Communications

Date: Feb 24, 2011

To: All U.Va. Students

From: Patricia M. Lampkin, Vice President and Chief Student Affairs Officer

Re: Spring Break Safety

Dear Students:

With Spring Break just around the corner, I wanted to write with several safety reminders.

Whether you will be heading home, traveling afar or staying in Charlottesville, planning ahead will help ensure a rejuvenating, safe break. Several general reminders:

• Always carry an ID with you.
• Stay with friends, especially if you are in an unfamiliar area.
• Think safety up front: Check emergency exits in your hotel. Know the local telephone numbers (usually 911) to get help in a hurry. Do not ride with drivers who have been drinking. Always wear your seatbelt.
• Use only licensed and regulated taxis.
• Be familiar with the laws, customs and standards in a given country or state. Even in the United States, alcohol laws can vary by state.
• If you are staying on Grounds or in Charlottesville, take frequently suggested steps to be safe – do not walk alone late at night, report suspicious activity by calling 911, be familiar with altered schedules for the U.Va. buses. Recognize that fewer students in the area may invite more criminal activity.
• Before leaving town, lock the doors and windows of your apartment, house or room. Draw the curtains or shades so valuables will not be visible. If feasible, take valuables with you.
• Safe Spring Break bags and T-shirts will be given out next week from Monday through Thursday on the second floor of Newcomb during lunch and dinner (while supplies last).

Traveling beyond the U.S.

If you plan to travel outside the United States, you will need to plan even more carefully. Make a list of everything you will need to take – from documents to medications – and leave adequate time for packing and getting to the airport.

If you are traveling with a program that is not affiliated with the University, give your parents or other contacts complete details on where you will be and how they can reach you.

A wealth of up-to-date information is available on the Students Abroad website, which is hosted by the U.S. Department of State. Emergency guidelines, travel advisories and alerts, and country-specific information, including a brochure with pointers for Spring Break in Mexico and the Caribbean, all are available through this site. In addition, the State Department encourages travelers to register through its Smart Traveler Enrollment Program to facilitate communication in the event of an emergency.

Drink Spiking: This year, we are drawing special attention to the increasing risk, especially abroad, of “drink-spiking” to facilitate criminal activity. Individuals intent on committing serious crimes such as sexual assault, robbery and kidnapping use a variety of drugs, often placed into beverages or sometimes food, to induce unconsciousness and amnesia.

When you are in unfamiliar surroundings, especially traveling overseas, you are encouraged to adopt a heightened awareness of the potential for drug-facilitated crimes. The University of Virginia Health System’s Blue Ridge Poison Center recommends these precautions:

• Never accept open beverage containers, especially from someone you do not know and trust.
• Be aware of the potential of drink-spiking in specific environments such as night clubs, bars and parties. However, such events can occur anywhere. 
• Never leave an open drink unwatched. Keep it in your hands at all times. Criminals will attempt to distract potential victims by creating diversions, working in teams with one asking a question and the other drugging the victim’s beverage, or simply spiking the victim’s beverage when he or she leaves a table momentarily to answer a phone call or to use the bathroom.
• Bottled drinks and sealed cans are the safest. Ask to open the bottle or can yourself, or watch it being opened. However, there are reports of bottles being recapped. 
• Beware of free samples of drinks and foods. If the person offering becomes insistent, absolutely refuse.
• If you think a drink tastes odd or looks unusual, throw it away. 
• Always travel with one person in the group who is not drinking beverages containing alcohol.
• A negative result on test kits advertised to detect drug-spiked drinks does not guarantee that a drink has not been drugged. 

More information is available on the poison center’s Web site. If you have questions, you may call the center at 800.222.1222. 

Transportation Beyond Grounds

Information on various transportation options is available on U.Va.’s Parking and Transportation website. In addition, Student Council is sponsoring a Spring Break UVAirBus, which provides a bus ride from the Grounds to the Richmond airport (and back). One-way tickets are $20. More information, including how to reserve a seat, is online.

SafeWalk Escort Service Launched

Student Council recently launched SafeWalk, a walking escort service staffed Monday through Thursday evenings from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. Students who don’t want to walk home alone can call SafeWalk, and a male-female student team will accompany you. The telephone number is the same as for SafeRide: 434.242.1122.

Flu Shots Still Available at Student Health

Flu vaccine is still available at Student Health, and it is not too late for you to be immunized. To make an appointment to receive the shot, please go to the Healthy Hoos Web site.

If members of the Student Affairs staff or I can be of assistance to you, please feel free to contact me at vpsa@virginia.edu. Best wishes for a fun, safe and restful Spring Break.

Sincerely,

Patricia M. Lampkin

Vice President and Chief Student Affairs Officer