Student resources: Campus Security
Walk-alongs, counseling, and violence prevention all available for students in need
September is just around the corner and students, new and continuing, are preparing to go back to school after the summer break; the campus is preparing too. With Welcome Week activities coming up, the campus staff, faculty members, and instructors have hardly been unoccupied.
Even though classes are offered throughout spring and summer, many students prefer to take the summer off and return for fall or winter. Such being the case, campus is usually more abuzz with crowds during the fall and winter semesters. The University of Regina prides itself for having a diverse and all-inclusive campus which hosts students from all over the world. An essential part of having a campus for all is ensuring the safety of all those who are present on campus. To facilitate this, Campus Security has a number of resources that can be accessed by all students.
A detailed account of all the services offered by security services is usually given during orientation. This article aims to provide similar information for those who miss orientation, were unable to attend, or who have already been studying for a few years and may not remember every detail of the orientation messages.
All information can be found on the university’s website for Campus Security. As also mentioned on the website, security personnel are present on campus 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and provide proactive patrols and call responses to both the main campus and College Avenue campus should you be taking courses there. Security services also have emergency (306-585-4999) and non-emergency (306-585-4407) phone numbers which are monitored consistently.
Security can be contacted for emergency events, or something as simple as a student studying on campus late at night who wants an escort to their vehicle or bus stop so they don’t have to walk alone when campus is fairly empty. Myself and many of my acquaintances have made use of this Walk Along Program, and have found it helpful especially during evenings.
The university also has a Sexual Violence Prevention and Response (SVPR) coordinator who can assist survivors of sexual violence and/or their support either in-person, by telephone, or by email. More information can be found online at uregina.ca/sexual-violence/. If you are seeking appointments for counseling, you can book through email by contacting lynn.thera@uregina.ca or sexual.violence.response@uregina.ca. Any questions regarding these practices or the programs may also be directed here.
A very important piece of information that needs to be mentioned here is that your identity will remain completely anonymous, and any information you may share will remain strictly confidential providing it does not violate ethical reasons for a counselor to disclose information (e.g. a child’s safety is at risk). One major reason why many victims of abuse never speak up has to do with their identity being revealed, which is why it is essential to mention that anonymity is ensured through the process.
Many other resources are also available through Campus Security, and several will be addressed in follow-up articles through future issues of the Carillon. Meanwhile, we hope you have a splendid beginning to your semester, and that you remember to use the resources available to you as a student to keep you safe through your semester.
