While the public safety forum hosted by the Department of Public Safety at the College of Law was an adequate response to the recent allegations that a student was drugged at an off-campus party, there should be greater university wide response.

The forum, open exclusively to College of Law students, focused on personal safety and community resources, and was attended by representatives of the Vera House and University Counseling Center.

While it is a College of Law student who says she was drugged at an off-campus party last semester, and has since taken action to report the incident, the issue of drink tampering is not exclusive to law students.

The College of Law made the right decision bringing this forum to its students, but there should be a proportional response from SU at large. DPS has said it is open to hosting forums like this at other colleges in the near future. There should be more forums for undergraduate students, but limiting these to particular colleges is not necessarily the best plan of action.

The undergraduate experience has much more intermingling throughout academic schools, and limiting forums by majors does not make sense. Multiple forums should be held at varying times and should be open to all. SU would also be wise to capitalize on the attention this forum has garnered and take immediate action to organize future events.

While reactive action can educate the campus, preventative action should also be better publicized, such as DPS’s free Rape Aggression Defense classes that are open for women every semester. BE Wise also offers BE Wise 101 presentations to educate groups on campus about safer drinking.

Educating the SU community on personal safety at this poignant time needs to be taken on by more than just the College of Law.