To keep the Fullerton College campus safe, students can look to campus safety for guidelines. There are ways all students can ensure their own safety while attending school and take the initiative to learn some safety measures.

Students must always be cognizant of their surroundings. Last semester, there were a few incidents where women randomly were groped. There was also a “peeping Tom” in the women’s restroom on campus. Because of these incidents that have occurred, students might not feel as safe as they should. It’s important to look around and see who looks suspicious. Pay attention to your gut feeling. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.

With daylight saving time in effect, it will be getting dark outside a lot earlier. Take extra precautions when arriving to and leaving from an evening class. Evening students should try to find parking in well-lit areas. While walking out from class and back to the car, it’s suggested to stay away from remote areas of the campus and to stay on pedestrian paths. If possible, walk with other students.

To help feel safe on campus, an escort service is available to all students by calling campus safety. Their general phone number is 714-992-7080 ext. 0, and their emergency phone number is 714-992-7777. A campus safety officer will meet the student at his/her location and escort the student to class or to the student’s car. This service is available 24/7 so it’s a good idea to put the campus safety phone number and 911 on speed dial.

Campus safety provides a map, which gives the locations of the emergency phones on campus. The emergency phones are connected directly to the Campus Safety office and to the campus safety officers. State what the emergency is and the location and a campus safety officer will respond to the emergency.

Safety devices such as pepper spray and the Alarmfob are available to all students for purchase in the bookstore. An Alarmfob makes a loud piercing noise when pulled apart. The piercing noise will definitely attract attention. The Alarmfob costs $5.99, is easy to use and has a replaceable battery.

There are different sizes and varieties of pepper spray. The cost ranges from $5.99 to $9.99. The large size of pepper spray provides 25 bursts at an 8-foot range. There is also a safety lipstick pepper spray disguised to look like a tube of lipstick and a safety pen pepper spray disguised to look like a pen. It’s a good idea to learn how to use any safety device so it becomes second nature when you need to use them.

All of these tips can be used to ensure your safety not only on campus, but while going to work, leaving the mall or any other place off campus.

As a student body, together we can help each other by being vigilant and reporting any suspicious activity when noticed. By taking safety seriously, this can help make for a safer campus for all students.

Even though campus safety is here at Fullerton College to provide service and safety, sometimes it may not seem like it. Campus safety might not want to discuss certain incidents that occur on campus, but this gives students a false sense of security. It’s better that we, as a student body, are made aware of what’s happening on campus so that we can prevent future incidents from occurring.

Overall, campus safety ensures that all students are safe at Fullerton College.