Annual Campus Security Authority Re-Certification Course

You have been identified as a Campus Security Authority (CSA) by the University based on your position and/or job duties during the previous calendar year. This designation is determined by your Vice President’s office. 

This course is a condensed version of the full Clery Act and Crime Reporting Training and is designed to remind you of the requirements of the Jeanne Clery Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Disclosure Act, more commonly known as the Clery Act, as well as indicate if you have any crimes to report for the prior calendar year. 

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act) is a federal statute pertaining to all colleges and universities participating in federal student aid programs. The Act requires these institutions to publish an annual security report that accurately discloses campus crime statistics and security information. The Boise State Department of Public Safety collects statistics on crimes, arrests, and referrals for incidents that occur on or near campus. These statistics are then reported in the university’s annual Clery Report. Statistics are gathered from three primary sources:

• Reports made directly to the Department of Public Safety.
• Reports made to Boise Police Department or other law enforcement agencies having concurrent jurisdiction such as the Ada County Sheriff’s Office.   
• Reports received from Campus Security Authorities (CSA’s).

You are required to take this once a year training as you have been identified as a CSA by Boise State University. 

For more information on the background of the Jeane Clery Act, visit the Clery Center.

It is up to each university to determine which of its employees should be designated as CSA’s but the Clery Act offers some guidance.

The U. S. Department of Education monitors and enforces the Clery Act. They identify campus security authority as a specific term that encompasses four groups of individuals and organizations associated with an institution:

• A University 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.
• 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. An official is defined as any person who has the authority and the duty to take action or respond to particular issues on behalf of the institution.

Although every institution wants its campus community to report all criminal incidents to law enforcement, we know that this doesn’t always happen. A student who is the victim of a crime may be more inclined to report it to someone other than the campus police. For example, a victim of a sexual offense may turn to a residence hall advisor for assistance. For this reason, the U. S. Department of Education requires all institutions to collect crime reports from a variety of individuals and organizations that meet the criteria for campus security authorities.

The employees of some departments are inherently CSA’s although responsibilities and job titles may not be the same on every campus. As such the university must consider the function of individuals as well as their relationship with students to determine if they should be designated as CSA’s. The university must also consider if an employee is one whom a student reasonably believes is in a position to report a crime to. Employees in the following areas, with some exceptions, are considered CSA’s by definition:

• Residence Life, including residence hall student staff
• Dean of Students Office/Student Services
• Department of Public Safety
• Athletics Coaching Staff

Generally speaking clerical, custodial, cafeteria, and grounds crew employees are not considered to be CSA’s. This is also true of faculty and instructional staff unless they act as an advisor to a student group or organization. Professional and pastoral counselors also are exempted most of the time.

The university requires all CSA’s to report specific types of crimes to the Clery Compliance Officer/Department of Public Safety that occur on or near campus property. Crimes occurring off campus may also need to be reported. More information on this and a listing of Clery reportable crimes will be provided in the next section.

Under the Clery Act, a crime is “reported” when it is brought to the attention of DPS or the Clery Compliance Officer, local law enforcement, or a CSA by a victim, witness, third party, or even the offender. It doesn’t matter whether or not the individual reporting is associated with the institution. Most reports will come from students or staff members but reports may also be made by people visiting or passing through campus. If a CSA receives a report of a crime and believes it was provided in good faith, he or she must document it as a crime report. In “good faith” means there is a reasonable basis for believing that the information is not simply rumor or hearsay.  That is, there is little or no reason to doubt the validity of the information.

A CSA should immediately forward any crime report information to the Clery Compliance Officer using the CSA Reporting Form, located here; CSA Reporting Form.  This information must be received quickly in the event it is necessary to issue a “timely warning” to the campus community of a serious or continuing threat. More on Timely Warnings policy can be located here: policy on timely warning for crime prevention

A CSA is not responsible for verifying that a crime took place or taking any direct investigative action. This is the responsibility of the Department of Public Safety and its personnel. It is important for a CSA to obtain as much information about a criminal incident as possible, including names, to aid the Clery Compliance Officer in properly categorizing the crime and for any follow-up investigation that may occur.

