Posted Date:June 23, 2016
| Author: | Lynn Mahaffie, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Policy, Planning and Innovation, Office of Postsecondary Education |
Subject: The Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting
On March 7, 2013, President Obama signed the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA) (Pub. Law 113-4), which, among other provisions, amended section 485(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, 20 U.S.C. §1092(f), otherwise known as the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). In May 2013, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) initiated a negotiated rulemaking process to develop regulations to implement the amendments to the Clery Act made by VAWA. The negotiated rulemaking committee held three negotiating sessions in January, February, and March of 2014. Ultimately, the committee reached consensus on a set of draft regulations. The Department published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for public comment on June 20, 2014, and after completing its review of the comments received, it published on October 20, 2014. Those final regulations, which appear in 34 CFR 668.46, went into effect July 1, 2015.
The Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting (Handbook) is a resource created by the Department to help institutions comply with the requirements of the Clery Act. This version of the Handbook contains information for institutions regarding compliance with the new VAWA requirements. Other sections of the Handbook have also been updated to reflect the Department’s current guidance. It is available as an attachment to this announcement and on the Office of Postsecondary Education’s Campus Security website.
As a reminder to institutions, The changes made to the Clery Act by VAWA did not affect in any way Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX), its implementing regulations, or associated guidance issued by the Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Nothing in the Clery Act, as amended by VAWA, alters or changes an institution’s obligations or duties under Title IX. For information regarding compliance with Title IX, please reach out to OCR.
We appreciate the overwhelming interest among institutions to remain in compliance with the Clery Act. If, after consulting the Handbook, an institution has questions regarding compliance with the Clery Act, those questions should be directed to the Campus Safety Help Desk. The Help Desk can be reached by phone at (800) 435-5985 or by email at campussafetyhelp@westat.com.