2008 Woodie Awards
Safety tips for women on campus
Danielle Ricchini
Issue date: 10/30/06 Section: Features
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University of Vermont student Michelle Gardner-Quinn, 21, disappeared October 7, 2006, after being seen talking to a mysterious man on a surveillance video at 2:30 a.m. She had been separated from friends at a party and she approached a man to ask him to borrow his cell phone. That was a deadly mistake. Police found Gardner-Quinn's body in a ravine six days later.
A 2004 study concluded that many college women inadvertently put their welfare at risk on a daily basis. Statistically, women are most likely to be victims of rape and assault and most of the time alcohol is involved. Young women seem to be faced with a decision: stay safe or party.
However, this decision does not have to be made.
Women are victimized on every campus. A 2004 study was conducted at 119 colleges, and it was found that one in 20 college women reported being raped during the school year, and 75 percent of those women were intoxicated at the time of their attack. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, the University of Arizona, and, more locally, St. Joseph's University, conducted the study. The study was published in the January 2004 issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and it also found that white women under the age of 21 residing in sorority houses, using drugs and binge drinking are at the highest risk of being sexually assaulted. Another study by the U.S. Department of Justice shows that about 90 percent of rape victims knew their attackers. This study showed that on a campus of 10,000 women, about 280 rapes or attempted rapes occur each school year, but less than five percent are reported.
There are some preventative measures women can take to avoid being victimized on and around campus. Safety experts at Camosun College in British Columbia, Canada suggest the following safety tips:
Study in groups and avoid isolated classrooms, stairwells and other areas of campus that are isolated.
Try to always carry a cell phone when you are alone. If listening to music, do not have the music so loud that it is difficult to hear if someone is approaching.
A 2004 study concluded that many college women inadvertently put their welfare at risk on a daily basis. Statistically, women are most likely to be victims of rape and assault and most of the time alcohol is involved. Young women seem to be faced with a decision: stay safe or party.
However, this decision does not have to be made.
Women are victimized on every campus. A 2004 study was conducted at 119 colleges, and it was found that one in 20 college women reported being raped during the school year, and 75 percent of those women were intoxicated at the time of their attack. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, the University of Arizona, and, more locally, St. Joseph's University, conducted the study. The study was published in the January 2004 issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and it also found that white women under the age of 21 residing in sorority houses, using drugs and binge drinking are at the highest risk of being sexually assaulted. Another study by the U.S. Department of Justice shows that about 90 percent of rape victims knew their attackers. This study showed that on a campus of 10,000 women, about 280 rapes or attempted rapes occur each school year, but less than five percent are reported.
There are some preventative measures women can take to avoid being victimized on and around campus. Safety experts at Camosun College in British Columbia, Canada suggest the following safety tips:
Study in groups and avoid isolated classrooms, stairwells and other areas of campus that are isolated.
Try to always carry a cell phone when you are alone. If listening to music, do not have the music so loud that it is difficult to hear if someone is approaching.
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