty-Niner
Ensuring student
safety on campus is a job that not only the University Police
handle, but also something that each student can take into
his or her own hands by being aware.
"I think anytime
where you are in an area that might be more remote to where
you're going, it's less attended, or there are physical barriers
because of buildings and fences, it is always a good reminder
to be aware of your surroundings," said Capt. Stan Skipworth
of University Police. "Students also need to be very
deliberate about where you're going."
He also said that
one of the most important things students can do to ensure
their safety is to not be lost.
"Know where
you are and know where you want to go," Skipworth said.
"If you are not sure, either call in advance for directions
or come by the police department before you get on campus."
He added that walking
at night with someone is always a wise idea.
All students should
be concerned about their safety. Stereotypes or gender preferences
are rarely considered when a crime is committed.
"There are
cases that arise everywhere where gender may or may not play
a part in the crime itself," Skipworth said. "In
the context of sexual assault, we encourage people to take
a good direct route to where they want to travel to and understand
the areas where they're going to be."
Students should
be just as careful during the day as they are at night, Skipworth
said.
"During the
daytime, I think everyone tends to accept things to be more
safe because there are more people out there," Skipworth
said. "There are more people watching as well as moving
around, and those people who may have the intent to commit
a crime of whatever form are less inclined to do so because
they know there are more people who would be witnesses to
that. And hopefully, more so, they would intercede and try
to stop that."
Surveys done earlier
this year on the University Police as well as 11 other CSU
campuses demonstrated that CSULB received good marks in a
biennial customer survey. The results showed CSULB got the
highest ratings in nine of the 18 categories.
"I think in
comparison to other university and other campus settings,
we compare very strongly," Skipworth said. "Statistically,
we're doing pretty well."
With enrollment
increasing, the University Police has had to increase its
staffing as well. For awhile, the University Police were down
positions, mainly due to being unable to fill them because
of budgetary constraints. Despite these problems, Skipworth
said that the University Police has always been able to serve
the campus.
"We've always
been able to employ the number of people to respond to the
campus needs," Skipworth said. "What we didn't have
was the luxury of that additional personnel that we could
utilize in other ways like for our crime prevention programs."
As a result of
an increase in staff members, the University Police are able
to cover areas outside of crime, such as disaster situations.
"We now have
a person that oversees our entire emergency operation center,"
Skipworth said. "We have a direct link, a direct guiding
hand, into how the university prepares itself for disaster
situations. I think that is just as important as any criminal
element being involved."
Students can take
advantage of the campus Rape Aggression and Defense courses
that are put on by the police department through the crime
prevention unit.
"That program
has been very successful. We've had a tremendous enrollment,"
Skipworth said. "I think it is a very powerful process
for the women of our campus to have an understanding of what
they can do to better prepare themselves for those things
that they feel may represent a threat to their own safety."
These types of
programs are offered throughout the school year for interested
students.
Inside the "University
Police Presents Annual Crime Statistics pamphlet," it
states some services that the campus offers. These include
the Community Service Officers (a night escort program) and
Community Safety Awareness Programs for freshmen and transfer
students.
Other on-going
programs listed in the pamphlet are offered to on-campus residents
and in individual classroom settings. A Youth Awareness Program
gives tips on bicycle safety, earthquake preparedness, and
fire safety.
Students interested
in these programs can stop by the University Police office
located in the University Student Union. To obtain annual
crime statistics, students can go to www.csulb.edu, click
on "administrative services," and then click on
the "public safety" link.
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