By River Mitchell
@rivermitchell27
With Halloween this year falling on a Thursday and midterms having just wrapped up, that weekend is a likely time for Springfield College students to dress up in various costumes, go out and have a good time. However, some students have safety concerns, with rumors swirling around campus about Halloween weekend not being safe.
But the risk of something happening drops significantly if people are smart about who they’re with and what they do.
Halloween weekend is a period with a heavy amount of foot traffic on campus and a weekend where more students will be out and about, meaning there will be heightened security across campus.
It’s commonplace to see campus police drive up and down King Street, past the townhouses and around campus to make sure students are safe.
However, there’s also a personal responsibility for students to take care of themselves. Springfield College Chief of Police Joe Tiraboschi believes there are numerous steps students can take to remain safe.
“I always tell students when it comes to safety to always walk in a group,” Tiraboschi said. “If you’re walking in a group of people, most likely no one is going to really bother you because you’re in a pack of people.”
Tiraboschi said students should always be aware of their surroundings and where they are. He also discussed the importance of people rinsing their cups when drinking something out of it and not accepting food or drinks, especially from people they don’t know.
Tiraboschi believes there are some misconceptions about what goes on during Halloween in the city of Springfield. Most stem from concerns that surround sexual assault and gang initiation weekend, rumors that have been swirling around the campus since he was a student from 2006-2010.
There is likely a higher chance of something happening due to the nature of that particular weekend with people going out and celebrating. At the end of the day, it boils down to people being aware of their surroundings and making smart decisions.
“Any type of weekend or holiday event where people have time to go and have fun and do after hours activities of drinking or doing other things, the likelihood of something happening rises a little bit,” Tiraboschi said. “Decision-making, being aware of where you are, what you’re doing, all that stuff matters.”
If a student does find themselves in a bad situation and needs to get a hold of public safety, the Rave Guardian App is an important resource.
A vital safety mechanism that Springfield College students have at their disposal, the app allows students to get in contact with public safety by opening the app and hitting the button, signifying to the police that they’re in distress or need help. Public Safety will get a cruiser sent out within 40 seconds to a minute to them, and they’ll be assisted with their situation.
Tiraboschi urges students to use the app, even if they might simply be suspicious of something going on.
“If someone drives by three or four times as you’re walking to a location and makes you feel a little uneasy, call that in,” Tiraboschi said. “If you see someone walking by you or following you as you’re walking back, you have the app. Open it up, hit the safety timer [signaling] that you’re distressed, we’ll send a cruiser out to you. You have more of an opportunity to make yourself even safer.”
While there are some students who might not make the smartest decisions, Tiraboschi applauds the overall student body for being smart and doing a good job of staying out of bad situations.
“I hear from the neighbors [that] they walk in large groups,” Tiraboschi said. “Students are really smart. Students are overall very responsible. I think the students are a little more reserved and a little more responsible than they were back in the day.”