In addition to state, local and tribal governments,  non-governmental organizations, including institutions of higher education, are eligible to apply. These grants will help scale community-led initiatives across the country to address the evolving terrorist threat, including international and domestic terrorism. Specifically, funding will support training, community engagements, and activities that challenge violent extremist narratives used to recruit and radicalize individuals to violence.

Second Class Now Open at Our Conference!

 

Our Trauma-Informed Sexual Assault Investigation and Adjudication Conference is less than two weeks away. Hosted by The George Washington University, the conference will be held July 18-22, 2016 in Washington, DC, and due to overwhelming demand, we have opened a second class!

 

The conference consists of our four-day groundbreaking Trauma-Informed Sexual Assault Investigation and Adjudication Institute, to be followed by a fifth day of discussions with federal stakeholders. The purpose of our Institute is to provide college and university administrators involved in investigating and adjudicating sexual misconduct cases information and resources necessary to conduct trauma-informed investigations in line with evolving practices. Register now and join us in DC!

On June 23, 2016, the Department of Education (ED), Office of Postsecondary Education released the eagerly anticipated Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting 2016 Edition (PDF), more commonly referred to as the Clery Handbook. The new handbook includes the VAWA Amendments to the Clery Act, which were finalized in 2014, and requires institutions of higher education (IHEs) to disclose statistics, policies, and programs related to dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking, among other changes.

 

ED indicates that the 2016 edition of the handbook replaces the previous versions of the handbook but it does not supplant the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA). "The  HEA and its regulations take precedence if there are any differences between them and the handbook. Your institution is responsible for ensuring that it complies with any changes made to them."

 

The handbook is organized in a manner to assist IHEs in achieving compliance with the Clery Act and other HEA-related safety and security reporting requirements. Chapter 2 lays the foundation for compliance and regulations specifically related to the important role of geography and why it is the cornerstone of reporting. ED urges all readers, including those that are "veterans of reporting," to start with this chapter and read it thoroughly.

 

Subsequent chapters describe and discuss the various requirements by topic. They build upon one another so it is recommended that they are read in order. ED acknowledges that compliance may differ in some respects from one IHE to another. However, "whatever the requirements are for your specific institution, they must be met completely and on time." ED also reminds readers that compliance is not a once-a-year event. "Many requirements must be satisfied before an institution can be considered in full compliance. Some requirements are ongoing, such as crime information collecting, campus alerts and log updating, while other requirements are less frequent, such as the annual reports and the online survey you submit to the Department (ED)."

 

Email assistance has been set up for questions not answered by the handbook. Readers can email [email protected] with their questions and must include the following information:

The Clery Center for Security On Campus is hosting a webinar on Thursday, July 7, 2016 at 12 PM ET exploring the changes to the handbook since its last release in 2011 and next steps for colleges and universities as they build and expand their prevention and response efforts.  Register for this free webinar and download our latest white paper,  Institutionalizing the Clery Act at Institutions of Higher Education (PDF), to help IHEs develop their cultures to manage compliance with the Clery Act from an institution-wide team approach.