Throughout the past week, it seems like a lot has been happening around Ohio University’s campus.
In the early morning hours last Wednesday, students’ emails and text messages alerted them of armed robberies on two opposite sides of campus. At that time, most students were probably asleep in their dorms or off-campus housing. Some students, however, had to make the walk home from a late night study session or a night out Uptown.
Students have also been seeing reports to the Ohio University Police Department and the Athens Police Department of sexual assaults that have occurred on campus and in Athens.
Since the start of the semester, there have been six reports overall to OUPD and APD.
Over the past weekend, OUPD notified students about the death of a student in Wilson Hall. Police do not believe there was a threat to students, and the investigation is still ongoing.
Those incidents occurring over the first few weeks of school are enough to raise concern among students.
A common response from students is that the messages sent to them contain little information. Local police, however, have little initial information or can’t share information to protect the integrity of an investigation.
That doesn’t stop students from asking questions or having concerns of their own safety on campus, though.
Our job as a student newspaper is to inform the people, especially students, about what is happening at the university and in the city. This we do to the best of our abilities.
It is also the job of OU students to take care of each other.
Since it’s still only the first month of school, students are just starting to be settled into semester routines. Syllabus week is long over, and assignments and exams due dates are closer than they seemed in that first week.
Everyone eventually will be stuck in a routine that is hard to break from and affects people in different ways. Some people like having the same daily structure planned out. Other people like to change things up outside of classes.
Whatever your routine, it’s important to take time to pause and take a break.
It’s okay to be selfish every once in awhile and take care of yourself. Although it always seems like there is something to be doing, say no to plans or save homework for the next day to exercise, do a hobby or just binge watch television shows. When it comes to mental health, you are your first priority.
However, be sure to check in on your friends when you can, whether it is asking if they made it home okay or having a conversation about a tough topic.
Talk to each other about what’s happening around campus, but don’t just have it be to spread rumors about what happened. Have conversations about your feelings to these incidents and what you can do to support each other. Sometimes, the answers people give may surprise you.
Ellen Wagner is a senior studying journalism at Ohio University and the editor-in-chief of The Post. Have questions? Email Ellen at ew047615@ohio.edu or tweet her @ewagner19.
