Campus Security Authority

Campus Security Authority (CSA)

Do Campus Security Authority requirements apply to you?

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (the "Clery Act"), requires college and universities to compile and publish statistics on certain criminal offenses that occur on or adjacent to university properties.

Although Buena Vista University strongly encourages everyone to report any crime that occurs on or around campus, the Clery Act requires certain crimes reported to a Campus Security Authority (CSA) to be included in those annual statistics. Therefore, CSAs must be identified and trained in their reporting responsibilities. If CSAs fail to report and/or if the University has not properly identified and trained these individuals, it can cause the university to suffer significant fines and jeopardize Title IV funding.

A Campus Security Authority is a term used in the Clery Act to describe someone who has significant responsibility for student and campus activities. The regulations that govern the Clery Act (34 CFR 668.46) define a CSA as:

  • A campus police department or a campus security department of an institution.
  • Any individual or individuals who have responsibility for campus security but who do not constitute a campus police department or a campus security department...such as an individual who is responsible for monitoring entrance into institutional property.
  • Any individual or organization specified in an institution's statement of campus security policy as an individual or organization to which students and employees should report criminal offenses.
  • An official of an institution who has significant responsibility for student and campus activities, including, but not limited to, student housing, student discipline, and campus judicial proceedings.
  • Pastoral and professional counselors are not considered a campus security authority when acting in their roles as a pastoral or professional counselor.

What responsibilities does a Campus Security Authority have?

CSAs and their supervisors must:

  • Understand their reporting obligation and the types of information they must share. This understanding is obtained by completing the CSA training annually.
  • As a CSA, you must immediately contact Campus Security to share the information that was reported to you. Under the Clery Act, a crime is considered "reported" as soon as it is brought to the attention of a CSA, and in some situations, an immediate warning to the campus community might be necessary.

How do I know if I am a Campus Security Authority?

At Buena Vista University, position information is used to assist in the identification of positions that may qualify the individual to be a CSA. However, position details cannot identify every position that has CSA responsibilities; therefore, it is also up to individuals to review their position responsibilities and comply with the training and reporting requirements if their position fits into the definition of a Campus Security Authority.

If I am a CSA, how do I fulfill my annual training obligation?

The training can be found at the link below to watch a short training video. CSA’s are required to review the training materials annually.

Training Materials

I have been made aware of a Clery Reportable Crime; how do I make the report to Campus Security?

If you are made aware of a crime you can report in any of the following ways:

  • If there is an emergency or a serious and continuing threat to anyone, call 911 or Campus Security immediately.
  • If the incident is not an emergency or serious and continuing threat, you can make a report by contacting the Campus Security Department by calling 712-749-2500. Reports should be made to Campus Security immediately.

What information is reportable under the Clery Act?

Certain crimes, "Clery Act Crimes," occurring on "Clery Reportable Geography" must be reported to the University Campus Security Department. They will analyze the information and determine if it qualifies for a Crime Alert to be sent if it needs to be included in the Daily Crime Log, and if it should be included in the campus's Annual Disclosure of Crime Statistics (located in the Annual Security Report).

Clery reportable crimes and definitions

Clery Reportable Geography: To qualify as reportable, a Clery Act crime must have occurred in one of the following locations:

  • On-Campus: (1) Any building or property owned or controlled by an institution within the core campus (same reasonably contiguous geographic area) and used by the institution in direct support of, or in a manner related to, the institution’s educational purposes, including residence halls; and (2) any building or property that is within or reasonably contiguous to the area identified in paragraph (1), that is owned by the institution but controlled by another person, is frequently used by students, and supports institutional purposes.
  • Non-Campus: (1) Any building or property owned or controlled by a student organization that is officially recognized by the institution; or (2) any building or property owned or controlled by an institution that is used in direct support of, or in relation to, the institution’s educational purposes, is frequently used by students, and is not within the same reasonably contiguous geographic area of the institution.
  • Public Property: All public property, including thoroughfares, streets, sidewalks, and parking facilities, that is within the core campus, or immediately adjacent to and accessible from the core campus.

Clery Reportable Crimes: For Clery Act reporting, crimes must be reported according to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Handbook (UCR). For sex offenses only, the definitions that are used are from the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).

Murder/Non-Negligent Manslaughter: The willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another. NOTE: Deaths caused by negligence, suicides, fetal deaths, traffic fatalities, accidental deaths, and justifiable homicides are excluded. Assaults with intent to murder and attempts to murder should be classified as aggravated assault.

Manslaughter by Negligence: The killing of another person through gross negligence.

