Remember! Your safety begins with you. It is difficult to work or learn in an environment where you do not feel safe or secure. Please consider the following thoughts in an effort to make your time at Russell Sage College as safe as possible:

General

  • Trust your instincts.
  • Learn the campus and surrounding neighborhoods.
  • Consider self-defense or personal-protection training. Make it a lifestyle.
  • Consider personal-protection devices. Practice with them.
  • Remember that alcohol and drugs affect decision-making and motor skills. That’s when you most need these skills!

On campus

  • Know the location of emergency phones and CCTV cameras.
  • Know the names of campus buildings and roads.
  • Report lights out, doors unlocked and locks not working.
  • Carry your cellphone ON.
  • Inventory your valuables.
  • Lock your door.
  • Don’t give your key or other access devise to anyone.
  • Report the loss or theft of your key or access device immediately.
  • Don’t carry your keys or access devices with your identification.
  • Don’t prop open exterior doors.
  • Report strangers to Public Safety: 244-3177
  • Report suspicious persons or behavior to Public Safety: 244-3177

In the neighborhood

  • Walk with another. The single most important safety tip!
  • Know your location, destination and route.
  • Tell someone where you are going and when you will be back.
  • Walk confidently. Head up, make eye contact.
  • Pay attention. Avoid cellphones, headphones, earbuds.
  • Walk well-lit and populated routes.
  • Walk facing traffic.
  • Keep hands free.
  • Have keys, access devices ready to use.

If you feel threatened

  • Run
  • Scream
  • Go into the street
  • Approach a stranger
  • Enter a business
  • Flag down a car

In your vehicle

  • Keep it locked at all times.
  • Keep it in good running order and gassed.
  • Have your keys ready as you approach your car.
  • Look underneath the car and in the backseat before you enter.
  • Conceal valuables in the trunk or under the seat.
  • Park in well-lit areas that are viewed by a camera.

Living off campus

Some questions for your landlord:

  • Are working smoke detectors installed in every bedroom?
  • Are there at least 2 ways to exit your bedroom and building?
  • Is there a fire escape?
  • Is there a sprinkler system?
  • Are there exit signs and emergency lighting?
  • Are there sufficient electrical outlets?
  • Does the building have a fire alarm system?
  • Has the heating system been inspected recently?
  • Is the building’s address posted prominently for emergency services?

Online

  • Avoid posting information that could be used to locate or identify you.
  • Limit access to your information and photos to those you know and trust.
  • Avoid disclosing financial information.
  • Avoid personal meetings with those who you meet online.
  • Avoid software that allows others to locate you via GPS.

Fire prevention and procedures

Prevent fires from occurring.

  • Remove combustibles.
  • Avoid sources of ignition.
  • Don’t overload electrical outlets.
  • Don’t use extension cords.
  • Cook only where permitted and never leave cooking unattended.

Keep fire safety systems in good working order.

  • Report emergency lighting and exit signs that are not working and fire extinguishers that are missing.
  • Do not tamper with fire detection, warning or suppression systems.
  • Check all smoke detectors, heat detectors, pull stations, fire alarm, sprinkler heads and fire extinguishers.

Plan your escape.

  • Know several routes out of your building.
  • In the event of a fire alarm, leave the building quickly but safely.
  • Participate in fire drills.
  • Do not use elevators.
  • Feel doors for heat before opening;  if hot, use another route.

If you discover a fire

  • Sound the alarm.
  • Call 911 or Public Safety at 244-3177.
  • Use a fire extinguisher, if trained and you can do so safely.

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