All Penn State students yesterday received an email from a Tracie Bogus, but the context was not a scam. The email contained a link to the university’s Annual Security and Fire Safety Report. The publication was created to supply campus and the downtown State College area with up-to-date information on campus safety measures, how to report crimes, and other emergencies, as well as teaching the general public about the repercussions and consequences of law-breaking actions.

The portion of the report that will most likely draw the greatest amount of attention from is the Uniform Crime Report section. Compared side-by-side are tables that list the crime statistics reported to local police agencies or to campus security authorities over the last three years.

Most notably is the increased reports of crimes related to sexual violence and rape. In just two years, the crime rates for forcible rapes has more than doubled from nine percent to 20 percent, with actual offenses increasing from five to 12. With the proliferating amount of PSUAlert texts describing reports of sexual assaults buzzing community members’ phones seemingly every weekend, the increase is not shocking by any means.

Moreover, according to the criminal clery data, drug and alcohol crime numbers committed on campus property have swelled slightly the past two years. In 2012, drug related charges in residence halls has increased from 215 reports to 315 reports in 2014. But referrals of drug and alcohol offenses have sky-rocketed – those reports starting from the mid-four hundreds in 2012 and increasing to the high seven and eight-hundreds from 2013 to 2014. Other than those significant changes, all other crime report statistics have stayed relatively the same.

President Barron stated that there is no greater priority than the safety of Penn State students, faculty, staff, and visitors to the campus. Both he and Penn State Police Chief Tyrone Parham want nothing more than genuine cooperation of the community so that the men and women members of the University Police & Public Safety can continue to make Penn State a safe place to live, work, and study.