“Just Words?” left participants speechless.

“It really shook me up at the end because it was really intense,” said Morgan Stough, an electronic media major at Wayne State College.

Stough walked away with a sense of responsibility.

“Even if you think it’s a joke, you don’t know how people are hearing it and taking it,” Stough said.

The event sponsored by Residence Life, took place this Monday and Tuesday from four to seven each day.

Students could meet in the Student Center Atrium before getting escorted by a Resident Assistant down the elevator. They were then guided through the tunnels beneath campus while being shown real-life situations.

It was aimed at making students more aware of the power of their words.
Robbie Hall is a resident assistant in Bowen Hall.

“We know the stuff that happens, you go through [Just Words?] and you can see the stuff that residents say,” Hall said.

“But we combat it, we give helpful and instructional tools on how to combat this.”

The event was overseen by Mariam Wickman, Assistant Director of Residence Life for Bowen and Pile Halls.

“I advocated to be in charge of it because it’s something I care a lot about.” Wickman said.

“It’s very emotional,” Wickman said. “It’s designed to be.”

This is the first year Wickman has been in charge of the program. She decided to infuse it with Project: Pay Attention.

“It’s a really great opportunity to remind people to pay attention to what they’re saying,” Wickman said. “You never know who might hear you or what you might say that could offend somebody.”

One of the aims this year was to gear the program towards social media.

Apps such as Yik-Yak allow students to post anonymously, this has the potential for cyberbullying-related problems to surface.

“I think that social media is an incredibly useful tool,” Wickman said. “But it can be so hurtful.”

After the first day, nearly 100 students made their way through the tunnels underneath WSC.

“I would definitely encourage anyone to go next year,” Stough said.