Survey says Duke crime among worst
By: Jessica Lichter
Issue date: 2/26/08 Section: News
Last update: 2/26/08 at 6:26 AM EST
Last update: 2/26/08 at 6:26 AM EST
In the past year, shootings at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University have challenged the notion of an insulated college campus immune from danger.
Reader's Digest this month ranked U.S. colleges and universities based on the number of crimes reported on campus and on a survey conducted by the magazine of important on-campus safety measures.
Sweet Briar College, located in Virginia, was at the top of the campus crime rankings, making it the safest school according to the survey. Duke, however, landed near the bottom of the survey's list, placing 244th out of 285 schools.
The magazine used data from a U.S. Department of Education compilation of Clery Reports, a report of crime statistic that universities are required to release each year by law.
The crime rankings were based on the number of crimes reported per student on the main campuses of these schools in 2004 and 2005.
The study included information about murder, manslaughter, forcible and non-forcible sex offense, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, vehicle theft and arson.
Aaron Graves, associate vice president for campus safety and security, noted that because some issues considered by the survey had more bearing than others, the rankings may be skewed.
"The key issues are murder and sexual assault," he said. "The more serious the offense, the more weight it received in the scoring process."
The magazine cautioned that rankings might not reflect how dangerous a campus is. In addition, the magazine noted that the rankings are most meaningful when schools with similar demographics are compared, since a school's size, location, accessibility to the public, percentage of commuter students and presence of a capable police force can affect how well criminal allegations are identified.
Graves said the number of sexual assault cases reported could also be misleading because the filing does not have to come from the victims themselves. For example, if a university official reports that a student said he or she was sexually assaulted, the university has to report that as a crime statistic.
Reader's Digest this month ranked U.S. colleges and universities based on the number of crimes reported on campus and on a survey conducted by the magazine of important on-campus safety measures.
Sweet Briar College, located in Virginia, was at the top of the campus crime rankings, making it the safest school according to the survey. Duke, however, landed near the bottom of the survey's list, placing 244th out of 285 schools.
The magazine used data from a U.S. Department of Education compilation of Clery Reports, a report of crime statistic that universities are required to release each year by law.
The crime rankings were based on the number of crimes reported per student on the main campuses of these schools in 2004 and 2005.
The study included information about murder, manslaughter, forcible and non-forcible sex offense, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, vehicle theft and arson.
Aaron Graves, associate vice president for campus safety and security, noted that because some issues considered by the survey had more bearing than others, the rankings may be skewed.
"The key issues are murder and sexual assault," he said. "The more serious the offense, the more weight it received in the scoring process."
The magazine cautioned that rankings might not reflect how dangerous a campus is. In addition, the magazine noted that the rankings are most meaningful when schools with similar demographics are compared, since a school's size, location, accessibility to the public, percentage of commuter students and presence of a capable police force can affect how well criminal allegations are identified.
Graves said the number of sexual assault cases reported could also be misleading because the filing does not have to come from the victims themselves. For example, if a university official reports that a student said he or she was sexually assaulted, the university has to report that as a crime statistic.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 5
reader
posted 2/26/08 @ 7:38 AM EST
You may remember the last time you saw the name of Associate Vice President Graves in the Chronicle. Elliot Wolf exposed how he hired cronies for the Duke Police Department. (Continued…)
watt
posted 2/26/08 @ 10:46 AM EST
It is widely believed that Graves was heavily involved in the effort to suppress and then discredit the report of Duke PD officer Day questioning the credibility of the allegations against the Duke lacrosse players. (Continued…)
Alumnus
posted 2/26/08 @ 12:20 PM EST
This is a simple one. If Graves cant do his job - and clearly he is failing at it based on the stats - he should not be there.
Trinity '85
posted 2/26/08 @ 6:31 PM EST
Did the survey include the hundreds, if not thousands, of Duke students raped by LAX players?
Post a Comment