Under the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (widely referred to as the Clery Act) — passed in 1990 in memory of Lehigh University freshman Jeanne Clery, who was raped and murdered in her dorm room — colleges are required by federal law to provide yearly crime statistics to current and prospective students, faculty, and staff. This mandated reporting, however, only includes incidents that were formally filed with the school, which results in a dramatic difference between the numbers of crimes noted in these annual catalogues and the number of crimes that are actually occurring. (For example, Northeastern's 2007 crime statistics indicate that six forcible and zero non-forcible sexual assaults occurred on campus that year. This means that six incidents were reported by victims to the campus police, though Harwell says the actual number of assaults was likely much higher.)
This discrepancy does not imply a grand cover-up conspiracy, devised by collegiate administrations to deceive potential students (and their parental financiers) into believing that campuses are safer than they are. In fact, over the past few years, many schools have actually seen increases in their Clery numbers — and are pleased about it. Higher numbers, after all, do not indicate a rise in the number of assaults committed on campus but an increase in the number of sexual assaults that have been reported to the school.
"The year our office was formed, there was an increase in Clery numbers," says Sarah Rankin, the director of the Office for Sexual Assault Prevention and Response at Harvard University, "primarily because there was now an office that students could access for support that also provided confidential data for the Clery Report."
"Clery numbers took a big jump, and that was our goal," says Maryanne Kirkbride MS/MBA, RN, clinical director for campus life at MIT.
"I don't think schools have anything to hide," says Boston University senior Carrie Chiusano, the co-director of the Boston University Women's Resource Center, which, unlike its sexual-assault prevention-and-response peers, is technically a student-run organization, funded entirely by the BU Student Activities Office, falling under the same budgetary umbrella as sports clubs, a cappella groups, and social outlets like the Anime Group. "The BU administration is supportive of students and their wellness. I just think there's a lack of discussion about sexual assault. Students don't know what constitutes consent. It's great to publish statistics, but another thing to educate students."
Chiusano suspects that underage victims of sexual assault, fearing draconian disciplinary action under BU's zero-tolerance drug and underage-drinking policy, refrain from reporting their attack because they don't want to get booted out of school for illegally drinking, say, peach schnapps and Hawaiian punch at a Bay State Road rager.
Some students at BU are pushing a "Medical Amnesty and Sexual Assault Policy" initiative that would give students immunity from punishment under the university's drug and alcohol policy if they experience completed or attempted sexual assault while using illegal drugs or drinking — even if they're underage.
"Right now, students are afraid to call for help in medical emergencies involving drugs or alcohol," says Stacy Fontana, a BU junior who is heading up a petition to pass the policy. "A lot of times, people are caught in a situation where they're [illegally] drunk, and thinking they'll get kicked out of housing or lose their scholarships."
