This spring, Hobart and William Smith introduced a new app that is designed to help prevent sexual assault. The app, called Circle of 6, is personalized to HWS students to help connect them with people they would contact in the event of an emergency. HWS is one of the first of three colleges that have partnered with Circle of 6 to give students better access to on campus and nearby emergency services.
To use the app, users create their own “circle of 6” people who they would trust to help them in the case of an emergency. Generally, this group would consist of friends on campus (rather than family or friends from home) so that they can help you as quickly as possible. After you have made your circle, you can send them one of three prewritten messages in just a few clicks. The first option sends out your GPS coordinates to your circle so that they can directly find you and help you, or tell Campus Safety or the Geneva Police Department your exact whereabouts. The second option sends a text to your circle asking them to call you and interrupt whatever you are doing so you have an excuse to leave. The last option tells your circle that you need to talk to someone, and are in an uncomfortable situation and need support. When you have gotten the help you need, all you need to do is click a checkbox and the app will notify your circle that you are okay.
Sarah Feldman ’15 first introduced the app to the colleges this past summer and finalized its plan in late November. “I worked with representatives from the President’s Office, the Counseling Center, Title IX Office, Campus Safety and Residential Education to look at several different applications. Circle of 6 was hands down, the best one. Once we decided on a company, we worked closely with their team to create the language and details for the app. Once it was finalized, we had to wait several weeks for the Apple and Android store to approve it. Since then, it’s been full steam ahead!”
The HWS customizations include direct contact information for Campus Safety, the Counseling Center, Geneva Police Department, Finger Lakes Safe Harbors and a national hotline. With the click of a button, the app will put you in contact with any of these resources and will also indicate which are confidential and which are not.
“What is great about this app, is that it does what students are already doing, in a quicker, better way. If you send an SOS text to one friend, you run the risk of them not answering, or having their phone die. Or, you might not have time in an emergency to write the full message. This app sends the texts, prewritten, to 6 people right away, so you have a greater safety net to get help”
Circle of 6 is free to download for both Apple and Android smartphones. The customized, HWS version of the Circle of 6 app can be found by searching “Circle of 6 U” in the app store!