State profile · KY · Clery Act

Safest Colleges in Kentucky

Federal Clery Act filings for all 84 tracked Kentucky campuses, ranked by 2024 on-campus Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents per 1,000 students. Among nonzero reporters, University of the Cumberlands currently has the lowest rate.

84
Institutions tracked
3.45
Avg campus rate / 1k (84 of 84 scored)
3.13
Statewide rate / 1k
#48
Rank by avg campus rate
288,524
Students enrolled

Among nonzero Clery reporters, University of the Cumberlands has the lowest rate in Kentucky

According to U.S. Department of Education Clery Act filings, across 84 tracked campuses in Kentucky, 52 reported zero 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents used in the rate; among campuses with any in those categories, University of the Cumberlands has the lowest rate at 0.09 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
84
average campus, per 1,000 (84 of 84 scored)
3.45
lowest nonzero rate - University of the
0.09
campuses at zero in score categories
52

Data updated August 2026

Clery Act plate

Sheet KY · Kentucky 3.45/1k campus avg · #48/59

RATE-MID · RANK-BOTTOM · BELOW-PEER · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-SMALL-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-MID

  • RATE-MID 3.45/1k
  • RANK-BOTTOM #48/59
  • BELOW-PEER Minnesota · 0.28 back
  • ZERO-HEAVY 62% zero
  • WT-SMALL-HOT Δ +0.32
  • BOOK-FULL 84/84
  • CONC-MID top5 39%

Nearest campus-rate peer: Minnesota (+0.28/1k)

Kentucky sheet RATE-MID · RANK-BOTTOM · BELOW-PEER · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-SMALL-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-MID · peer Minnesota. 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-MID · RANK-BOTTOM · BELOW-PEER · ZERO-HEAVY · WT-SMALL-HOT · BOOK-FULL · CONC-MID. Nearest unweighted-rate peer is Minnesota (+0.28/1k). Among nonzero reporters inside the state, University of the Cumberlands leads at 0.09/1k. 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 Kentucky (52 of 84) reported zero in the 2024 score categories and stay unranked against each other. Among the nonzero reporters, University of the Cumberlands leads at 0.09/1k, then Gateway Community and Technical College (0.19/1k); Thomas More University (0.43/1k). A high zero share is a filing pattern, not a proof that campuses are safer.

Campus-rate neighbourhood around Kentucky

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

per 1,000 students

What this shows Neighbourhood of scored states around Kentucky's 3.45/1k 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 Kentucky, ranked by reported rate

Ranked from the lowest 2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA rate upward, counting only the 32 Kentucky campuses with at least one incident in those score categories. Positions are numbered within that group, because a rank counted through the zero-score campuses below would order them by nothing.

26
Berea College Berea · 1,527 students
Enrollment
1,527
Incidents /1k
7.86
29
Centre College Danville · 1,404 students
Enrollment
1,404
Incidents /1k
10.68
# Campus EnrollmentIncidents /1k
1 University of the Cumberlands Williamsburg · 22,120 students 22,120 0.09 4% of the leader · rank #1
2 Gateway Community and Technical College Florence · 5,320 students 5,320 0.19 4% of the leader · rank #2
3 Thomas More University Crestview Hills · 2,350 students 2,350 0.43 4% of the leader · rank #3
4 Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College Bowling Green · 5,825 students 5,825 0.52 4% of the leader · rank #4
5 Campbellsville University Campbellsville · 10,836 students 10,836 0.55 4% of the leader · rank #5
6 Jefferson Community and Technical College Louisville · 13,429 students 13,429 0.60 4% of the leader · rank #6
7 Georgetown College Georgetown · 1,345 students 1,345 0.74 4% of the leader · rank #7
8 Northern Kentucky University Highland Heights · 15,347 students 15,347 0.85 4% of the leader · rank #8
9 Morehead State University Morehead · 8,791 students 8,791 0.91 4% of the leader · rank #9
10 Midway University Midway · 2,003 students 2,003 1.00 4% of the leader · rank #10
11 University of Pikeville Pikeville · 2,547 students 2,547 1.18 4% of the leader · rank #11
12 Lindsey Wilson College Columbia · 4,193 students 4,193 1.43 4% of the leader · rank #12
13 Alice Lloyd College Pippa Passes · 589 students 589 1.70 4% of the leader · rank #13
14 Eastern Kentucky University Richmond · 15,673 students 15,673 2.17 4% of the leader · rank #14
15 American National University-Pikeville Pikeville · 444 students 444 2.25 4% of the leader · rank #15
16 Asbury Theological Seminary Wilmore · 1,689 students 1,689 2.37 4% of the leader · rank #16
17 Murray State University Murray · 10,020 students 10,020 2.59 4% of the leader · rank #17
18 Transylvania University Lexington · 1,006 students 1,006 2.98 4% of the leader · rank #18
19 Bellarmine University Louisville · 2,886 students 2,886 3.81 4% of the leader · rank #19
20 Simmons College of Kentucky Louisville · 506 students 506 3.95 4% of the leader · rank #20
21 Western Kentucky University Bowling Green · 16,291 students 16,291 4.24 4% of the leader · rank #21
22 Kentucky State University Frankfort · 2,020 students 2,020 4.46 4% of the leader · rank #22
23 Spalding University Louisville · 1,553 students 1,553 5.15 4% of the leader · rank #23
24 Kentucky Christian University Grayson · 550 students 550 7.27 5% of the leader · rank #24
25 University of Louisville Louisville · 23,065 students 23,065 7.59 5% of the leader · rank #25
26 Berea College Berea · 1,527 students 1,527 7.86 5% of the leader · rank #26
27 University of Kentucky Lexington · 34,709 students 34,709 8.53 5% of the leader · rank #27
28 Brescia University Owensboro · 690 students 690 8.70 5% of the leader · rank #28
29 Centre College Danville · 1,404 students 1,404 10.68 7% of the leader · rank #29
30 Bluegrass Community and Technical College Lexington · 12,965 students 12,965 12.34 8% of the leader · rank #30
31 Clear Creek Baptist Bible College Pineville · 183 students 183 21.86 14% of the leader · rank #31
32 Edge Academy of Beauty Manchester · 56 students 56 160.71 100% of the leader · rank #32

Unranked campuses (52): zero score or no normalized rate

52 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 37 stay out of this HTML table so large states stay crawlable.

