The University of California at Santa Cruz is among six California colleges found to have inaccurately reported campus crime data, according to a recent state audit.
The audit revealed that UC Santa Cruz, along with CSU Chico, Imperial Valley College, Mount Saint Mary's University and Orange Coast College, violated the Clery Act by underreporting crimes, failing to disclose campus safety policies and maintaining incomplete crime logs.
The Clery Act, established in 1990 following the murder of Pennsylvania college student Jeanne Clery, mandates that universities receiving federal aid report accurate campus crime statistics. UC Santa Cruz, which serves over 19,400 students, was specifically found to have underreported 33 crimes in 2022, including incidents of dating violence, domestic battery and rape.
"By not including these serious crimes in its Clery statistics as required, Santa Cruz presented its campus as safer than it was," the audit said.
The audit criticized UC Santa Cruz for not centralizing its incident tracking, leading to these inaccuracies. Issues such as the absence of written procedures and staff turnover, including the departure of the Clery coordinator, contributed to the errors, the report said. Additionally, the university did not renew its agreement with the campus police department.
In response, UC Santa Cruz has committed to improving transparency and compliance.
"We are always working to promote a safe environment for everyone in our campus community," the university said in a statement to the Santa Cruz Sentinel. "We are eager to implement these recommendations and staff members are already working to improve the transparency of our public safety information and compliance with the Clery Act. We are committed to continuous improvement and creating a campus environment that promotes safety for all."
The state audit also highlighted that noncompliance with the Clery Act could lead to substantial fines, as seen in the $2.35 million penalty imposed by the U.S. Department of Education on UC Berkeley in 2020 for similar violations. Over the past 21 years, state auditors found noncompliance with Clery Act requirements at 41 California schools, the report said.
The report called for regular reviews of Clery Act compliance by state lawmakers and publicizing the results online. It also recommended that the university implement regular training and strengthen procedures surrounding incident reporting.
