State profile · OH · Clery Act

Safest Colleges in Ohio

Federal Clery Act filings for all 257 tracked Ohio campuses, ranked by 2024 on-campus Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents per 1,000 students. Among nonzero reporters, Stark State College currently has the lowest rate.

257
Institutions tracked
1.34
Avg campus rate / 1k (257 of 257 scored)
2.40
Statewide rate / 1k
#17
Rank by avg campus rate
624,332
Students enrolled

Among nonzero Clery reporters, Stark State College has the lowest rate in Ohio

According to U.S. Department of Education Clery Act filings, across 257 tracked campuses in Ohio, 177 reported zero 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents used in the rate; among campuses with any in those categories, Stark State College has the lowest rate at 0.10 per 1,000 students. This comparison excludes other Clery tables and unreported harm, so review the details before drawing a safety conclusion.

Data source U.S. Department of Education, OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey

campuses tracked
257
average campus, per 1,000 (257 of 257 scored)
1.34
lowest nonzero rate - Stark State College
0.10
campuses at zero in score categories
177

Data updated August 2026

Clery Act plate

Sheet OH · Ohio 1.34/1k campus avg · #17/59

RATE-LOW · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-LARGE-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-FLAT

  • RATE-LOW 1.34/1k
  • RANK-UPPER #17/59
  • PHOTO-FINISH Louisiana · ±0.13
  • ZERO-HEAVY 69% zero
  • WT-LARGE-HOT Δ −1.07
  • BOOK-FULL 257/257
  • CONC-FLAT top5 30%

Nearest campus-rate peer: Louisiana (-0.13/1k)

Ohio sheet RATE-LOW · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-LARGE-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-FLAT · peer Louisiana. Codes from this state’s OPE Campus Safety filing: unweighted campus rate, corpus rank (low = safer), photo-finish peer state, zero-report share, campus-vs-weighted gap, scored book, top-five enrollment concentration. Not a moving recommendation.

Clery plate RATE-LOW · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-LARGE-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-FLAT. Nearest unweighted-rate peer is Louisiana (-0.13/1k). Among nonzero reporters inside the state, Stark State College leads at 0.10/1k. Instrument codes from this state's OPE Campus Safety sheet; compare similarly sized campuses before treating any single rate as decisive.

Most scored campuses in Ohio (177 of 257) reported zero in the 2024 score categories and stay unranked against each other. Among the nonzero reporters, Stark State College leads at 0.10/1k, then Northwest State Community College (0.24/1k); Columbus State Community College (0.36/1k). A high zero share is a filing pattern, not a proof that campuses are safer.

Campus-rate neighbourhood around Ohio

Lowest/highest poles plus states nearest Ohio on unweighted average campus Clery rate. Full ladder: /rankings/.

per 1,000 students

What this shows Neighbourhood of scored states around Ohio's 1.34/1k unweighted campus average, not a full 50-state board reprint.

Source U.S. Department of Education, OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey (Clery Act) As of 2024

Safest colleges in Ohio, ranked by reported rate

Ranked from the lowest 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA rate upward, counting only the 80 Ohio campuses with at least one incident in those score categories. Showing the top 50 here so the page stays crawlable; positions are numbered within the full nonzero group.

