George Washington University released its Annual Security and Fire Safety Report on Friday, presenting information on the crimes and other offenses reported to the Office of Safety and Security, the GW Police Department and other university offices during 2017.
The report finds that reported crime overall has declined or remained flat on GW’s campuses over the past three years. Darrell Darnell, senior associate vice president for safety and security, said increased emphasis on training and student education fosters a safer campus environment.
“The university’s efforts to provide more resources for students especially in training and making them more aware of what resources are available for them has helped to make our campuses safer,” Mr. Darnell said.
This report is compiled each year by the Division of Safety and Security and GW Police Department in compliance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Police and Crime Statistics Act and the Higher Education Opportunity Act.
Under that statute, the university is required to report on the incidence of certain offenses as defined by the Clery Act and the U.S. Department of Education. The report includes statistics about Clery crimes on campus, on certain off-campus properties owned or controlled by GW and on public property within or immediately adjacent to campus.
As stated in the report, 33 cases of rape as defined by the Clery Act were reported on the Foggy Bottom campus and five were reported on the Mount Vernon campus in 2017. Thirty-three rapes were reported on the Foggy Bottom campus in 2016 and seven were reported on the Mount Vernon campus.
The number of stalking reports on the Foggy Bottom campus increased in 2017 over the previous year. Reported cases of fondling, dating violence and domestic violence declined. The number of reported stalking cases on the Mount Vernon campus rose from two to three and the number of reported fondlings rose from one to four.
On the Mount Vernon campus three cases of stalking and four cases of fondling were reported in 2017. No cases of dating violence or domestic violence were reported.
Making sure sexual assault survivors have access to services and resources is a priority for the university. Survivors and third-parties can report incidents to GWPD, to the Title IX office and online through Haven. The Colonial Health Center also offers a resource in the form of a trauma services coordinator to help support students who are survivors of sexual assault. The sexual assault response and consultation team (SARC) responds 24/7 to help victims of sexual assault online and at (202-) 994-7222.
One notable increase is the number of disciplinary referrals for liquor law violations increased in 2017 due to the Division of Safety and Security’s reinterpretation of the Clery Act reporting requirements. The university reported 361 referrals in 2017 on the Foggy Bottom campus compared to 178 in 2016. As the division reviewed and compiled the report, it sought guidance from subject matter experts and determined that the university should report all students referred for discipline, even if all those students were not disciplined.
As an example, in previous years if GWPD referred 10 students to SRR for discipline for drinking at a party, but seven of those students were not disciplined because they were of the legal drinking age, GW’s annual Clery report would only account for the three disciplined students. Under the new interpretation, the 2017 report includes all 10 of the original referrals.
Fourteen liquor law referrals were made on the Mount Vernon campus in 2017, compared to three in 2016.
The entire report is available online here.