ATA College Louisville · 363 students
Enrollment
363
Incidents /1k
0.00
# Campus EnrollmentIncidents /1k
American College of Barbering Louisville · 84 students 84 0.00
Appalachian Beauty School Belfry · 49 students 49 0.00
Asbury University Wilmore · 2,100 students 2,100 0.00
Ashland Community and Technical College Ashland · 2,552 students 2,552 0.00
ATA College Louisville · 363 students 363 0.00
Beckfield College-Florence Florence · 536 students 536 0.00
Berea Beauty Academy Berea · 40 students 40 0.00
Big Sandy Community and Technical College Prestonsburg · 2,618 students 2,618 0.00
Brighton Center's Center for Employment Training Newport · 53 students 53 0.00
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College Elizabethtown · 6,420 students 6,420 0.00
Empire Beauty School-Chenoweth Louisville · 100 students 100 0.00
Empire Beauty School-Dixie Louisville · 119 students 119 0.00
Empire Beauty School-Elizabethtown Elizabethtown · 171 students 171 0.00
Empire Beauty School-Florence Florence · 124 students 124 0.00
Employment Solutions-College for Technical Education Lexington · 203 students 203 0.00

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

The largest universities in Kentucky by enrollment

Enrollment leaders: University of Kentucky (34,709); University of Louisville (23,065); University of the Cumberlands (22,120), then 81 more. The 15 biggest Kentucky 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 39% of the 288,524 students enrolled across all 84 tracked Kentucky institutions. Mid-pack by size sits near Kentucky Wesleyan College (887 students, 0.00/1k).

# Institution EnrollmentIncidents /1k
1 University of Kentucky Lexington · 34,709 students 34,709 100% of the leader · rank #1 8.53
2 University of Louisville Louisville · 23,065 students 23,065 66% of the leader · rank #2 7.59
3 University of the Cumberlands Williamsburg · 22,120 students 22,120 64% of the leader · rank #3 0.09
4 Western Kentucky University Bowling Green · 16,291 students 16,291 47% of the leader · rank #4 4.24
5 Eastern Kentucky University Richmond · 15,673 students 15,673 45% of the leader · rank #5 2.17
6 Northern Kentucky University Highland Heights · 15,347 students 15,347 44% of the leader · rank #6 0.85
7 Jefferson Community and Technical College Louisville · 13,429 students 13,429 39% of the leader · rank #7 0.60
8 Bluegrass Community and Technical College Lexington · 12,965 students 12,965 37% of the leader · rank #8 12.34
9 Campbellsville University Campbellsville · 10,836 students 10,836 31% of the leader · rank #9 0.55
10 Murray State University Murray · 10,020 students 10,020 29% of the leader · rank #10 2.59
11 Morehead State University Morehead · 8,791 students 8,791 25% of the leader · rank #11 0.91
12 Elizabethtown Community and Technical College Elizabethtown · 6,420 students 6,420 18% of the leader · rank #12 0.00
13 Somerset Community College Somerset · 6,155 students 6,155 18% of the leader · rank #13 0.00
14 Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College Bowling Green · 5,825 students 5,825 17% of the leader · rank #14 0.52
15 Galen College of Nursing-Louisville Louisville · 5,585 students 5,585 16% of the leader · rank #15 0.00

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 Kentucky: closest on tracked campus count (84 here) and closest on unweighted average 2024 Clery rate (3.45/1k 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: Minnesota sits nearest on unweighted campus average (+0.28/1k). Inside Kentucky, open University of the Cumberlands's campus sheet next.

University of the Cumberlands profile → | All states → | Kentucky net price → | Incident tool → | Methodology →

Kentucky campus safety FAQ

What are the safest colleges in Kentucky?

Among Kentucky campuses that reported at least one 2024 Criminal Offense or VAWA incident in the Clery categories used here, University of the Cumberlands has the lowest rate (0.09 per 1,000 students). Next among nonzero reporters: Gateway Community and Technical College (0.19/1k); Thomas More University (0.43/1k). 52 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 Kentucky?

In Kentucky, campuses with any 2024 Criminal Offenses or VAWA incidents in the score categories are ordered by incidents per 1,000 students - University of the Cumberlands currently leads that nonzero list at 0.09/1k. Zero-report and unscored campuses stay unranked and alphabetical. See /methodology for the full rate definition.

How many colleges in Kentucky are compared?

This page covers 84 tracked higher-education institutions in Kentucky, serving about 288,524 enrolled students combined across 44 cities. 32 carry a ranked nonzero rate; 52 are listed without a safety ordinal. By enrollment the largest are University of Kentucky (34,709); University of Louisville (23,065); University of the Cumberlands (22,120). Nearby state averages for context: Minnesota (3.73/1k); Delaware (4.05/1k); Hawaii (2.75/1k); Missouri (4.22/1k); Maryland (2.65/1k); Texas (2.59/1k).

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.