Campus Crime Prevention Resources

What is crime prevention?

Crime prevention is defined as “the anticipation, the recognition, and the appraisal of a crime risk and the initiation of action to remove or reduce it.” The first step in crime prevention is to realize that in order to prevent crime or becoming a crime victim, we must accept that crime prevention is a shared responsibility. It is not a college problem or a police problem. It is a societal problem that can only be properly addressed by the entire campus community. On a college campus that includes, students, faculty, staff, visitors and neighbors. Therefore, campus safety is truly a shared responsibility.

Three elements must be present for a crime to occur: desire, ability, and opportunity. This is also known as the crime triangle. A person may “want” to commit a crime, and have the “ability” to commit a crime, but if we deny them the “opportunity,” then no crime can be committed. Historically, the primary goal of crime prevention has been to apprehend criminals. Although this goal is still important, the goal of preventing crime and also reducing the cost of crime has taken on significant importance. Our goal is to help individuals prevent crime by helping them make decisions in their every day lives to reduce the opportunity for crime to occur, whether on campus or not.

Colleges and universities throughout the United States and the world are very concerned about providing campus settings that are safe and secure. As a result, most colleges and universities have established security and police departments that provide a wide array of security and police services and educational and prevention programs. Understanding campus crime prevention and how you can personally increase your chances of having a safe and enjoyable college experience will mutually benefit you and your campus.