College communities in Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Houston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York are among the top 25 highest risk college communities.

"Until now, parents and students have not had a reliable method of assessing the safety of communities far from home," Sauter said. "In fact, some universities have used loopholes in existing laws to underreport, and even misrepresent, crime data. As parents and students begin deciding which colleges they want to attend, a process high school seniors are going through right now, they have the right to know about college crime risk so that they can make the most informed decision possible."

A joint project between APBnews.com and CAP Index, the College Community Crime Risk survey was developed by analyzing data provided by a statistical model developed by CAP Index, which has been continually refined over the past ten years. Unlike government statistics, which are old, inconsistent, and inaccurate, and vary across jurisdictions, this study is based on a standardized, predictive model that does not measure crime rates but calculates the risk of crime in the future.

The College Community Crime Risk study assesses college communities across the country, providing the ranking for each of the nation's 1,497 four-year college communities, including raw data and maps. Each school in the survey will be able to post a response on the APBnews.com site, with some college responses already available. 

The study indicates that over half of the college communities at greatest risk from violent crime are located in urban areas in Southern states, and most schools within the least risky communities are in the Midwest.

Topping the list of the 25 least risky college neighborhoods is Anna Maria College in Paxton, MA. Rounding out the top five least risky communities are Bryant College in Smithfield, RI: Gordon College, Wenham, MA; the United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO; and Immaculata College, Immaculata, PA. All of the 25 college communities at least risk are located in rural or suburban locations. The nation's eight Ivy League schools were included in the study, as well. (Complete listings are attached). 

Analysis of Demographic Data and Government Crime Statistics Provide Model

The College Community Crime Study is an analysis of demographic data and federal crime records developed by using CAP Index's CRIMECAST(TM) Model. This model calculates the risk of crime through a sophisticated computer model that compares socioeconomic data with past reports of crime. The factors that drive the estimates include household income, family structure, migration patterns, housing values, and average educational level of the community. The model does not use information on race or ethnic origin.

Fortune 500 companies and the U.S. Department of Justice have used the CAP Index crime risk assessment. "Now, for the first time, that same quality of crime risk information is available to the average citizen," said Robert Figlio, CEO, CAP Index.

Dedicated Focus on Criminal Justice News and Information

APBnews.com is the first online, news-centered network of programs devoted exclusively to every audience for crime, justice and safety -- an eight-channel/23-program web site covering the most intensively followed genre in media. APBnews.com features a New York newsroom managed by 45 veteran newspaper and television journalists, 149 freelance correspondents under contract, and an advisory board composed of well-known criminal justice and media professionals. APBnews.com is dedicated to the public's right to know, providing accurate, expert, contextual, fair and responsible studies of crime, justice and safety.

CAP Index, Inc. is the only source of precise, site specific, up-to-date, and objective crime risk forecasts for the entire United States and Canada. Its databases, studies and custom maps are resources for business executives who make critical security, site-selection, and risk management decisions.

CAP Index data and services are used by several federal government agencies, including the Department of Justice, and 18 of the top 25 Fortune 100 companies.

The 25 College Communities Most at Risk from Violent Crime 

COLLEGE, CITY, STATE

Morris Brown College, Atlanta, GA

LeMoyne-Owen College, Memphis, TN

Spelman College, Atlanta, GA

Clark Atlanta University, Atlanta, GA

Morehouse College, Atlanta, GA

VanderCook College of Music, Chicago, IL

City University of New York/City College, New York, NY

Edward Waters College, Jacksonville, FL

Southern University and A&M College, Baton Rouge, LA

Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL

Temple University, Philadelphia, PA

Texas Southern University, Houston, TX

Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA

Albany State University, Albany, GA

Shaw University, Raleigh, NC

Sojourner-Douglass College, Baltimore, MD

William Carey College, Hattiesburg, MS

Rutgers, The State University of NJ, Camden, NJ

Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA

Fort Valley State College, Fort Valley, GA

Coppin State College, Baltimore, MD

Harris-Stowe State College, St. Louis, MO

Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO

University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL

University of Houston, Houston, TX

The 25 College Communities Least at Risk from Violent Crime

COLLEGE, CITY, STATE

Anna Maria College, Paxton, MA

Bryant College, Smithfield, RI

Gordon College, Wenham, MA

U.S. Air Force Academy, USAFA, CO

Immaculata College, Immaculata, PA

Hamilton College, Clinton, NY

Allentown College of Saint Francis de Sales, Center Valley, PA

Bluffton College, Bluffton, OH

Concordia College, Seward, NE

Delaware Valley College, Doylestown, PA

Lebanon Valley College of Pennsylvania, Annville, PA

York College, York, NE

La Roche College, Pittsburgh, PA

Trinity Christian College, Palos Heights, IL

United States Military Academy, West Point, NY

Concordia University, Wisconsin, Mequon, WI

Madonna University, Livonia, MI

Martin Luther College, New Ulm, MN

Simpson College, Indianola, IA

Colby-Sawyer College, New London, NH

Denison University, Granville, OH

Maryville University of Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO

Upper Iowa University, Fayette, IA

William Tyndale College, Farmington Hills, MI

Trinity Bible College, Ellendale, ND

Ivy League College Community Ranking for Risk from Violent Crime

COLLEGE, CITY, STATE

University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Columbia University/Barnard College, New York, NY

Yale University, New Haven, CT

Brown University, Providence, RI

Harvard University/Harvard & Radcliffe Colleges, Cambridge, MA

Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Princeton University, Princeton, NJ

SOURCE: APBnews.com

Web site: http://www.apbnews.com/