Policies & Procedures

Administrative Procedure: 9001

CAMPUS SECURITY AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE CLERY ACT

In accordance with Board policy and the Jeanne Clery Campus Safety Act (Clery Act), the following administrative procedures have been adopted:

Annual Security Report 

The College designates the Office of Safety and Security and the Office of Clery Compliance to prepare, publish, and make available, without cost, the mandated Annual Security Report (“ASR”) to all current and prospective students and employees.

The ASR, updated annually and published no later than October 1^st of each year, will contain the following information:

• Statistics on reports of on-campus murders, sex offenses, robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries, motor vehicle thefts, theft, hate and bias crimes, arrests for weapons possession, liquor and drug abuse violations and violations referred for disciplinary action for hate and bias incidents, weapons possession, incidents of hazing, and liquor and drug abuse violations;
• Policies regarding security and campus law enforcement;
• Procedures for reporting crimes and other emergencies;
• Information on campus sexual assault and rape awareness programs, hazing prevention and awareness programs, procedures to follow when a sex offense occurs, disciplinary action procedures, counseling opportunities, and notification to students that the College will make reasonable accommodations, if requested, to avoid hostile environments or working conditions, where possible;
• Policies on the use, possession, and sale of alcoholic beverages and illegal drugs;
• The availability of programs informing the campus community about alcohol and drug abuse education, and crime prevention; and
• The emergency operations plan which details the emergency notification and timely warning systems in the event of a threat to the safety and wellbeing of the students and staff of the College.

The ASR is available online at:

RCSJ.edu/Security-site/Gloucester-site/Documents/AnnualReports/Annual-Report-2024.pdf or year of reporting.  Hard copies may be obtained from the Office of Safety and Security on either campus.

The College is committed to a campus-wide compliance effort and requires all Campus Security Authorities (“CSAs”); i.e., any employees who interact with students, to cooperate in reporting campus criminal activity, including incidents of hazing, directly to the Safety and Security Department via email or by phone.  CSAs must be identified then advised and trained regarding their duties. CSAs must announce to the victim they are required to report crime statistics to Security or the Title IX Coordinator.  CSAs must provide the victim with a written copy of their rights available from the Title IX Coordinator, Counseling and Wellness Center, and People in Transition. CSAs are not responsible for determining if a crime took place.

In some instances, members of the College community may choose to file a report with the local police or sheriff’s department or have it reported for them, if unable to file a report.

College professional counselors are encouraged to tell their clients about the reporting procedures outlined in this document.  As noted below, confidential/anonymous reports are extremely valuable in order to prevent further victimizations and to obtain a more accurate portrait of campus crime.

In certain instances, a crime victim may be reluctant to file a report fearing the process and/or loss of anonymity.  In such circumstances, crime victims are encouraged to consider making a confidential report to one of the designated Campus Security Authorities.  At a minimum, crime victims will receive counseling and referral information.

Emergency Notifications and Timely Warnings

The Clery Act requires this College to issue emergency responses to a significant emergency or dangerous situation involving an immediate threat to the health and safety of students or employees occurring on campus. 

The College will use and issue two different types of warnings depending upon whether there is an “immediate” threat (Emergency Notifications) or where a criminal incident has occurred and the warning is used to enable students and employees to protect themselves (Timely Warnings).

Emergency Notification 

Emergency Notifications are required by an event that is currently occurring on or imminently threatening the campus.

The types of incidents that may cause an immediate threat to the College community could include, but not limited to:

• Active shooter on campus;
• Bomb scare;
• Hostage/barricade situation;
• A riot;
• Suspicious package with confirmation of a device;
• A tornado, a fire/explosion;
• Suspicious death;
• Structural damage to a College building;
• Biological threat (anthrax, etc.);
• Significant flooding;
• A gas leak;
• Hazardous materials spill, etc.; and/or
• Incidents that represent a serious or continuing threat to the College.

