SHU did not appear in the top 50
A recent study has ranked the top 50 American Colleges with the most drug and alcohol offenses and Seton Hall does not make the list. Project Know, an online resource for helping deal with drug addiction, recently surveyed schools across the country using statistics on crime from the Office of Postsecondary Education. According to the research, taken from 2013 data, the State University of New York at New Paltz had the most drug related, on-campus, arrests, while the University of California, Santa Cruz, was the school with the most drug related disciplinary actions. Last year, SUNY New Paltz was ranked 107, but UC Santa Cruz is claiming its title for the second year in a row. Seton Hall University did not make the top 50 either year. The survey only looked at drug and alcohol violations that would have resulted in criminal charges filed against students. The report states that arrests typically occur in extreme cases, and that it is much more common for schools to simply take disciplinary actions against students caught drinking or using drugs. Despite New Jersey being ranked as the 12th highest state in the country for on-campus drug arrests, it is ranked 26th for on-campus disciplinary action. “Seton Hall has a three-prong approach: education about the risks of use of illegal drugs, enforcement of our policies and counseling and support for those dealing with abuse or addiction,” said Gary Christie, assistant director of Public Safety at Seton Hall. It is a violation of both state and federal law, as well as University policy, to be in possession of any controlled substances or related paraphernalia, according to Winston Roberts, the University’s assistant dean of students. A student found to be in violation of this policy is sent to the Student Conduct Review process. The process considers the severity of the violation as well as any previous violations. “Each case is carefully reviewed and considered relative to its specific circumstances,” Roberts said. Under the Clery Act, each public and private university in the United States that receives federal aid must disclose campus safety information. Seton Hall publishes a yearly Campus Security Report, in accordance with this law. According to the report published in 2013, there was one on-campus arrest for drug policy violation, one arrest for a drug policy violation in a residence hall, and two arrests for a drug policy violation on public property. Alternatively, there were 50 incidents involving drug policy violation on campus that warranted referrals from disciplinary action, 35 violation in residence halls, and three violations in non-campus buildings. Christie cites several reasons why a violation would result in an arrest, including if a police officer is present at the time or if there is an excessive amount of the controlled substance. In all cases, however, the student is referred to the Student Conduct Review board for disciplinary action. The University also offers various resources to educate the student body about substance abuse and brings awareness to the problem. Counseling and Psychological Services also offers programs to help students.Comments
