The recent robberies and assaults have sparked a safety concern among students and some of their families.

Daniel Nadler, vice president for student affairs, said he has heard the concerns that students have.

“I’ve received some emails and I’ve talked directly to students and tried to reassure them that we’re working very hard with the Charleston Police Department,” Nadler said.

Nadler said that they are working close to find the people who are responsible for the recent crimes and bring them to justice.

Eastern was recently ranked the number two safest college town in the country according to The SafeWise Report.

“That speaks volumes in terms of how hard people have worked to get to that point,” Nadler said. “That doesn’t mean we can rest either.”

Nadler said the ranking does not mean the people who have helped Charleston get the rating can stop, but people need to keep working so the rank can be maintained.

Nadler said campus safety is one of the more important issues for a college campus.

“This is unusual for us,” Nadler said. “We are not a campus that experiences very much crime, and certainly crime within a short period of time.

Students are being encouraged to call the police departments with any information they may have or if they feel something is not right.

“If you feel something suspicious or sense that, go ahead and call it in,” Nadler said. “We would rather have a respond to a false call than to have something bad happen.”

Mackenzie Freund can be reached at 581-2812 or at mgfreund@eiu.edu