Record Fine for Penn State Sends a Signal on Clery Act Compliance

Gene J. Puskar, AP Images

The U.S. Department of Education on Thursday hit Pennsylvania State University with a $2.4-million fine for failing to comply with the federal campus-crime-reporting law known as the Clery Act, following an investigation that was prompted by the Jerry Sandusky child-sex-abuse scandal.

The fine represents the steepest penalty that the department has ever issued over Clery Act violations. Campus safety experts told The Chronicle that the department’s actions were notable not just for the size of the fine, but also because they could signal stricter enforcement of the law. And the department’s findings in the case, they said, could serve as guideposts for other colleges that are seeking to shore up their compliance.

The department opened its review of Penn State’s practices after Mr. Sandusky, a former assistant coach for the football team, was indicted in 2011. The ensuing scandal rocked the university, and Mr. Sandusky was later convicted on dozens of counts of molesting children.

In a news release, the department said its investigation had identified 11 areas where Penn State was out of compliance with the Clery Act’s requirements. The department released a 239-page report on its findings, which criticized the university for failing to put in place a “minimally adequate” compliance program. It faulted the university for numerous problems, including failures to issue timely warnings in accordance with federal regulations, failure to report incidents and crime statistics from 2008 to 2011, and failure to establish an adequate system for gathering crime statistics.

In a written statement, Penn State officials said the university had given the government “unfettered” access to information and called the investigation “unprecedented” in its scope and duration. They said the university had just received the department’s report and was conducting a “thorough review” of its findings.

“While regrettably we cannot change the past, today the university has been recognized for significantly strengthening our programs since 2011,” the statement said. “The safety and security of our university community is a top priority and we are dedicated to full compliance with the Clery Act and the Drug Free Schools and Communities Act.”

Although the circumstances of the Sandusky scandal were extraordinary, the Education Department’s findings in the Penn State case still carry significance for other colleges and universities, said Alison Kiss, executive director of the Clery Center for Security on Campus.

It’s important to note that Mr. Sandusky’s crimes represent only one part of the problems that the department identified, Ms. Kiss said. The rest, she said, were general compliance violations.

The findings “go far beyond the Sandusky case,” she said, and look specifically at how the institution was handling the collection of crime statistics.

The case may also indicate that more reviews of colleges’ compliance with the Clery Act are in store. In the 26 years since the act has been passed, Ms. Kiss said she has seen an increasing number of program reviews, especially since 2008.

S. Daniel Carter, an independent campus-security consultant, said that the department had signaled its willingness to step up enforcement of the law.

For Mr. Carter, the fine reflects the severity of the findings and the systemic gaps in Penn State’s compliance, which he said were “the real reason” for the multimillion-dollar penalty. And the findings could give other colleges a “better sense of the department’s expectations,” he added.

Penn State’s case could be a model for other universities that want to fine-tune their public-safety protocols, Ms. Kiss said.

Some colleges may need to focus on evaluating how they are training and identifying campus-security employees, as such individuals are often tasked with passing along reports of crimes and other incidents, Ms. Kiss said. Campuses should also take a close look at annual security reports, as several of the department’s findings related to such reports and their distribution.

The $2.4-million fine pales in comparison to other sanctions the university has faced since 2011, including a $60-million penalty that was levied by the NCAA. But for the Education Department, the amount was unprecedented. The previous record was a $357,500 fine levied against Eastern Michigan University in 2007, which was later reduced by $7,500. The department gave Penn State until November 25 to request a hearing or to show why its fine should not be imposed.

“The department is sending a strong signal that compliance will be taken very seriously and there will be serious fines imposed,” Mr. Carter said. “And for other institutions, a two-plus-million-dollar fine is a significant incentive to ensure compliance.”

Fernanda Zamudio-Suaréz is a web writer. Follow her on Twitter @FernandaZamudio, or email her at fzamudiosuarez@chronicle.com.