POLICY PURPOSE:

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, ("Clery Act"), is a federal law that requires colleges and universities receiving federal financial assistance to gather and make public information about certain crimes occurring on or near their campuses and to publish policy statements concerning campus safety and security. As part of these policies, CSU Pueblo must have a policy statement on the use of Timely Warnings and Emergency Notifications, as defined in the Clery Act. The purpose of this policy is to comply with that requirement and to enhance campus safety by issuing these warnings and notifications when and as required or appropriate to the campus community.

POLICY APPLIES TO (Persons affected by):

Employees having responsibility for issuing campus emergency notifications, including the members of the Campus Safety Team, and Campus Security Authorities.

DEFINITIONS:

1.  Campus Security Authority (CSA): A Clery Act term defined by the Department of Education that generally encompasses four different groups of individuals and organizations often found on college campuses pursuant to 34 C.F.R. 668.46(a):

• 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 under paragraph (i) of this definition, such as an individual who is responsible for monitoring entrance into institutional property. At CSU Pueblo, this includes members of the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office, which has a substation located at CSU Pueblo.
• 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. If such an official is a pastoral or professional counselor as defined below, the official is not considered a campus security authority when acting as a pastoral or professional counselor.

For more information on who is a Campus Security Authority at CSU Pueblo, see the most recent annual Fire Safety & Security Report posted on the CSU Pueblo website.

2.  Clery Act: The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998 is a federal law that requires colleges and universities to disclose information about crime on and around their campuses and to provide other safety and crime information to members of the campus community. The Clery Act is codified at 20 U.S. Code § 1092(f) and its implementing regulations are found in 34 C.F.R. §§ 668.41(e) and 668.46.

3.  Clery Crimes: Crimes required by the Clery Act to be reported to the campus community, including: criminal homicide (murder and negligent/non-negligent manslaughter); sex offenses (rape, fondling, incest, and statutory rape); robbery; aggravated assault; burglary; motor vehicle theft; arson; hate crimes (includes any of the above-mentioned crimes and any incidents of larceny-theft, simple assault, intimidation, or destruction, damage or vandalism of property that were motivated by bias); dating violence; domestic violence; and stalking.

4.  Clery Geography: Statistics must be disclosed for reported Clery Act crimes that occur in the following locations related to the CSU Pueblo campus:

• On-Campus Property: Any building or property owned or controlled by the Board of Governors of the CSU System for the use and benefit of CSU Pueblo, that is within the same reasonably contiguous geographic area and used in direct support of, or in a manner related to, the institution’s educational purposes.
• Non-Campus Property: Any building or property owned or controlled by a student organization that is officially recognized by the University. Also, any building or property owned or controlled by the Board of Governors of the CSU System for CSU Pueblo that is used in direct support of, or in relation to its educational purposes, and is frequently used by students, but is not within the same reasonably contiguous geographic area of the campus. Non-Campus Property may be located anywhere in the world.
• Public Property: All Public Property, including thoroughfares, streets, sidewalks, and parking facilities, within the campus or immediately adjacent to and accessible from the CSU Pueblo campus.

5.  Emergency Notification: An announcement to inform the campus community about a significant emergency or dangerous situation involving an immediate threat to the health or safety of students or employees occurring on the campus.

6.  Timely Warning: An announcement made to alert the campus community about Clery Crimes that occur on CSU Pueblo’s Clery Geography that the Campus Safety Team considers an ongoing or serious threat to the safety of students or employees.

7.  University Housing: A residence hall, apartment, or other residential facility that is owned or controlled by CSU Pueblo on campus or within the contiguous main campus area.

POLICY STATEMENT:

CSU Pueblo recognizes the importance of safety awareness to our campus and the larger community and is committed to making its campus safe and secure. Issuance of Timely Warnings and Emergency Notifications is an important part of this effort. CSU Pueblo, acting through its Campus Safety Team, will be responsible for issuing these notifications as warranted by the circumstances and in a manner that complies with the Clery Act.

