Panoramic view of the Washington Monument and The Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. in spring

Clery Center’s Policy History

1988
Groundwork for the Clery Act passed in PA
Serving as the basis of the Clery Act, the College and University Security Act requires institutions of higher education (in PA) to report crime statistics and to provide descriptions of safety and security policies, as well as maintain an open crime log.

1990
Clery Act signed into law by George H.W. Bush
The federal legislation that would become the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act (formal name as of 1998) requires colleges and universities to record campus crime statistics and safety policies. These security reports must be disclosed to current and prospective students and employees at a campus.

1992
Amendments sponsored by Senator James Buckley
The Buckley amendments provided that records kept by campus police and security for law enforcement purposes are not confidential “education” records under federal law (the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA).

Campus Sexual Assault Victims' Bill of Rights
Requires colleges and universities to afford campus sexual assault victims certain basic rights, including assistance notifying the police. Colleges and universities must have policies in place to address campus sexual assault.

1998
Campus Courts Disclosure Provision
The final results of any student’s disciplinary case involving a crime of violence or non-forcible sex offense are no longer protected from disclosure under federal student privacy laws. Victim information remains protected.

Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act
Renamed in honor of Jeanne Clery, this amendment eliminates loopholes, mandates daily security department crime logs, and expands reporting requirements to include statistics for certain off-campus areas.

2000
Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act
This amendment requires campus law enforcement or public safety to include a statement in their Annual Security Report (ASR) advising the campus community where law enforcement information provided by the state concerning registered sex offenders may be obtained.

2008
National Campus Safety Awareness Month
Congress formally expressed their unanimous support for the Clery Center’s partnership with colleges and universities across the country by dedicating each September to the awareness of campus safety issues. National Campus Safety Month is an initiative started through a partnership between students and the Clery Center in 2005.

Higher Education Opportunity Act
Expands the Clery Act’s scope with expanded emergency response and notification provisions, a broader categorization for hate crimes reporting, safeguards for whistleblowers, and annual Department of Education reporting on Clery Act compliance.

2013
Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Amendments
This landmark federal law provides extensive provisions to improve the criminal justice response to sexual and domestic violence against women. In 2013, section 304 of VAWA amended the Clery Act to add additional reportable crimes.

2020
Title IX Changes
In May 2020, amidst an ongoing global pandemic, the Department of Education released new Title IX regulations that dictate how institutions of higher education must adjudicate and respond to incidents of dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. Concerns related to these regulations, and the timeline in which they were expected to be implemented, were expressed widely with various overlapping perspectives. Clery Center published our Statement of Position on the changes to the regulations, focused on the misalignment created between Title IX and the Clery Act and its potential negative impact on institutions and survivors. The paper was shared widely with legislators and stakeholders alike and resulted in a Congressional Delegation Letter led by Representative Ann McLane Kuster (NH-02) and signed by 16 members of Congress.

Handbook for Campus Safety & Security Reporting Rescission
In October 2020 the Department of Education announced the rescission of the 2016 Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting, the most recent Clery Act sub-regulatory guidance and replaced it with the Clery Act Appendix. While over the years we have advocated for changes and clarifications in the Handbook, we believe it served an important role in helping schools interpret and apply the regulations in their unique campus environments. Clery Center continues to advocate for improved sub-regulatory guidance on the Clery Act from the Department of Education that remedies prior challenges.

2021
Re-introduction of Report and Educate About Campus Hazing (REACH) Act
Bipartisan legislation to require hazing incidents to be reported as part of a college’s annual crime report under the Clery Act and to establish a definition of hazing to clarify what constitutes a reportable offense was re-introduced by Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Marietta) and Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-CA) in March 2021.

Title IX Public Hearing
Clery Center joined almost 300 educators, students, and community members from around the nation to offer comment during the Department of Education’s public hearing in June 2021. The Office of Civil Rights sought input in the form of live and written comments related to the enforcement of Title IX. Because of the Clery Act’s intersection with Title IX, Clery Center’s voice is vital to the conversation to acknowledge the challenges institutions currently face in working to comply with both laws. As such, we encouraged the Department to address the advisor of choice entanglement and complication with well-established Clery Act Rules; clearly outline boundaries around whether and how off-campus behavior falls within an institution’s educational programs and activities; and provide guidance on simultaneous implementation of Clery Act and Title IX reporting requirements.