July 30, 2024 - Clery Act Reporting Audit Examines Chico State Among 6 Campuses — Chico State Skip to Main Content
California State University, Chico

July 30, 2024 - Clery Act Reporting Audit Examines Chico State Among 6 Campuses

Dear Campus Community, 
 
Today, the California State Auditor released its 2024-032 Clery Act Requirements and Crime Reporting audit, which included Chico State among six campuses for a comprehensive review. I am grateful for this examination of our practices, affirmation of where we are upholding both the letter and the spirit of the law, and recognition of where we can continue to improve.  
 
The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act, better known as the Clery Act, is a fundamental tool on college campuses. It requires us to report campus crime data, support victims, and outline campus safety policies and procedures. These priorities support students, faculty, and staff, and ensure transparency for prospective students and employees. In addition, the legislation and this recent audit ensure we are accountable and thorough. 
 
Overall, Chico State had an 80% compliance rate when it came to the policies, procedures and programs of the Clery Act Requirements, the second-highest among the six institutions surveyed. Among our areas of strength, we follow appropriate procedures on categorizing crimes and maintaining daily logs; we have good records on crime reporting, tracking and general safety; and we have comprehensive orientation and programming around sexual violence and harassment.  
 
In reviewing a sample of crimes reported in 2022, the audit noted we underreported in some instances and we overreported in others, with a net of overreporting crimes overall. This spurred a comment from the auditors that overreporting data could lead people to erroneously avoid a campus that may be a good fit.   
 
In speaking with our campus Clery team, I understand Chico State’s instances of serious crimes are relatively low (mirroring lower-than-average crime rates in the community as a whole), and that we rely on crime data to inform our prevention programming to address the greatest needs and risks. We are building a strong team, including the Clery Act Director and Clery Compliance Team, University Police Department, Student Affairs, and other campus partners, to strengthen our internal protocols. And as we have expanded our compliance efforts in recent years to auxiliaries, we have been tapped by the Chancellor’s Office to train other CSU campuses. We are trying to lead by example, and I am honored to have such an exceptional team here at Chico State. 
 
That said, the report also noted several areas where we need to initiate change to be fully in compliance. Many of those issues were already being addressed or are in progress.  Here are the areas we will focus on:  

  • Communication: As the report notes, we have already changed the process to centralize reporting and improve communication and reporting accuracy between the Clery Director and campus departments. We have also improved protocols to cross-check statistics to eliminate duplication, missing crimes, and mistakes. We need to be proactive in ensuring prospective employees and students are aware of the report, and we are working with Human Resources and Admissions to implement the necessary tools. 
  • Policy: We need to improve our formalized campus emergency response and evacuation procedures, with emphasis on policies related to missing students, both of which will be done in fall 2024. We also need to update our cooperation agreement with the Chico Police Department, which is pending review by the Chico city manager. We are looking at all Clery-related policies to make sure they meet the standard for state and federal compliance. 
  • Internal Protocols: We need to formally document procedures by January 2025 for compiling and recording Clery Act statistics, as well as for preparing the annual security reports. We’ve already examined the systems in place, and we are working on a business process guide for Clery compliance.  

 
Our compliance with the Clery Act is important far beyond ensuring we maintain eligibility for federal funding. It is a critical component of monitoring and reporting crime and having policies in place to make our campus a safe place to learn and work. As we address the recommendations, we will examine our progress toward full compliance in 60-day, 6-month, and 1-year benchmarks. We are optimistic most recommendations will be done by the first report-out.  
 
If you have questions about the audit or our Clery compliance program, please contact Clery Director Erin A. Tarabini at clery@csuchico.edu.