Immediately upon confirmation by the Director of Security (Gloucester and/or Cumberland campus) that an imminent threat exists, as verbally reported by first responders, announced by the National Weather Service, or notified verbally by local law enforcement is real, the President of the College or designee and the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer/Chief Financial Officer (“EVP/COO/CFO”) or designee will be notified by cell phone or in person.

The entire campus community will be notified when there is the potential that a very large segment of the campus or campuses will be affected. Continuing assessments will be made by the Director of Security at each campus if different segments of the campuses need to be notified. The Director of Security will report the results of these assessments to the EVP/COO/CFO to determine whether to expand the Emergency Notification to other segments of the campuses.

The EVP/COO/CFO or designee will determine the means of the emergency notification and will, without delay, and taking into account the safety of the community determine the content of the notification and initiate the notification system, unless issuing a notification will, in the professional judgement of responsible authorities, compromise efforts to assist a victim or to contain, respond to, or otherwise mitigate the emergency.

The content of the message will utilize existing templates prepared by the EVP/COO/CFO and Vice President Communications, Marketing and Enrollment Management or designee and updated quarterly. 

The emergency notification may consist of:

• Rowan College Alert (text, voice, email) for the Gloucester campus;
• Alertus system (text, voice, email) for the Cumberland campus;
• Public address system; and/or
• Fire alarms.

In the event an incident involves individuals or organizations outside of the campus community, the EVP/COO/CFO will immediately notify the Associate Vice President Institutional Communications or designee to notify public radio and TV stations and issue press releases, as agreed upon.

Timely Warnings

The second type of warning is called a Timely Warning. The intent of the warning is to enable students and employees to protect themselves against any Clery crime that represents a serious or continuing threat occurring on either or both campuses, non-campus locations or contiguous public property.

The following crimes are Clery crimes that specifically trigger a Timely Warning:

Criminal Offenses •  Murder/Non-negligent manslaughter; • Manslaughter by negligence •  Sex Offenses (rape, fondling, incest and statutory rape) •  Robbery •  Aggravated Assault •  Burglary •  Motor Vehicle Theft •  Arson •  or incidents if the crime represents a serious or continuing threat to the College

VAWA Offenses •  Domestic Violence •  Dating Violence •  Stalking •  Rape, Fondling, Incest Arrests and Referrals •  Drug Law Violations •  Weapons Law Violations •  Liquor Law Violations

Hate Crimes •  All criminal offenses plus: •  Larceny-theft •  Simple Assault •  Intimidation • Destruction/damage or vandalism of property

Hate Crime Bias Categories •  Race •  Gender •  Gender Identity •  Religion •  Sexual Orientation •  Ethnicity •  National Origin •  Disability

The College’s security offices work closely with their local law enforcement agencies that are responsible for both the Gloucester and Cumberland campuses and have been asked by letter to notify the College of Clery crimes that may require a Timely Warning.

Once the Director of Security at each campus confirms with the local law enforcement agency that there is continuing danger to the community, from any of the above Clery crimes, the EVP/COO/CFO or designee will be notified and will communicate with the EVP/COO/CFO or designee to activate the mechanisms to initiate the Timely Warning by the following means:

• Text messaging, voice, email and social media;
• College web page;
• Public address system;
• Fire Alarms;
• Megaphone; and
• Press releases for surrounding communities.

The timely warning also seeks information that may lead to arrest and conviction of the offender when violent crimes against persons or substantial crimes against property have been reported.

Every attempt will be made to give the timely warning promptly; however, the release is subject to the availability of accurate facts concerning the incident and also if issuing the notification would compromise efforts to assist a victim or to contain, respond to, or otherwise mitigate the emergency as determined by emergency response personnel.

Timely warnings provide details of the crime, description of the suspect (if known), information on whom to contact, and safety tips.

Whenever the local or state police issue a news release about an off-campus crime that represents a serious or ongoing threat to the safety of students and staff, the College will assist in publicizing the crime on campus.

College officials will post updates during a critical incident on its website at rcsj.edu/security.

The College will be responsible for testing the Emergency Notification and Timely Warning systems each semester.

