The Clery Act and its influence on the success of the college/university mission.

On October 1st of every year, college campuses throughout the United States are required to publish an annual security report (ASR), which provides an overview of the institution’s security program. The ASR includes policies and procedures as well as crime statistics for the previous 3 years. The intent of the Clery Act was to provide valuable information on campus safety and security so that students, faculty, and staff can make more informed decisions as to either attend and/or work at a specific institution. This study examined how knowledgeable campus security authorities (CSAs) are with respect to these ASRs, also known as the Clery Act. Furthermore, this research examined whether or not the Act has influence on the success of the institutions’ missions. This is a qualitative study, which consists of data collected from structured interviews from 14 participants from 2 institutions representing four-year, for-profit colleges. Questions asked during these structured interviews focused on each respondent’s knowledge of the Clery Act and its various provisions. The study revealed that the CSAs were unsure whether the Clery Act made college campuses safer; they were aware of the Act but not very familiar with the provisions of the Act; they were unable to identify resources other than additional personnel-power; and finally, they were familiar with the annual requirement of the Act and the published data but not with other provisions of the Act