Timely Warnings

1.  When a Clery Crime which occurred on CSU Pueblo’s Clery Geography is reported to the Director of Campus Safety, a Timely Warning will be issued if it is determined there is a serious or continuing threat to the campus community. Timely Warnings may be issued by any reasonable means of communication to the campus community, but, most commonly, will be made through the campus email system, the emergency text alert system, by posting to the Campus Safety website, and/or by posting notices in the University Housing units on campus. Anyone with information that may warrant a Timely Warning should report the circumstances to the Director of Campus Safety and the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office at CSU Pueblo (719.549.2373 or 911) even if unsure whether a Timely Warning should be issued.

2.  The amount and type of information that the campus discloses in a Timely Warning will vary depending on the circumstances of each case. The Timely Warning should be sequentially numbered, beginning January 1 of each year, and should include the following details of the crime, if available:

• Type of crime
• A succinct description of the offense
• Date, time, and location of the offense
• A physical description of the suspect
• Photo of suspect, if available
• Date and time the timely warning was issued

3.  A Timely Warning should be distributed as soon as information is available concerning the incident.

4.  All Clery reportable crimes are subject to the “Timely Warning” requirements when the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office and/or the Director of Campus Safety determine that the crimes pose an ongoing threat, regardless of whether the victim or perpetrator is a member of the campus community.

5.  If the information disclosed in the Timely Warning report would personally identify an individual, such information may be disclosed if necessary to protect the health and safety of the individual or others.

Emergency Notifications

1.  Whenever it is confirmed by the Director of Campus Safety or Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office that a significant emergency or dangerous situation involving an immediate threat to the health or safety of students or employees is occurring on or nearby the campus (or other place where the Clery Act applies to CSU Pueblo), CSU Pueblo will issue an Emergency Notification. The Emergency Notification is issued immediately upon confirmation that a dangerous situation or emergency exists or is threatened.

2.  The Campus Safety Team will determine when an Emergency Notification should be issued and the content of the notification. Because of the urgent nature of these notices, the primary objective will be to confirm whether such emergency conditions exist as quickly as possible, determine the content of the notification, and issue the notification without delay.

3.  The methods of issuing an Emergency Notification are the same as those listed for Timely Warnings, above. These notification systems may be tested periodically.

4.  The Campus Safety Team will follow procedures to assure that the names of crime victims are not publicly disclosed in an Emergency Notification. This includes a review of the content of the notification before it is issued to be sure that such names or other information from which a crime victim could reasonably be identified are omitted or redacted from the Emergency Notification.

5.  In some cases of emergency conditions or dangerous situations, other emergency actions must be taken. These can include emergency evacuation procedures or issuing a general safety announcement to the campus community even when a Timely Warning or Emergency Notification is not required.

Safety Alerts; General Safety Information

On occasion, important information about safety and security of the campus community may be communicated by the University, but the circumstances will not warrant the issuance of either a timely warning or an emergency notification. When these circumstances arise, CSU Pueblo may issue safety alerts. These alerts are not required by law but will serve to inform members of the campus community of safety threats in the campus area.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

1.  Campus Security Authorities are responsible for responding to information they receive that may indicate that a crime has occurred on campus or that an unsafe situation exists and reporting the matter immediately to the Director of Campus Safety and/or the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office.

2.  The Director of Campus Safety is responsible for responding to reports received of a crime occurring on campus or an emergency that threatens the safety of the campus community by issuing a Timely Warning or Emergency Notification, as the circumstances warrant.

RELATED LAWS, POLICIES & PROCEDURES:

Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1092(f), and its implementing regulations, 34 C.F.R. §§ 668.41(e) and 668.46

HISTORY OF REVISIONS:

Adopted 10/11/2023

APPROVAL:

Approved by Timothy Mottet, President

10/11/2023