This is the third year that the Campus Safety and Security (CSS) data has released separate violence against women (VAW) offenses. This data captures three types of offenses; domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking and analyzes it for both on campus and off campus locations. Overall, there were 16,183 VAW offenses in 2016, an increase of 9.5% coming on the heels of a 20.8% increase in 2015.
As this data is new, it is still questionable to draw firm conclusions from it. Some have argued that an institution that has a culture of openness which encourages women to come forward actuall will report larger counts of VAW offenses. Consider Auburn University, which reported an increase of 85.4% in 2016, and which celebrates each April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
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Of the types of offenses reported, stalking offenses increased 12.6% and dating violence increased 10.6% in 2016.
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More on-campus offenses occurred outside of student housing facilities as these facilities reported a 15.6% increase compared to a 3.0% increase in campus housing.
The Campus Safety Interactive analyzes campus offenses broadly and by institution over a ten-year period (11 million data points) for the various types of offenses reported including arrests, discipline, criminal offenses, residence hall fires, and VAW offenses. You can purchase this as an individual Interactive for $195 or as part of the Higher Education Institution library. The library now has fourteen Interactives covering numerous topical areas.
