The report is released every year in accordance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, more commonly known as the Clery Act. The act was enacted as an amendment in 1990 to the Higher Education Act of 1965, according to the introductory page within the report.
To be in accordance with the act, colleges and universities are required to collect and count crime statistics, maintain a daily crime log, submit crime statistics to the Department of Education, according to the annual report.
The Fire Safety and Security Report for CSU-Pueblo, which was released on Sept. 10, was compiled by the CSU-Pueblo Safety Team. The safety team consists of the Pueblo County Sheriff’s office at CSU-Pueblo, Director of
Safety and Environmental Health, Executive Director of Student Affairs, Associate Dean of Student Services, and other administrators and staff members.
The report of crime statistics for CSU-Pueblo looked at a number of different categories, including (but not limited to): sex offenses, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft, violations of drug and liquor laws, and illegal weapons violations.
Though the number of sexual assaults on campus did rise from one to three cases between 2010 and 2011, the campus is still safer than other schools numbers. Fort Lewis College, located in Durango, Colo., reported the same amount of sexual assaults on its campus, which consists of nearly 1,000 fewer students than CSU-Pueblo.
CSU-Pueblo reported zero incidents regarding illegal weapons, arson, or robbery for the past year.
As for burglary, the number of cases reported in the residence halls dropped from 14 in 2010 to 13 in 2011, while the campus saw two cases of motor vehicle theft in the last year.
In comparison, Fort Lewis College reported 19 cases of theft in residence halls alone, and 44 cases of theft on the entire campus for the past year, according to its updated safety report on their website.
The highest number of violations for the CSU-Pueblo campus came in arrests for drug and alcohol laws, though the numbers were still relatively low. The campus reported 37 cases of drug law violations, and 76 cases of liquor law violations.
Once again, however, the comparison to the smaller Fort Lewis College shows that CSU-Pueblo has a relatively tight hold on such violations. Fort Lewis reported 78 drug violations on campus and 127 liquor law violations, nearly double the amount recorded for CSU-Pueblo.
Additionally, there were zero reported hate crimes throughout the entire campus and community. Pueblo County Sheriff Kirk Taylor was pleased with the results of the report as well.
“We have a wonderful relationship that’s been built over many years with the students and faculty at CSU-Pueblo, as well as my staff,” Taylor said, “and anytime the students, staff, and administration believe in their safety and security, which is our job, they can provide a good educational environment and continue to have a safe campus.”
Taylor also commented on the presence of Lieutenant Brown being on campus, saying that he brings“calmness” to the university, which makes it a safer and successful environment.
Further studies have also shown that the CSU-Pueblo campus is one of the safest in the state. In February, the Durango Herald compiled a study of 10 different schools across Colorado and their 10-year crime statistics.
That report found that CSU-Pueblo ranked the lowest in six out of the seven crime categories studied, including sexual assault, weapons violations, burglary, aggravated assault, and arson.
The Fire Safety and Security Report also includes helpful information for students, staff, and parents. The report gives tips on reporting a crime, security information for campus, sexual misconduct policies and definitions, drug and alcohol policies and prevention programs, fire safety, and more.
The report can be found on the campus safety page at http://www.colostate-pueblo.edu/CampusSafety/Pages/Default.aspx under the “Clery Act Information” section of the page.
