Throughout September, events are taking place campus-wide, including self-defense classes, information fairs and photoshoots in Free Speech Plaza to promote safety throughout the University.
The University deemed September Stay Safe LSU month as part of the LSU Cares initiative. LSU Cares is dedicated to the wellbeing of students and promotion of a community that cares about each of its members.
Each week of the month tackles a different theme, and various events take place throughout the week that provide resources to students to help with these safety concerns.
The University’s Stay Safe LSU month is the brainchild of Dean of Students Mari Fuentes-Martin and a board that included many heads of different departments around campus.
“[Campus Safety Awareness Month] is a national initiative that’s promoted by the Clery Center,” Fuentes-Martin said. “Every year, each campus has to produce a campus safety report, and it’s due by Oct. 1.”
The Clery Center for Security On Campus is a foundation started by the parents of Jeanne Clery. In 1986, Clery was raped and murdered at Lehigh University, spawning the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act.
The Clery Act requires colleges that take part in federal financial aid programs to retain and inform the U.S. Department of Education of crimes that happen on or near their campuses.
Katie McGee Barras, assistant dean of students and associate director of accountability, chaired the board that organized the month-long event.
“It seemed like a very good opportunity, given everything that had happened in our community in the past year, to really highlight campus safety,” Barras said.
Along with Fuentes-Martin and Barras, 16 different partner offices around campus are helping with the initiative.
Beginning with “See Something, Say Something” last week, which highlighted LSUPD, the month’s other themes include “We’re Committed” week to end sexual violence, “Hazing Prevention” week to raise awareness of the illegal nature of hazing and “LSU Cares” week to make sure students know where to report things or to go for assistance.
The goal of this month is to raise awareness and make sure students know how accessible resources are, Barras said.
“We don’t want folks to feel lost,” Barras said. “We don’t want students to feel like they don’t know who to turn to … We wanted to get the information directly to the students.”
Another goal of the campaign is to ensure safety is practiced year round, Fuentes-Martin said. Through events like “Take Back the Night,” students can continue to be aware of and actively practice safety.
“Take Back the Night” is a candlelight vigil honoring survivors of violent crime and remembering victims of rape, murder or domestic violence in the community.
“Last week, at [Public] Safety Day, I was with [police officers] … at the end of the event,” Fuentes-Martin said. “Two separate students came up and said to the police officers, ‘We really respect what you do and that you’re here,” … How do you measure that?”