By Matthew Sotlar / The Jambar
Each year, Youngstown State University is required to release an annual safety report as part of the Jeanne Clery Campus Security Act. In addition, YSU Police update daily crime logs on the YSU website to inform the community of criminal activity.
At the time of publication, and since the start of the fall semester, YSU’s 2025 Clery Daily Logs reports an alleged six stalking incidents, seven thefts, 12 trespassing complaints, four disorderly conduct reports, two rapes and a single liquor law violation.
Data collected from the totality of 2024 reported allegations of 10 stalking related incidents, four car thefts, two burglaries, a single dating violence incident, along with 11 liquor law arrests and 10 liquor law referrals reported on campus.
YSU Police said they were not called to respond to any crimes on public property and cited only one unfounded crime for 2024.
The 2025 Annual Fire Safety Report notes that theft is the most prevalent crime on campus.
“Theft is the most prevalent crime that occurs in the residential areas,” the report states. “Residents are encouraged to exercise prudence and caution with respect to their personal safety and security within the housing facilities. The YSU Police encourages all residents, guests and other visitors at YSU to be aware of their surroundings and the presence of unknown persons in your communities.”
YSU Police Chief Shawn Varso said every federally funded university must publish a Clery Report each year.
“Each university in the United States that receives federal financial aid is responsible for putting out a report every Oct. 1,” Varso said. “What that report is supposed to detail is what you do for the safety of the students on campus, what measures are in place, and then, importantly, it gives the crime statistics for the last three years.”
YSU’s Clery Report is published annually by Will Rogner, campus security emergency management officer. The 2025 report was released Aug. 25, but was updated and rereleased Sept. 10 as the Annual Safety and Fire Report.
Varso said the reports must follow strict guidelines as imposed by the Clery Act.
“For the university to be in compliance with the Clery Act, they have to make sure there are a couple of things that were made clear in the report,” Varso said. “They had to report what crimes occurred on campus, and there’s a select number of crimes they had to report. If you take a look at our Clery Report, the crimes that are listed are the crimes that are required by law that we report.”
Crimes that must be listed in the YSU Clery Report include murder, manslaughter, rape, robbery, burglary and arson, among other serious offenses. Varso said any felony-level crimes must be reported for Clery compliance.
“It’s mainly things that would be considered a felony,” Varso said. “If you’re talking about property crimes, it’s usually robbery, burglary, that type of thing. Those are usually, for the most part, felonies.”
The Clery Report must be made available to the general public. Varso said YSU Police offers online and physical copies of the report for anyone interested.
“We pretty much report anything that we can and put it into our log,” Varso said. “That has to be viewable by the general public. If they come to the station and request our Clery Log, or if we don’t have it posted somewhere, then we have to give them the crimes.”
The Jeanne Clery Campus Security Act was signed into federal law in November of 1990 by former President George H. W. Bush after a 19-year-old Lehigh University student, Jeanne Clery, was raped and murdered in 1986 during a series of unreported crimes on her campus.
Following her death, the Clery Act was passed to provide transparency between students, faculty and staff at universities and their respective police departments.
Anyone interested in viewing the 2025 Clery Report can visit ysu.edu, or visit the YSU Police Station at Clingan-Waddell Hall on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Wood Street.