18
Lake Erie College Painesville · 1,108 students
Enrollment
1,108
Incidents /1k
0.90
20
Hiram College Hiram · 1,061 students
Enrollment
1,061
Incidents /1k
0.94
31
Defiance College Defiance · 568 students
Enrollment
568
Incidents /1k
1.76
33
Ursuline College Pepper Pike · 970 students
Enrollment
970
Incidents /1k
2.06
38
Hocking College Nelsonville · 1,486 students
Enrollment
1,486
Incidents /1k
2.69
45
Marietta College Marietta · 1,109 students
Enrollment
1,109
Incidents /1k
3.61
48
Oberlin College Oberlin · 2,909 students
Enrollment
2,909
Incidents /1k
3.78
# Campus EnrollmentIncidents /1k
1 Stark State College North Canton · 10,128 students 10,128 0.10 4% of the leader · rank #1
2 Northwest State Community College Archbold · 4,082 students 4,082 0.24 4% of the leader · rank #2
3 Columbus State Community College Columbus · 28,081 students 28,081 0.36 4% of the leader · rank #3
4 North Central State College Mansfield · 2,553 students 2,553 0.39 4% of the leader · rank #4
5 University of Mount Union Alliance · 2,461 students 2,461 0.41 4% of the leader · rank #5
6 Terra State Community College Fremont · 2,214 students 2,214 0.45 4% of the leader · rank #6
7 Kent State University at Geauga Burton · 2,204 students 2,204 0.45 4% of the leader · rank #7
8 Sinclair Community College Dayton · 19,415 students 19,415 0.46 4% of the leader · rank #8
9 Kent State University at Stark North Canton · 3,569 students 3,569 0.56 4% of the leader · rank #9
10 Central Ohio Technical College Newark · 3,182 students 3,182 0.63 4% of the leader · rank #10
11 Cedarville University Cedarville · 6,318 students 6,318 0.63 4% of the leader · rank #11
12 Cuyahoga Community College District Cleveland · 17,840 students 17,840 0.67 4% of the leader · rank #12
13 Ashland University Ashland · 4,106 students 4,106 0.73 4% of the leader · rank #13
14 University of Northwestern Ohio Lima · 2,525 students 2,525 0.79 4% of the leader · rank #14
15 Miami University-Hamilton Hamilton · 2,480 students 2,480 0.81 4% of the leader · rank #15
16 Ohio Dominican University Columbus · 1,209 students 1,209 0.83 4% of the leader · rank #16
17 Mount St. Joseph University Cincinnati · 2,265 students 2,265 0.88 4% of the leader · rank #17
18 Lake Erie College Painesville · 1,108 students 1,108 0.90 4% of the leader · rank #18
19 Baldwin Wallace University Berea · 3,305 students 3,305 0.91 4% of the leader · rank #19
20 Hiram College Hiram · 1,061 students 1,061 0.94 4% of the leader · rank #20
21 Lorain County Community College Elyria · 9,350 students 9,350 0.96 4% of the leader · rank #21
22 John Carroll University University Heights · 2,864 students 2,864 1.05 5% of the leader · rank #22
23 Central State University Wilberforce · 2,708 students 2,708 1.11 5% of the leader · rank #23
24 Bowling Green State University-Main Campus Bowling Green · 17,594 students 17,594 1.14 5% of the leader · rank #24
25 Ohio State University-Newark Campus Newark · 2,544 students 2,544 1.18 5% of the leader · rank #25
26 Marion Technical College Marion · 3,346 students 3,346 1.20 5% of the leader · rank #26
27 Youngstown State University Youngstown · 12,204 students 12,204 1.39 6% of the leader · rank #27
28 Wright State University-Lake Campus Celina · 1,356 students 1,356 1.47 7% of the leader · rank #28
29 Shawnee State University Portsmouth · 3,231 students 3,231 1.55 7% of the leader · rank #29
30 Malone University Canton · 1,256 students 1,256 1.59 7% of the leader · rank #30
31 Defiance College Defiance · 568 students 568 1.76 8% of the leader · rank #31
32 The University of Findlay Findlay · 5,016 students 5,016 1.79 8% of the leader · rank #32
33 Ursuline College Pepper Pike · 970 students 970 2.06 9% of the leader · rank #33
34 University of Toledo Toledo · 14,358 students 14,358 2.16 10% of the leader · rank #34
35 Kent State University at Kent Kent · 26,374 students 26,374 2.20 10% of the leader · rank #35
36 Wright State University-Main Campus Dayton · 10,603 students 10,603 2.36 11% of the leader · rank #36
37 Wilberforce University Wilberforce · 838 students 838 2.39 11% of the leader · rank #37
38 Hocking College Nelsonville · 1,486 students 1,486 2.69 12% of the leader · rank #38
39 Franciscan University of Steubenville Steubenville · 3,976 students 3,976 2.77 12% of the leader · rank #39
40 Ohio Northern University Ada · 3,140 students 3,140 2.87 13% of the leader · rank #40
41 Wilmington College Wilmington · 1,040 students 1,040 2.88 13% of the leader · rank #41
42 Mount Vernon Nazarene University Mount Vernon · 1,671 students 1,671 2.99 13% of the leader · rank #42
43 Ohio University-Main Campus Athens · 26,323 students 26,323 3.08 14% of the leader · rank #43
44 Tiffin University Tiffin · 3,831 students 3,831 3.39 15% of the leader · rank #44
45 Marietta College Marietta · 1,109 students 1,109 3.61 16% of the leader · rank #45
46 University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati · 45,026 students 45,026 3.73 17% of the leader · rank #46
47 University of Akron Main Campus Akron · 13,332 students 13,332 3.75 17% of the leader · rank #47
48 Oberlin College Oberlin · 2,909 students 2,909 3.78 17% of the leader · rank #48
49 Cleveland State University Cleveland · 14,074 students 14,074 3.84 17% of the leader · rank #49
50 Chamberlain University-Ohio Columbus · 257 students 257 3.89 17% of the leader · rank #50

