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News
5 Tips to Stay Safe on Campus
September is National Campus Safety and Security Month, and JWU’s trained and caring officers have you covered!
We asked several officers to share some tips with Wildcats for staying safe on campus.
5 Tips for Staying Safe on Campus
1. Don’t hold the door.
“We say this because we don’t want to let members not a part of the Wildcat family into our buildings,” explains JWU Charlotte Campus Director of Campus Safety & Security Bryan Hull. “Everyone needs to have a Johnson & Wales University ID to properly enter and exit our facilities. This helps maintain a safe community by knowing who is on our campus.”
Meaning: when you swipe into a JWU building with your access card, don’t hold the door open for anyone you don’t know. This is one time where it’s OK to be rude!
“A safe community starts with you,” reminds JWU Providence Executive Director of Campus Safety & Security LeRoy Rose.
2. Call a buddy.
If you feel unsafe walking alone late at night, take advantage of JWU’s Safe Walk program, where a member of the JWU community will walk with you or give you a ride. Call 401-598-1103 (Providence) or 980-589-1900 (Charlotte).
And even outside of Safe Walk operational hours, the campus safety departments on both campuses remind us that CS&S is available to assist the Wildcat community. They’re happy to be your buddy when needed!
3. Always secure your valuables.
“Don’t provide the opportunity for theft," advises Rose. JWU campuses have ID card readers and surveillance cameras to help keep our community safe. But if someone without proper access DOES get into a building (see Tip #1 to prevent this!), call CS&S for assistance. Remember to never leave any valuables unattended!
AN EXAMPLE OF A SAFETY LOCK FOR A LAPTOP
4. Report suspicious activity.
"A safe community begins with you – if you see something, say something,” says Hull, who notes that JWU has several ways to report suspicious activity.
“On the Charlotte Campus, you can call 980-598-1900. In Lot A and the Cedar Parking Deck there are blue lights in case of an emergency where you can push a call button to connect with a JWU dispatcher.”
Hull adds: “And you’re always encouraged to stop by our office located in Cedar Hall South, adjacent to Student Affairs, where you can speak with an officer face-to-face.”
In Providence, students who witness a crime or questionable incident are asked to call 401-598-1103 or stop by Campus Safety & Security’s office located at 264 Weybosset Street (Downcity Campus, open 24/7 all year long) or 315 Harborside Boulevard (Harborside Campus, open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday during the academic year).
Don’t want to speak with an officer, but want to help? Students on both campuses can report tips through JWU’s Silent Witness program.
“We are all in this together,” Rose reminds us.
5. Get involved.
Join CS&S educational and prevention programming, which include workshops, guest speakers and trainings that range from learning to be an active bystander to self-defense to performing CPR. Or just swing by your local CS&S department to say hello or to grab a JWU lanyard!
Online Courses to Keep You Prepared
JWU Providence Director of Emergency Management Christopher Harwood invites JWU students to take advantage of the free Emergency Management Plan and Fire Safety online courses to be better prepared to help friends and classmates if an emergency occurs.
Just follow these instructions:
1. Go to the Workplace & School Safety Training page in jwuLink
2. Click on “Open First Net Training”
3. Select the appropriate tile for your role (students: select Student Affairs)
4. Under “Online Courses,” select “JWU Emergency Management Plan” to enroll in the course
5. In the upper left, select “My Training” to access and begin the course
JWU Campus Safety and Security also provides Active Shooter Event Guidance training on the “JWU Alerts” pages for the Providence and Charlotte campuses. Select either Providence Alerts or Charlotte Alerts, then scroll to the bottom, and under Resources, select Active Shooter Event Guidance.
JWU Campus Safety & Security is here for you
Whether in Charlotte or Providence, CS&S will go the extra mile for Wildcats!
Just look at Lieutenant Harvey DuPerry, who has kept JWU Providence students safe for 30 years! In celebrating his milestone, he shared one of his highlights during his time here: being able to coach the women’s softball team when his daughter was one of the Wildcats.
"The best feeling about it now is that they still reach out when I see them and they still call me coach. And I love that because it means I had an impact on them in their lives and in their careers here at JWU."
Hear more about Lt. DuPerry’s experiences at JWU:
Most of all, know that JWU campus security officers are here for you. If you follow their departments on social media, in addition to keeping you up to date on safety tips you’ll likely find them warning you of cool weather, sharing a silly meme or wishing you a wonderful weekend.
They’re part of our community and are in your corner, so don’t be afraid to get to know them while you’re on campus!
LEFT, JWU PROVIDENCE OFFICERS IN UNIFORM. RIGHT, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR LEROY ROSE GETS CASUAL WHEN JOINING WILDCATS AT THE FALL 2022 STUDENT INVOLVEMENT FEST.
