Residence hall rooms left unlocked, bicycles not secured and locked, and personal property left unattended account for the majority of crimes occurring on campus. While violent incidents are infrequent, crime prevention and risk awareness should be a part of the lives of all members of the community. A certain amount of risk is involved in nearly everything we do and we can reduce these risks by exercising care in our everyday activities.

1. Lock your door whenever your room is unattended or when you are sleeping.
2. Engrave your valuables.
3. Do not "hide" keys under mats, over doors or in other obvious places.
4. Report suspicious persons immediately.
5. Keep articles of value out of sight.
6. Report doors, windows, locks, or lights in need of repair.
7. Never prop doors open.
8. Don't lend your key to others.
9. Avoid working alone or studying alone in a building late at night.

The College of Charleston is located in an urban setting. Our campus is historically significant and host to numerous visitors who come to enjoy the beauty and architecture. As a state institution, the general public has access to most of our facilities during the hours that buildings are open (6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., Monday through Friday; Saturday and Sunday by special request). Buildings are secured by Campus Police officers at 11:00 p.m. Buildings during summer are open to reflect operational needs (ex., Maymester and summer school, summer conference housing for specialty groups). Campus Police officers conduct frequent checks of building interiors daily. Access after buildings are secured can be obtained by special permission from the faculty or, in case of emergency, by Campus Police. Building security/safety tips are posted in buildings campus-wide.

Campus state security officers are assigned within the residence halls between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., seven days a week. Access to residence halls is restricted to residents and their guests. Approximately 3,400 students live within campus-owned facilities. The remainder of enrolled students (approximately 6,700) live in off campus, private residences under the security patrol jurisdiction of law enforcement agencies relative to that area.

Numerous security cameras are strategically placed within major residence hall facilities and around campus (ex., stairwells, lobbies, laundry areas, on buildings, on poles).

Before the beginning of the academic year, Residence Life and Housing live-in staff receive extensive training on policies, security, campus-based programs, and intervention resources available to the campus community. Training for front-line staff is ongoing. Hall directors and area coordinators serve on-call rotation.

Maintenance craftsmen who work specifically for assigned residence areas have an office within that area. These craftsmen are full-time employees and respond to specific work orders initiated by students. While all new employees will be subject to a background check, personnel working in our Residence Life and Housing area will be required to go through a more extensive background check.

Security review of buildings and security maintenance updates are ongoing. Inspections are conducted and security plans initiated by appropriate staff in Residence Life and Housing and the Department of Public Safety.

In accordance with South Carolina Code of Law 23-3-400et seq., the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) maintains the state-wide sex offender registry. This registry allows for a search of sex offenders by name, city, county or zip code and, under College Report, provides information on any known sex offender registered as a student attending a college within South Carolina. To access the sex offender registry or to find out more information pertaining to the registry, go to www.sled.sc.gov or visit Campus Police at 81B St. Philip Street. http://services.sled.sc.gov/sor/Report.aspx offers on-line reports for colleges within the state of South Carolina. Under South Carolina law, students who are on the sex offender registry cannot reside in our residence halls.

The Campus Police Records Unit serves as archivist for all incident reports filed within the jurisdiction of Campus Police. A request for an incident/accident report should be made to the Records Clerk located at Campus Police Headquarters. Requests may be submitted from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Processing of reports once a request has been submitted takes approximately three business days. A daily log which is a listing of all crimes reported to Campus Police is available for public viewing. Update of the log is completed within two business days of the filing of an initial report except where disclosure of such information is prohibited by law; such disclosure would jeopardize the confidentiality of the victim; and/or release of such information would jeopardize any component of an ongoing criminal investigation.

The following services are offered by Campus Police: Fingerprinting, Project Identification for Property, Computer Registration, Lost and Found, Bicycle Registration, Residence Hall Safety Meetings, Whistle Defense Program, Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.) Classes, Monthly Building and Lighting Checks and Security Surveys. Please contact 953-4980 for further information.

Certified Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.) instructors offer a twelve-hour course in self-defense for women. The course focus is to enable women to learn a set of cognitive and physical skills that can help them reduce their risk of victimization. Offering basic education in confrontational principles and personal defense, the program progresses through the stages of awareness, risk reduction and avoidance and provides basic physical defense techniques. R.A.D. empowers participants and helps them realize that training, responsible decision-making, and development of physical power, are tools that build confidence and critical self-awareness. For information on upcoming RAD class course dates, please check the web address www.cofc.edu/publicsafety/helpfulinfo/RAD.php or contact 953-4980.

We encourage all members of the campus community to use common sense and practice good personal safety techniques at all times. Students and employees alike are encouraged to walk in pairs and groups especially during the hours of darkness. However, when this is not possible, please use the campus escort service. Available 24-hours a day, 7-days a week, this on-campus service is intended for those who need a security escort to/from class, residence hall or parking lots/facilities. To access the program call 953-5609 and provide the following information to the dispatcher:

• your name,
• phone number
• current location,
• where you wish to go, and
• a physical description of yourself. (Please remain in your car or wait in the building lobby until a Campus Police representative arrives.

This program, staffed by our on-patrol officers, serves a community of over 10,000. Calls for escort service are dispatched immediately. However, an excessive delay in response time may be due to a high volume use of the program. If this occurs, please place your call again.

Security on the College campus has been enhanced through the installation of emergency call boxes. To date, there are over forty emergency call boxes in various locations to provide immediate interaction and assistance. Remote activation devices for individuals with special needs may be obtained through Campus Police at 81-B St. Philip Street. To activate the call box:

• Push in the call button and release. (An automated emergency alert is directed to the Public Safety dispatcher indicating the exact location of the box. Public Safety officers will be sent to that location immediately).
• The dispatcher will contact the caller.
• To talk with the dispatcher hold button down.
• Release call button to listen

Pursuant to the provisions of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (Title 20 U.S.C. 1092-J) the College of Charleston will initiate its missing person notification procedures in the event a student has been determined by Campus Police to be missing for a period of 24 hours or longer.

At the beginning of each academic year, the Office of Residence Life and Housing will provide students living in residence halls the option to identify an individual to be contacted by the College in the event that they have been determined missing for a period of more than 24 hours. The information provided by the students is to be used only by authorized campus officials and law enforcement officers. For students under eighteen years of age and not an emancipated individual, the College is required to notify a custodial parent or guardian not later than 24 hours after the time that the student is determined to be missing. The College will inform each residential student that the College will notify the appropriate law enforcement agencies not later than 24 hours after the time that the student is determined missing by Campus Police.

Residence Life and Housing staff will contact the Campus Police immediately upon any reasonable suspicion that a residential student is missing. All other members of the College community shall report to Campus Police any student who is missing under circumstances that reasonably appear to be unusual, serious, or troubling.

Campus Police will conduct investigations of missing residential students and may contact other law enforcement authorities as may be appropriate under the circumstances.

If a residential student is deemed to be missing for more than 24 hours by Campus Police, notification will be made to the Executive Vice President for Student Affairs that the student has been missing for more than 24 hours. Notification of the confidential contact will be made as rapidly as possible. For those students under 18 years of age and not emancipated, the custodial parent or legal guardian will be contacted. In addition to making the notifications, Campus Police may also contact such other law enforcement authorities as may be appropriate under the circumstances, provided that it must contact local, state, and/or federal authorities and the National Crime Information Center of the Department of Justice in the event that the residential student is under the age of 21. In any case where there is an indication of a forcible abduction or other crime against the student or the missing residential student has not designated a confidential contact, Campus Police will make immediate referral to one or more appropriate law enforcement authorities.

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