Emergency evacuation procedures, including basic “shelter-in-place” guidance, are included on the College’s website as listed above, published and disseminated in the Annual Security Report, and included in the College’s Emergency Procedures Quick Reference posted in all campus facilities or at rcsj.edu/Security/Gloucester or rcsj.edu/Security/Cumberland.

The intention of the Timely Warning is to aid in the prevention of similar type incidents and enable people to protect themselves. A Timely Warning will typically include the following, unless issuing any of this would risk compromising law enforcement efforts:

• Date and time frame of the incident;
• A brief description of the incident;
• Information that will promote safety and potentially aid in the prevention of similar crimes;
• Suspect description(s) and other information as deemed appropriate by the President or EVP/COO/CFO; and
• Office of Safety and Security contact information; and

Note: The Director of Security at each campus will have the discretion to contact the College community without consultation with the President when the individuals in the chain of command are not available and there is an imminent threat to the health and safety of the College community. The community’s safety is the single most important determining factor in influencing which communication protocol is chosen.

Campus Crime and/or Incident Log 

The Office of Safety and Security will maintain a daily log recording all crimes (listed above) reported to the Security Office or local police department that include the following information:

1. Date and time of occurrence;
2. Date and time of reporting;
3. Crime and/or Incident Category and Classification;
4. General location;
5. Description of occurrence; and
6. Disposition of the complaint and/or incident. 

NOTE: All publicly available record keeping will be maintained without inclusion of personally identifiable information.

The log will be made available to the public through the RCSJ Safety and Security Department’s website.   The Crime and/or Incident Log will be updated within two business days of the incident unless disclosure of such information would:

1. Be prohibited by law;
2. Jeopardize the confidentiality of the victim;
3. Jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation;
4. Jeopardize the safety of an individual;
5. Cause a suspect to flee or evade detection; and/or
6. Result in the destruction of evidence.

The log must be publicly available during normal business hours.  This means that in addition to students and employees, the general public such as parents or members of the local press may access it.  Logs remain open for 60 days and subsequently must be available within 2 business days of a request.

Reportable Crimes

• Criminal Homicide: Murder, non-negligent and negligent manslaughter;
• Sex Offenses: Forcible or Non-forcible. A forcible sex offense is any sexual act directed against another person, forcibly and/or against that person’s will; or not forcibly or against that person’s will where the victim is incapable of giving consent, i.e., intoxicated.  Non-forcible sex offenses are acts of “unlawful, non-forcible sexual intercourse,” e.g., incest or statutory rape
• Robbery: The taking or attempting to take anything of value from the control, custody, or care of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear;
• Aggravated Assault: An unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury.  This offense is usually accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm;
• Burglary: The unlawful entry (breaking and entering) into a building or other structure with the intent to commit a felony or theft;
• Arson: Willful or malicious burning or an attempt to burn a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle, aircraft, or personal property;
• Motor Vehicle Theft: The theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle;
• On-Campus Arrests for Alcohol, Drug. and Illegal Weapon Violations;
• Certain Referrals for Campus Disciplinary Actions for alcohol, drug, or illegal weapon violations. (If included in the report as an arrest, a referral need not be reported under this category.); and
• Hate Crimes falling into the above list involving bodily injury or reported to the campus security office or local police. (Hate crimes are to be reported by category of prejudice: race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or disability.).

Persons Responsible For Reporting Crimes and Campus Offenses

• Persons who receive referrals for discipline involving alcohol, drug, or weapon violations which are also a violation of the law and for which a sanction may be imposed, must report those cases to the Office of Safety and Security; and 
• Anyone who is a “Campus Security Authority” and who receives a report of or is aware of a crime must report it to the Office of Safety and Security.

Additional information detailing the Crime Log and more specific reporting requirements may be found in the Office of Safety and Security’s Directive #01-016 dated 2/28/2011 and is incorporated by reference.

References:

Rowan College of South Jersey Board of Trustees Policy Manual, 9002 Campus Security Act (Clery Act)