Written by Colin Ashwood
The most dangerous event you'll experience at Elmhurst is a skunk ambush. There are currently 0.68 violent crimes per 1,000 people in Elmhurst, making it one the safest suburbs of Chicago. Students can walk on and off campus anytime, day or night, with $100 bills glued to their shirts and be perfectly safe. The campus has emergency phone booths set up in a few areas if you feel like you're in danger, but most of them have cobwebs. Even if you're walking alone at 2 or 3 in the morning, the likelihood of a serious threat is very low. With the train station so close, a random outsider will occasionally hang around, but campus security usually takes care of this before too much trouble is caused. Keep in mind, though, that there is a higher chance of theft because of these outsiders. It’s unlikely that you’ll be mugged, but bikes (and even some cars) have been stolen. Other than that, you’ll feel perfectly safe but take the skunk advice seriously—when they’re walking straight toward on a sidewalk, it can be a little intimidating.
If you get hurt or sick, the health center is easily accessible. It has walk-in hours on Mondays and Wednesdays and is open every weekday until 4 or 5 (depending what day it is). The center offers testing, immunizations, and counseling, which includes massage therapy! It also has Band-Aids, condoms, and other minor self-serve health necessities in a side room that is not supervised.