Back to school days: Crime seasonality in a campus-dominated community

Crime on university and college campuses is an ongoing concern for students, faculty, administrators, and policy makers ( Fisher & Sloan III, 2022 ). However, much of this research focuses on university and college campuses that are separated from the rest of the city or community they are located within. Doing so is important, given that integrated campuses create particular crime opportunity structures that can impact members of the university and the community more broadly. In this study, we examine crime trends in Brantford, Ontario, where the university is fully integrated into the downtown. We ask will the influx of a large population of students and staff during the school year influence the expected patterns of crime in this area as compared to the rest of the city? We find that assault increases significantly in the university campus area at the beginning of the school year, but returns to expected patterns soon after. This is important when considering safety planning for campus communities, particularly at the start of the school year. Findings indicate that the typical patterns of seasonality can be impacted by a large shift in population, and this should be considered for future policy and safety practices on campuses. • We test if the typical seasonal patterns of crime emerge on a university campus when there is a large shift in the population during the school year. • We compare the trends of crime in the university area (which is integrated into the downtown) to the rest of the city over the course of eight years. • Assault increases significantly in the university area at the beginning of the school year, but returns to expected patterns soon after. • Our study suggests that universities and colleges may want to target crime prevention efforts to the first few weeks of classes.