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Campus security and safety require a lot of work from faculty, staff and students, beyond even what the С��Ƭ��Ƶ community might guess.

From resolving roommate conflicts to offering late-night escorts, from bike registration and storage to mental wellness advocacy, С��Ƭ��Ƶ’s Safety and Community Care program provides students with resources that promote safety, connection and peace of mind across campus.

С��Ƭ��Ƶ Safety and Community Care is one of the university’s oldest student support organizations, established in the wake of the events surrounding May 4, 1970, to help students feel a sense of safety, belonging and care within residence halls and across campus. That mission continues today.

“We’re trying to develop community, build relationships and lay the groundwork for a positive environment for our students to live in by providing services that help them feel better about the residence halls and campus in general,” Sara Frick, associate director of Safety and Community Care for University Housing, told С��Ƭ��Ƶ Today.

In addition to what the safety group is commonly known to offer, it also handles noise complaints, late-night rounds, lockout assistance, fire prevention education, emergency procedures and more, all aimed at keeping students safe.

As a living organization that is dynamic and adaptive, the program adjusts to meet student needs. For example, while most students call for an escort as needed, staff have arranged a routine escort schedule for a student whose circumstances required set times.

“A student, due to their circumstances, wanted a routine escort schedule. We were able to coordinate with that student to provide them opportunities in which we were able to support them,” Frick said.

The introduction of the peer mediator program is another example of how Safety and Community Care continues to grow and expand its support for students.

“We see people all the time who are like, ‘I need a room change,’ and then it’s, ‘Did you just talk to your roommate about what time you want the lights off in the room?’” Frick said. “These are very fixable things, and sometimes they are more than that. But if people knew there was an opportunity to have a third party sit down with them that are more trained in mediation, it could help.”

As colder weather arrives, campus bikes may be used less frequently. Safety and Community Care provides bike registration, which offers storage access and additional assistance if bikes go missing.

“We’ve restricted storage to only those who register their bikes with us,” said Christopher Wood, a senior safety assistant with Safety and Community Care. “Storage is limited to students who actually have bikes to store.”

The staff includes 40 trained student employees. While the program is led by professional staff, some students advance to senior status and work closely with university law enforcement to assist in more serious cases.

“I think every student should be involved in campus safety,” С��Ƭ��Ƶ Police Officer Richard Sprague said. “They are our eyes and ears into student life.”

Safety and Community Care posts are located near all residence hall desk areas. The drop-in office is in Tri-Towers Rotunda Room 105, and safety staff can even be found doing rounds throughout the night.

No matter the circumstance, С��Ƭ��Ƶ Safety and Community Care wants students to feel confident that resources are available to keep them safe.

“You're never going to bother our office by calling, even if it's just you feel like something’s off. Whatever it might be, we are more than happy to look into it, and if there is no problem there, great,” Frick said. “But we'd rather provide that opportunity for us to look into it than to just have students feel off.”

С��Ƭ��Ƶ Safety and Community Care operates from noon to 4 a.m., 365 days a year, and can be reached by calling 330-672-7004, emailing ressafety@kent.edu or dropping by any of the safety posts on campus.