Forcible Rape: The carnal knowledge of a person, forcibly and/or against that person's will; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his/her temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity (or because of his/her youth).

Fondling: The touching of the private body parts of another person for the purposes of sexual gratification, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his/her age or because of his/her temporary or permanent mental incapacity.

Forcible Sodomy: Oral or anal sexual intercourse with another person, forcibly and/or against that person's will; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his/her youth or because of his/her Chapter 3. Crime Statistics: Classifying and Counting Clery Act Crimes 38 The Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.

Sexual Assault With An Object: Is the use of an object or instrument to unlawfully penetrate, however slightly, the genital or anal opening of the body of another person, forcibly and/or against that person's will; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his/her youth or because of his/her temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.

Incest: Nonforcible sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within the degree wherein marriage is prohibited by law.

Statutory Rape: Nonforcible sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.

Robbery: The taking or attempting to take anything from the value of the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear.

Aggravated Assault: An unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. This type of assault usually is accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm.

Burglary: The unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or theft. (For reporting purposes this definition includes: unlawful entry with intent to commit a larceny or a felony; breaking and entering with intent to commit a larceny; housebreaking; safecracking; and all attempts to commit any of the aforementioned.)

Motor Vehicle Theft: The theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle. (Classify as motor vehicle theft all cases where automobiles are taken by persons not having lawful access, even though the vehicles are later abandoned - including joyriding).

Arson: Any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, or personal property of another kind.

Hate Crimes: A hate crime is a criminal offense that manifests evidence that the victim was intentionally selected because of the perpetrator's bias against the victim. Bias is a preformed negative opinion or attitude towards a group of persons based on their race, gender, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, national origin or gender identity. For Clery purposes, hate crimes include murder/non-negligent manslaughter, sex offenses, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft, arson, and larceny, vandalism, intimidation, and simple assault.

Larceny-Theft: The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another.

Simple Assault: The unlawful physical attack by one person upon another where neither the offender displays a weapon, nor the victim suffers obvious severe or aggravated bodily injury involving apparent broken bones, loss of teeth, possible internal injury, severe lacerations, or loss of consciousness.

Intimidation: To unlawfully place another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm through the use of threatening words and/or other conduct, but without displaying a weapon or subjecting the victim to actual physical attack.

Vandalism: To willfully or maliciously destroy, injure, disfigure, or deface any public or private property, real or personal, without the consent of the owner or person having custody or control by cutting, tearing, breaking, marking, painting, drawing, covering with filth, or any other such means as may be specified by local law.

Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA): The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act (“VAWA”), which President Obama signed into law on March 7, 2013, imposes new obligations on colleges and universities under its Campus Sexual Violence Act (“SAVE Act”) provision, Section 304. Under this law the additional crime categories will need to be collected:

Domestic Violence: Includes misdemeanor and felony crimes of violence committed by a current or former spouse of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by a person cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse, or by any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person’s acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction.

Dating Violence: Means violence committed by a person- (a) who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; and (b) where the existence of such a relationship will be determined based on a consideration of the following factors:

  1. The length of the relationship.
  2. The type of relationship.
  3. The frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship.

Stalking: Means engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to (a) fear for her, his, or others' safety or the safety of others; or (b) suffer substantial emotional distress.

Arrest and Referrals for Disciplinary Action: The last category of crime statistics is the number of arrests and the number of referrals for disciplinary action for the categories listed below. Please note, these statistics are based on violations of the law, and not the university's policies that resulted in the disciplinary referral.

Weapon Law Violations: The violation of laws or ordinances dealing with weapon offenses, regulatory in nature, such as manufacture, sale, or possession of deadly weapons; carrying deadly weapons, concealed or openly; furnishing deadly weapons to minors; aliens possessing deadly weapons; all attempts to commit any of the aforementioned.

Drug Abuse Violations: Violations of state and local laws relating to the unlawful possession, sale, use, growing, manufacturing, and the making of narcotic drugs. The relevant substances include opium or cocaine and their derivatives (morphine, heroin, codeine); marijuana; synthetic narcotics (Demerol, methadone); and dangerous non-narcotic drugs (barbiturates, Benzedrine).

Liquor Law Violations: The violation of laws or ordinance prohibiting: the manufacture, sale, transporting, furnishing, possessing of intoxicating liquor; maintaining unlawful drinking places; bootlegging; operating a still; furnishing liquor to a minor or intemperate person; using a vehicle for illegal transportation of liquor; drinking on a train or public conveyance; all attempts to commit any of the aforementioned. (Drunkenness and driving under the influence are not included in this definition.)