NCJ Number
181525
Journal
Journal of Security Administration Volume: 22 Issue: 2 Dated: December 1999 Pages: 11-21
Date Published
December 1999
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This article examines the nature and extent of crime on community college campuses.
Abstract
The article reviews community college crime data and compares them to the cities in which the colleges are located. In particular, the review attempted to determine the relative proportion and rates of property versus violent crimes on the campuses as compared to the surrounding communities. The vast majority of community college crimes are related to property and are not crimes of violence. This is consistent with earlier studies of campus crime at 4-year colleges and universities. Given that many property crimes are thefts of opportunity, community college decision makers can develop strategies to reduce these opportunities, for example: restricting access to buildings that have expensive easily moved items, providing electronic surveillance, implementing crime watch programs, and using locking devices for costly equipment. The proportion of violent crimes in cities was four times the proportion of violent crimes on community college campuses. Community college crime data and that of their host cities should be systematically collected and analyzed in order to facilitate communication and cooperation between campus security and local police officials. Tables, notes, bibliography