Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, codified at 20 USC 1092 (f) requires all postsecondary institutions participating in Title IV student financial aid programs to disclose campus crime statistics and security information. The act was amended in 1992, 1998, 2000, 2008, and 2013. The 1998 amendments renamed the law the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act in memory of a student who was slain in her dorm room in 1986.    The Clery Act, originally enacted by the Congress and signed into law by President George Bush in 1990 as the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990, was championed by Howard and Connie Clery after their daughter, Jeanne, was murdered at Lehigh University in 1986.  They also founded the non-profit Security On Campus, Inc. in 1987.  Amendments to the Act in 1998 renamed it in memory of Jeanne Clery.   More specifically, the Clery Act law requires colleges and universities to disclose certain timely and annual information about campus crime and security policies.    The act is also intended to provide students and their families, as higher education consumers, with accurate, complete and timely information about safety on campus so that they can make informed decisions.

Most recently, the 2013 Violence Against Women Act added three additional offenses to amend the Clery Act.  These three offenses are Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, and Stalking

All public and private institutions of postsecondary education participating in federal student aid programs are subject to Clery Reporting.  Violators can be "fined" up to $35,000 by the US Department of Education, the agency charged with enforcement of the Act and where complaints of alleged violations should be made, or face other enforcement action.

If you believe that your college or university has violated the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, the U.S. Department of Education (the agency charged with implementing the act) has established a procedure for complaints to be filed and investigated. This is an administrative process and not a legal one; therefore, while you can use the services of an attorney, it is not required.

The complaint should be forwarded to the appropriate regional office of the U.S. Department of Education for the state in which the specific school is located. The complaint will be handled by the Case Management Team within that regional office. A list of the various regional offices can be found on the Education Department’s website at http://www.ed.gov   You can also call 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) to lodge your complaint.

A Clery complaint can be submitted via US mail, facsimile (fax), or email. The easiest and most direct way is via email. It can be concise, such as a paragraph explaining the allegation. A longer complaint can also be submitted as an attachment. The first point of contact for all questions and complaints is clerycomplaints@ed.gov.

The Clery Center for Security On Campus can provide technical assistance in filing a complaint, free of charge. Contact us at (484) 580-8754 or by email at info@clerycenter.org.