Fresno State is now listed as one the country's most dangerous schools. The report was recently released by Businessinsider.com. The findings are based on crime statistics over the last three years. University officials say the report is unfair and feel they're being punished for doing their job.
On top of climbing tuition, and the pressure that often comes with earning a college degree, a new report suggests students at Fresno State might have one more thing to worry about; their safety.
Fresno State senior Ricky Bravo says, "I don't really feel like it's that unsafe here. I feel pretty secure, and I've never really seen anything terrible happen."
Students may not feel like they're in danger, but businessinsider.com is painting a different picture. The website has compiled a list of the 25 most dangerous schools in the country. Fresno State ranks #19.
"It's just kinda hard to believe that we rank that high. I don't feel like I'm in the 19th most dangerous place to be at," says Bravo.
Fresno State sophomore Megan Resendez says, "It doesn't seem like it would be. This campus is like a home."
The report was drawn from FBI crime data and university police statistics from 2008 to 2011. Violent crimes such as murders, rapes and aggravated assaults, were calculated. Also included were property crimes; things like burglary, larceny and arson.
Fresno State averaged 12 violent crimes and 413 property crimes per year.
Fresno State Police Lt. James Watson says,"Some off campus activity is reported. We have a dual jurisdiction with the police department. There's an overlapping jurisdiction so there is going to be some reporting that we report."
Campus police say the report is inaccurate, because officers also report crimes in other areas of the city.
"I think we're being penalized because we are transparent and we're being truthful about what's occurring," says Lt. Watson.
This type of transparency is something students appreciate.
"The stuff that does happen, it always gets reported to all the students to kind of keep an eye out on it."
And that's the one good thing university officials say has come from this report. It's reminded students that they should always be on guard.
"I think that every college student needs to keep that in the back of their mind, especially women," says Fresno State junior Shelby Manoukian.
Officials say they are constantly working to improve safety and awareness on campus. They have recently launched a mobile app, where students can simply push a button on their phones if they are in danger, and officers will be able to locate them.
UCLA took the #1 spot in this report, ranking as the country's most dangerous school.
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