College is a time to prosper, learn and grow. It is a place where students should feel free and inspired to find themselves and pursue a successful future. It is not a time where one should be constantly worrying about their safety and protection.
Here at Penn State, we are lucky to live in a relatively safe area. For other schools, mainly ones located in a city, safety is a growing concern. Temple University has long been thought of as a more dangerous school, mostly due to its location within Philadelphia. Most recently, a group of 11 students were robbed early in the morning of November 11.
The students, a mix of male and females, were woken up to two robbers who forced them into the basement of the house and stole their phones, credit cards and one woman’s car. Luckily, no students were injured and police forces were able to arrive at the scene in time, but it remains a very upsetting, worrisome and unfortunately not uncommon tragedy that occurred.
The Vice President for Public Safety of the University sent out an announcement to the community regarding an update of campus safety. In the announcement it says, “Violence against one of us affects all of us.” And continues on to say that the students are receiving personal attention from the school to help them through this time.
Along with this, the announcement mentions a program that is available to the students and their families to help them find safe off-campus housing and lists ways to take “other protective measures” like locking your doors and windows and being smart of where you locate an extra house key.
Philadelphia as a whole has experienced a large surge in violence this past year, having recorded their 400th homicide in September. Gun violence specifically targeting young people has been increasingly harmful in the city. The number of gun violence victims in 2022 has already equaled the numbers recorded in 2015 and 2016 together.
As mentioned previously, college is not a time where students need to be constantly worrying about or evaluating their overall safety. It is unsettling to hear about fellow college aged adults dealing with such traumatic events. Penn State urges its students to remain conscious about their day to day actions regarding their safety, like being sure to lock a door and keeping note of your friend’s locations while separated.
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