30 additional nonzero-reporting campuses rank below this top-50 list in the same rate order.

Look up any campus via the Campus Safety Incident Tool or browse all schools.

Unranked campuses (177): zero score or no normalized rate

177 filed zero 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents in the score categories; other Clery tables can still contain reports. Neither group supports a safety ordering, so these campuses are listed alphabetically without positions. Showing 15 alphabetically; the remaining 162 stay out of this HTML table so large states stay crawlable.

# Campus EnrollmentIncidents /1k
Academia Medical Institute Columbus · 466 students 466 0.00
Allegheny Wesleyan College Salem · 60 students 60 0.00
Allstate Hairstyling & Barber College Cleveland · 33 students 33 0.00
American Institute of Alternative Medicine Columbus · 251 students 251 0.00
Antioch University Yellow Springs · 486 students 486 0.00
Apex Academy Hair Skin Nails School of Cosmetology Ontario · 17 students 17 0.00
Arizona College of Nursing-Cincinnati Cincinnati · 77 students 77 0.00
Arizona College of Nursing-Cleveland Beachwood · 164 students 164 0.00
Art Academy of Cincinnati Cincinnati · 213 students 213 0.00
Ashland County-West Holmes Career Center Ashland · 41 students 41 0.00
Ashtabula County Technical and Career Campus Jefferson · 103 students 103 0.00
ATA College-Cincinnati Cincinnati · 266 students 266 0.00
Athena Career Academy Toledo · 516 students 516 0.00
Auburn Career Center Concord Twp · 292 students 292 0.00
Aveda Fredric's Institute-Cincinnati West Chester · 453 students 453 0.00

Open any remaining campus from the school directory or the incident tool.

The largest universities in Ohio by enrollment

Enrollment leaders: Ohio State University-Main Campus (61,443); University of Cincinnati-Main Campus (45,026); Columbus State Community College (28,081), then 254 more. The 15 biggest Ohio institutions by total enrolled students, from the same federal IPEDS collection, each shown with its 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA rate. The five largest alone account for 30% of the 624,332 students enrolled across all 257 tracked Ohio institutions. Mid-pack by size sits near Valor Christian College (414 students, 0.00/1k).