If an individual reporting an incident needs any type of assistance, a CSA should try to explain how or where to get help. Let a victim know that help may be available even if he or she does not want an investigation conducted.  A CSA who does not know what help may be available should consult with the Department of Public Safety or, if appropriate, the CARE Team .

If a victim doesn’t want the report information to go any further than the CSA, the CSA should explain that he or she is still required to submit a report for statistical purposes, but it can be submitted without identifying the victim. In other words, a victim can choose to make an anonymous report. These reports must still be forwarded to the Clery Compliance Officer for classification and inclusion in the Annual Security and Fire Safety Report (Clery Report).

It is generally up to a victim to press charges and have law enforcement investigate a criminal incident. Victims should be encouraged to report crimes directly to the Boise Police Department and/or Department of Public Safety but it is not a CSA’s responsibility to try to convince them to do this if they choose not to. Remember, if you receive a crime report you must report it to the Clery Compliance Officer, using the CSA Form, even if the victim indicates he or she will also.

If a CSA is unsure whether an incident is a Clery reportable crime, or even if it’s criminal in nature, it should be reported anyway. The Clery Compliance Officer is responsible for making the final determination.

Additionally, if your duties include hosting visitors to campus (non-students and non-employees), you are required to provide any information to these visitors that are sent to you in the form of a BroncoAlert or Timely Warning (these typically come in the form of a text message or email).  These notifications are intended to provide immediate safety information and aid in the prevention of further crimes and could help visitors stay safe in the event of an emergency.

The university recommends that all incidents of a criminal nature be reported. The Clery Act mandates we report crimes that occur:

• On the Boise State University campus property.
• On streets bordering campus property and up to and including the sidewalk across the street.
• During any off-campus, university-sponsored trip which includes student(s). Examples would include group trips, study abroad, and athletic and academic team trips.

The Clery Act specifically requires universities to report the following crimes:

• Murder/ Negligent Manslaughter/Non Negligent Manslaughter
• Sex Offense/Forcible or Non Forcible
• Robbery
• Aggravated Assault
• Burglary
• Motor Vehicle Theft
• Arson
• Crimes of Domestic Violence and Dating Violence
• Stalking
• Simple Assault*
• Larceny-Theft*
• Intimidation*
• Destruction/Damage/Vandalism of Property*
• Liquor Law Violations
• Drug Law Violations
• Weapons Violations

* The University must report if a crime victim was targeted based on race, religion, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability. These crimes are technically only Clery reportable if they were hate/bias crimes. We recommend you report them even if they were not.

Detailed crime definitions can be found here:  Clery Crime Definitions

It is important to note that, as a CSA, you are not responsible for reporting incidents that: you overhear; are mentioned during an in-class discussion; are stated during a speech, workshop, or other type of presentation; or you otherwise learn about in an indirect manner.

A CSA should immediately forward any crime report information to the Clery Compliance Officer using the CSA Reporting Form, located here; CSA Reporting Form.  This information must be received quickly in the event it is necessary to issue a “timely warning” to the campus community of a serious or continuing threat. Please familiarize yourself with the online report form so you have a better understanding of the types of information which needs to be obtained, when possible.

The Clery Compliance Officer is responsible for maintaining all reported crime documentation. CSA’s are required to complete this training which also includes an option to ensure that all mandated reports have been made. It is recommended that CSA’s submitting reports retain copies of their reports for one year in the event that you need to refer back for further information.

In order to receive credit for this training, you will need to complete the required test by selecting “Take the Test” at the end of this section and receive a 100%.  You can take the course as many times as necessary.  This will need to be completed annually.    You will receive a certificate of completion via email for your records.  

Thank you for taking this required training. Your assistance is needed to ensure the university is fulfilling its obligations and remains a safe place to live, work, and learn. If you have any questions or require further assistance, please email crimereporting@boisestate.edu. 

Take the Test