Imagine waking up to see a complete stranger dressed in dark clothing rummaging through your personal belongings.

This exact scenario happened in Barton Hall to Lisa Young, sophomore in animal ecology, on the morning of Friday, Sept. 18.

“I looked down from my loft, and there was a guy in my room,” said Young, who does not have a roommate.

Young described the suspect as a young, white male with blond hair dressed in dark clothing, who may have been wearing a hooded sweatshirt to disguise his appearance.

When Young woke up, she saw the man looking through the pockets of her clothes, which were lying on the floor.

“I think that maybe he was looking for money,” she said.

Young said she does not think the man wanted to harm her because when she shouted for him to leave, he did so immediately.

Young did not have her door locked. She was not hurt, and nothing was stolen from her room.

The man who was in Young’s room also has been spotted looking into other residence hall rooms. Jessica Schild, resident assistant of Busse House in Freeman Hall, said girls on her floor saw him looking into the basement.

Because some residents are concerned, Schild, along with the RAs of Barton, Lyon, Freeman and Fisher-Nickell halls, is planning to do a program on Oct. 25 for residents on personal safety.

“Our goal for the program is for residents to take something [from the program] that empowers them,” said Court Padgitt, RA of Anders House in Barton Hall.

Padgitt said that he and other RAs do not want residents to feel afraid. He said the program is not only going to focus on personal safety but also on how to spot and prevent thefts and what to do if anything was to happen.

Although waking up to a stranger gave Young a scare, so did the response of the Department of Public Safety. She said she thought the officer who arrived to her room was very insensitive.

“I was almost more scared when she left than I was before she came,” Young said.

She said she was taken aback by the officer’s attitude toward the situation. She said she expected the officer to be a little more understanding, especially since the officer was a woman and might understand how scared Young was.

“I did not mean to be rude; it is just hard to believe that anyone would not lock their door,” said Stephanie Regenold, the DPS officer who responded to the call.

Regenold said students need to understand the importance of keeping their doors locked at all times.

“I know the dorms are a social atmosphere, but you still must be careful and lock the door,” she said.

Regenold also said students can prevent situations like Young’s from happening by taking the necessary precautions.

“I may have accidentally lectured [Young], but it was good for her to hear,” Regenold said. “She is lucky that she wasn’t hurt, [and that nothing] was stolen. When I got to her room, [Young’s] RA was comforting her. I didn’t think it was my position [to comfort her].”

Young said she now locks her door, and she advises other students to do so as well.

Kim Araya, hall director of Oak and Elm halls, said the doors of all the residence halls are locked from 11:00 p.m. to 6:30 a.m., and Student Security, RAs and DPS do rounds on the floors to ensure the safety of all residents.