# Institution EnrollmentIncidents /1k
1 Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus · 61,443 students 61,443 100% of the leader · rank #1 5.91
2 University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati · 45,026 students 45,026 73% of the leader · rank #2 3.73
3 Columbus State Community College Columbus · 28,081 students 28,081 46% of the leader · rank #3 0.36
4 Kent State University at Kent Kent · 26,374 students 26,374 43% of the leader · rank #4 2.20
5 Ohio University-Main Campus Athens · 26,323 students 26,323 43% of the leader · rank #5 3.08
6 Sinclair Community College Dayton · 19,415 students 19,415 32% of the leader · rank #6 0.46
7 Miami University-Oxford Oxford · 18,838 students 18,838 31% of the leader · rank #7 4.14
8 Cuyahoga Community College District Cleveland · 17,840 students 17,840 29% of the leader · rank #8 0.67
9 Bowling Green State University-Main Campus Bowling Green · 17,594 students 17,594 29% of the leader · rank #9 1.14
10 University of Toledo Toledo · 14,358 students 14,358 23% of the leader · rank #10 2.16
11 Cleveland State University Cleveland · 14,074 students 14,074 23% of the leader · rank #11 3.84
12 University of Akron Main Campus Akron · 13,332 students 13,332 22% of the leader · rank #12 3.75
13 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland · 12,475 students 12,475 20% of the leader · rank #13 4.57
14 Youngstown State University Youngstown · 12,204 students 12,204 20% of the leader · rank #14 1.39
15 Wright State University-Main Campus Dayton · 10,603 students 10,603 17% of the leader · rank #15 2.36

Enrollment is total reported students, not full-time equivalent, and a branch campus is reported separately from its parent institution. A larger campus is not a less safe one: the incident rate beside it is already per 1,000 students.

Nationwide states with similar campus scale or Clery rate

Two nationwide peer sets for Ohio: closest on tracked campus count (257 here) and closest on unweighted average 2024 Clery rate (1.34/1k here). The rate-neighbourhood and keep-peer blocks above stay geo-adjacent; these columns are cross-state ABS comparisons with deduped link sets.

Similar campus count

Nearest other states by number of tracked postsecondary institutions (≥5 scored campuses in corpus).

Similar campus Clery rate

Nearest other states by unweighted average on-campus Clery rate. Campus-count peers above are excluded.

Read with this state

Keep-peer handoff: Louisiana sits nearest on unweighted campus average (-0.13/1k). Inside Ohio, open Stark State College's campus sheet next.

Stark State College profile → | All states → | Ohio net price → | Incident tool → | Methodology →

Ohio campus safety FAQ

What are the safest colleges in Ohio?

Among Ohio campuses that reported at least one 2024 Criminal Offense or VAWA incident in the Clery categories used here, Stark State College has the lowest rate (0.10 per 1,000 students). Next among nonzero reporters: Northwest State Community College (0.24/1k); Columbus State Community College (0.36/1k). 177 campuses reported zero in those score categories and are listed separately without a safety ordinal, because a zero report is not the same as a proven safer campus.

How does PlainCampus rank campus safety in Ohio?

In Ohio, campuses with any 2024 Criminal Offenses or VAWA incidents in the score categories are ordered by incidents per 1,000 students - Stark State College currently leads that nonzero list at 0.10/1k. Zero-report and unscored campuses stay unranked and alphabetical. See /methodology for the full rate definition.

How many colleges in Ohio are compared?

This page covers 257 tracked higher-education institutions in Ohio, serving about 624,332 enrolled students combined across 130 cities. 80 carry a ranked nonzero rate; 177 are listed without a safety ordinal. By enrollment the largest are Ohio State University-Main Campus (61,443); University of Cincinnati-Main Campus (45,026); Columbus State Community College (28,081). Nearby state averages for context: Louisiana (1.20/1k); Connecticut (1.48/1k); Michigan (1.18/1k); South Dakota (1.17/1k); Federated States of Micronesia (1.16/1k); Arkansas (1.11/1k).

Every figure on PlainCampus is rendered directly from federal Clery Act source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal Clery Act source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

PlainCampus is for informational purposes only and does not constitute safety, security, legal, or enrollment advice; the data describes reported on-campus activity, it is not a complete picture of safety at any campus and cannot predict any individual student's experience. See our appropriate use guidance.