Talking Stick - September/October 2016 - 59

Lange: We do twice a year fire
drills. The RA student staff are given
training about the facilities that they
are to share with residents during
house meetings. The housing office
sends out messages during the year
to residents reminding them of safety
and security issues to be aware of.
We provide at the beginning of the
academic year a guide to living in the
community that teaches residents
about the type of locks they will
have on their residence and how to
use them.

Goss: We use short videos on our
arrival and in residence information
to cover aspects of safety; we have also
introduced more visual image-based
health and safety posters in student
kitchens and shared areas. We also
placed very large two meter by two
meter "Stay Safe" posterboards on
large wall spaces in public areas.
TS: What are examples of how
housing can partner with other
departments on or off campus for
safety education?

Lange: The campus police services
as well as emergency services are
always willing to provide education to
residents. There is a component of the
RA training with police services.

Goss: It is so important for housing
offices to have a close working
relationship with their security service
so that information can be quickly
shared. The institution also needs to
link with the local police service over
any local crime trends that may affect
the campus.
Eckardt: Environmental health and
safety departments and campus police
are always ready and able to partner,
allowing access to new and different

resources for housing professionals.
At TWU, we have partnered with our
risk management department, and the
RA and HD staff are all community
emergency response team-certified.

Corey: One example we have is our
annual safety and security week, which
has evolved over the past few years.
This has included some passive and
active programming. We work with
our campus police, health promotions,
dean of students, and others to provide
services and programs related to safety
and security. This year, we plan to
focus on sexual assault, online dating,
alcohol and drug use, and promoting
the safety efforts and initiatives we
have on campus. Additionally, we
are looking to add a community
engagement activity with our police
and residents. The purpose of this
will be to increase the visibility of
our offices while also promoting
community policing.
Another initiative this year was
related to our resident assistant staff.
They all completed the mental health
first aid course facilitated by members
of our counseling and testing center
to assist them in noticing signs and
symptoms earlier to better support our
students in ways they need. We also
involve our emergency management
staff in our training sessions, where
they review evacuation procedures,
common facility issues, and proper
procedures and protocols.

TS: What would you consider your
greatest safety programming victory in
recent years?

or emergency messages directly to
residents or staff mobile phones if
necessary. We also have a walking taxi
service where security will accompany
any student who feels vulnerable
walking back to their campus room,
particularly late at night.

Corey: Referencing the fire safety
module I spoke of earlier, we reached
a 98 percent completion from
our residents two months into the
semester, which is a clear victory for
us although we are always striving for
100 percent. Additionally, as a result
of our safety programs and services,
I would consider our performance on
the Skyfactor survey a victory in regard
to the area of safety and security.
Georgia State University housing
places this area as a high priority and
works diligently to demonstrate this.
Our students indicate a high level of
satisfaction with how safe they feel
in their rooms and in the hall itself,
consistently rating their satisfaction at
or above 6.0 on a scale of 1 to 7, with
5.5 being the goal to reach.
Lange: Through our multiple
educational efforts we provide
awareness and responsibility for
personal and property safety.
Eckardt: Our victory was turning a
housing safety and security week
into a campus-wide, month-long
event across five campuses at Florida
Atlantic University. 

Goss: We have introduced a
GPS-based Safezone App which
residents can download to their
phones; it allows them to summon
emergency help from campus
security at the touch of a button. We
can also broadcast major incident

SEPTEMBER + OCTOBER 2016

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Talking Stick - September/October 2016

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