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Campus Safety Services

This page is your go-to destination for everything related to feeling and staying safe on campus. Read below for more information on the services ISU provides to ensure student peace of mind.

Safe Redbirds

The Safe Redbirds app is a multi-use and incredibly helpful app designed so all ISU students can feel peace of mind on campus. Listed below are the multiple resources this app provides and how to use these to maintain and ensure your sense of safety on campus:

 

  1. Emergency Numbers including 911, ISU Police, the Student Counseling Services hotline, and PATH, a mental health hotline.

  2. An emergency guide that includes instructions on how to handle any situation from winter weather to a hostage situation.

  3. Campus Resources, such as information on Title IX, Office of Equal Opportunity and Access, Student Counseling, Student Health, and more.

  4. Campus Maps.

  5. Direct access to ISU Safe Walk, a service offered to students who feel unsafe walking alone. This can be done digitally as part of the Virtual Safe Walk program. The Friend Walk option is also available through the app. To learn more about ISU Safe Walk visit this page.

  6. Work Alone, which checks-in on you while you’re studying or alone on campus and will send your emergency contact an alert if a check in is missed.

  7. A Safety Toolbox filled with anything you might need, from fire safety to campus violence prevention to a ping sent to your emergency contact notifying them that you’re safe and ok.

  8. Make a Report enables you to automatically report suspicious behaviors involving crime, health and safety, sexual assault/misconduct, relationship violence/stalking, or a CARE report.

 

 This app is available on the App Store and wherever else you download apps on your phone.

SAFE (Self-Defense Awareness and Familiarization Exchange)

This program, about 2 hours in length, provides women with education and information that could prevent exposure to violence. This also serves as an introduction to the physical side of self-defense. The main goal of the program, as stated by ISU Police, is “To prevent crimes of sexual violence in our communities through programs of education and training, focusing primarily on awareness and prevention; To educate women about realistic options that will help them avoid, escape, and survive assaults if they do occur.” 


This class is available to be scheduled as a group session, but prescheduled sign-up sessions are discontinued until further notice due to CoVid-19. If you’re interested in booking a group session, feel free to contact ISU Police at isupolice@ilstu.edu.

RAD (Rape Aggression Defense)

A more intense and physically demanding program about 12 hours in length, this program will fully educate women on three focus areas: Risk Reduction, Physical Defense, and Dynamic Simulation. After full completion of this program, certified by a RAD instructor signature on your free RAD course booklet, you are able to retake as many classes of this program as you’d like all over the country. The goal of this program is to provide, “...women and young girls with an environment to nurture and develop positive skills, attitudes, belief in self and physical fitness” (RAD | Police - Illinois State).

 

Unfortunately, this program is unavailable due to the constraints of CoVid-19, but will be available as soon as ISU Police department and its RAD-certified instructors determine it is safe to offer it again.

Emergency Bluelight Towers

With 83 of these towers on campus, feeling safe on campus is as easy as:

  1. If you’re in an uncomfortable or dangerous situation, or see any suspicious behavior or activity, find one of these towers in your area. They are distinguishable by the big blue light on the top of the tower and are scattered all over campus.

  2. Once you find one of these Blue Light towers, hit the red button labeled HELP inside. Inside this tower there is also more information on Redbird Safety on campus and information on our local police departments.

  3. Wait for help to come to your location. There are 4 police departments that respond to these emergencies on campus: ISU Police, Normal Police, McLean County Police, and Bloomington Police Department. An officer from one of these departments will be dispatched and at your location in less than two minutes to help you.

Redbird Safe Walk

By calling 309-438-WALK you gain access to several services that can help you feel more at ease walking around campus, to your apartment, to your car, or wherever else you need to go.

 

  • There is an in-person option where a student is dispatched to your location and will walk you wherever you need to go.

 

  • A virtual option is available for those who aren’t comfortable walking with a stranger. You can use the Safe Redbirds app to allow an ISU police officer to track your location and progress toward your destination as you walk. There is a button labeled ‘Emergency” for you to utilize on your way, and if you don’t arrive to your destination or your movements begin to look unsafe a police officer will be dispatched to help.

ISU Emergency Alert System

By signing up for this service, emergency alerts about dangerous situations on campus, campus-wide class cancellations, weather warnings, etc. will be sent to your phone as a text message. These alerts are also posted on Illinois State University’s website, but having a message sent to your phone ensures you are aware of anything happening on campus as soon as possible. This service is also available for parents and guardians to register for. To sign up:

 

  • First, log into your ISU profile and visit your My Profile section.

  • Scroll down to the Emergency Alerts section

  • Click [Update Your Emergency Alert Information]

  • Add your mobile phone number

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