A stranger in Methodist Hall made some students uncomfortable at the beginning of this month. After seeing an unknown person in the hallways, a student brought up her concerns to others. They decided to alert OCU police.
The stranger was actually another student’s parent, who was bringing the student food.
It turned out to be nothing, but the students did the right thing by calling campus police.
OCUPD encourages any student to call them if they see someone on campus who they don’t think belongs. As minor as it might seem, it’s always better to be safe than sorry. No students should feel silly for calling campus police. They’re here to make sure everyone is safe.
See Page 1 for more on campus strangers.
The safest schools are typically small, private universities, according to CollegeChoice.net.
This isn’t only because of increased officer awareness, but because more students report things that deviate from normality.
Campus police escorted a man off campus who was seen performing a lewd act under the Team One Pavilion earlier this month because a student quickly reported him.
Off-campus groups or organizations are allowed on campus only if they go through an approval process and follow a set of rules. Religious entities or solicitors must seek approval through the Office of Religious Life. Typically, they’re allowed to distribute Bibles, but must not approach or pressure any students.
Some religious solicitors were aggressive last year to the point where the Rev. Dr. Charles Neff sent out an email telling students those solicitors weren’t allowed to pressure them. He encouraged students to report any situations like that to campus police, as should be done in the case of any unknown individual disrupting a student’s sense of peace.
OCU is a private university and students are entitled to feel safe and comfortable. Making a phone call about a potential threat is not overreacting or being a coward. It’s smart and responsible. Students should never feel afraid to protect themselves and their peers. Chances are, if one person feels uneasy about someone, another person probably feels the same way. Students can remain anonymous, so no one will ever know who it was that notified authorities.
It is essential that students report suspicious things for the sake of the entire campus’ safety. The emergency number for campus police is 405-208-5911 and the non-emergency number is 405-208-5001.
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