Alcohol and drug offense arrests and disciplinary referrals fell by a combined 317 incidents on campus and university-owned property last year.
The drop could be attributed to the end of the Indiana Excise Police’s Intensified Campus Enforcement campaign and a harsh winter, said Mike Gillilan, director of student rights and community standards. However, he said, it’s hard to know for certain what causes statistical fluctuations.
“A drop of 100 or so is really nothing,” he said in reference to the 88 fewer liquor law violation disciplinary referrals. “It’s hard to say ‘this effect’ did this or that.”
The numbers are part of this year’s University Campus Security Report released earlier this month to comply with the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act. The law requires schools to release annual crime statistics for crimes that occur on or near campus.
Indiana University is following the same trend, with liquor law arrests and disciplinary referrals down by 325 incidents, according to iu.edu. However, at Purdue University’s West Lafayette campus, Liquor Law arrests are steadily on the rise and disciplinary referrals have fluctuated over the past five years, according to purdue.edu.
Though alcohol and drug offenses are down, the number of sex offenses have more than doubled — going from eight on campus in 2012 to 17 last year.
Katie Slabaugh, associate dean of students and Title IX coordinator for student affairs, said she doesn’t think the number of incidents is on the rise, but instead, students are becoming more aware of university resources and what constitutes sexual assault.
“Increasingly over the years there has been more awareness on the part of students in general,” she said.
The university has stepped up their efforts to inform students by creating posters and on-campus housing campaigns to teach students about resources like the counseling center and victim’s advocate.
Ball State also required all incoming students this year to take an online program called “Think About it.” The program included chapters on concepts like continual consent and ways to report sexual assault, Slabaugh said.
“The university is looking to make students more aware of the options they have and more attuned to the university’s response,” she said.
Ball State also included domestic and dating violence cases that occurred on and near campus for the first time this year. The university wasn’t required to report them this year, Gillilan said, but decided to report ahead of next year’s deadline.
Overall, Ball State sits between Indiana and Purdue University’s violent crime rate when adjusted for student enrollment.
“We are as safe as any other college,” Joan Todd, a university representative, said. “And more safe than the surrounding area.”
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