Better College Stats Needed on Dating Violence

WASHINGTON ― The Obama administration wants colleges and universities to compile more thorough statistics on stalking, dating violence and domestic violence.

The Education Department announced Thursday it is proposing a rule change to provide a better picture of these problems on campuses.

The change falls under the Clery Act, which requires colleges and universities to report crime statistics on or near their campuses and provide warnings in a timely manner if safety is threatened. The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 signed by President Barack Obama amended the Clery Act by extending additional rights to campus victims. Victims’ advocates have said the statistics, as currently compiled, don’t always paint an accurate picture of the extent of sexual crimes on campuses.

“These new rules strengthen schools’ capacity to provide safer college campuses for students and to keep everyone better informed about campus security policies and procedures,” Education Secretary Arne Duncan said.

Among the other proposed rule changes:

The public has until July 21 to comment.

The proposed rule comes nearly two months after a White House task force that focused on sexual assault in higher education recommended actions that colleges and universities should take to protect victims and inform the public about the magnitude of the problem, such as ensuring the availability of confidential victims’ advocates and conducting surveys to better gauge the frequency of sexual assault on their campuses.