I have to admit that I’ve done the exact same thing, walked home by myself late at night, refused a chaperone or left a party filled with people who were too drunk to make it to my dorm and back.

This happened to Lauren Spierer just over two weeks ago AND SHE DISAPPEARED, and it’s made me think back on my own mistakes, think back on when I got older/wiser and began asking men to walk me home or to my car, think back on when I began carrying a flashlight in my purse, think back on the times I’ve warned my own students (men or women) never to walk home alone .

This, like many stories I’ve read about missing girls, has made me think that it could’ve been me. It could’ve been one of my students here in Milledgeville. And even though this isn’t Milledgeville, we need to care about what has happened to Lauren. We need to FIND OUT what has happened to her.

In the early morning hours of Friday, June 3rd, Lauren and friends were hanging out in Kilroy’s Sports Bar in Bloomington, IN. Around 2:30 AM, she and a friend left the bar together, leaving her cell phone and shoes behind. Lauren and her friend reached her apartment building, Smallwood Plaza, but cameras show that she didn’t ever enter the apartment. As she and her friend party-hopped their way to another apartment on 11th and Morton, she somehow misplaced her purse and a set of keys.

When Lauren decided to head home for good around 4:30 AM, a male friend watched her walk down the street towards Smallwood Plaza, and he is believed to be the last person who saw Lauren.

Remember that the key to helping find Lauren is making sure that the public doesn’t forget about her. You can help— no matter where you are.

10 Tips to Help #FindLauren

Tip 1: Tweet Lauren’s info out to your followers… again. #Twitter feeds move quickly, tweets get lost.

Tip 2: Tweet 5-10 high profile people from this list and ask them to RT her info: http://www.twibes.com/celebrity/twitter-list

Tip 3: Tweet your local media and ask them to cover/keep covering the Lauren Spierer case to #FindLauren

Tip 4: #Tweeting not your thing? Close to #Bloomington? Arrange days off, assemble a team and come here! It is summertime, and I know that many of us have more flexible schedules. Bloomington Police and Lauren’s parents are desperate for volunteers to help with searches.

Tip 5: Consider donating to help fund the search. $5, 10, $25, anything helps: http://www.iuhillel.org/lauren_donate.php

Tip 6: She could be anywhere. People MUST see her. Consider changing your photo to http://twitpic.com/5842fw or sharing Lauren’s picture with the people you work with.

Tip 7: Pass on reward information, $100k and remind people of the anonymous tip line: (812) 339-4477.

Tip 8: Do you have a blog? Blog it. Do you read blogs? Request your favorite bloggers to blog it. FEEL FREE TO REPOST MY BLOG IF YOU WOULD RATHER DO THIS THAN WRITE YOUR OWN ENTRY!!!!

Tip 9: Facebook your thing? Post Lauren’s poster on your page. Ask others to do the same: http://twitpic.com/5842fw

Tip 10: Follow @NewsOnLaurenS on Twitter for the latest updates.