In an e-mail sent Wednesday afternoon, Virginia Tech officials asked students to take precautions for their personal safety after last month's discovery of 20-year-old Morgan Harrington's remains on a farm outside Charlottesville.

Harrington, a Tech student from Roanoke County, disappeared Oct. 17 after leaving her friends at a Metallica concert at John Paul Jones arena at the University of Virginia.

Harrington was last seen trying to hitch a ride on the Copeley Road bridge in Charlottesville. Her skeletal remains were found 10 miles away in an isolated field in Albemarle County.

According to police, she had been drinking the night she went missing.

Police continue to investigate her death, which has been ruled a homicide.

The safety notification was sent from Tech Vice President for Student Affairs Ed Spencer on Wednesday and gave a long list of general safety tips.

Among them, the e-mail suggested students avoid walking alone at night and use the campus SafeRide program or the Blacksburg Transit bus system. It also emphasized that students who choose to drink at parties should make safety plans with friends to avoid dangerous situations.

"Remember that alcohol use can dull judgment and lead to a false sense of security," the e-mail stated.

Harrington's parents, Dan and Gil Harrington, suggested the notifications be sent out to students at both Tech and UVa, Spencer said.

Harrington's brother, Alex, is an alumnus of UVa.

"We didn't want Morgan to go out by herself alone," Dan Harrington is quoted in the e-mail as saying. "There are so many things that if we could change, we would have a different outcome."

UVa officials sent out a similar campus notice last week.

"We felt it would appropriate to do something parallel here at Virginia Tech," Spencer said.