Arkansas State University’s national campus safety rating received a boost in the new year.

Best Colleges, a website used to inform students about educational information, released their annual breakdown of colleges nationwide, with A-State placing sixth for campus security.

According to the university, more than 10,000 students participated in over 100 active shooter training classes as a part of the A-State First-Year Experience (FYE) course.

“We have a young population that is only with us a short time, and we have a small window of opportunity to develop them to be mindful of their safety,” University Police Chief Randy Martin said in a recent report.

According to bestcolleges.com, A-State’s success can be contributed in part to UPD’s open-door philosophy to the public. This allows the department to keep a close eye on the campus community. UPD logs all crimes and incidents, making it available to public inspection at any time in accordance with the Clery Act.

Free courses in Rape Aggression Defense are offered to all female students, staff and faculty to teach them self-defense tactics to protect against sexual predators. An Active Shooter Guide is also available from the department to help those on campus prevent and prepare for an armed gunman on campus grounds. The video is available for viewing by anyone on the police department's website.

“Last academic year, we did 62 training events over a wide number of subjects including general safety awareness, residence hall safety, and other topics. Some were held for Jonesboro residents, but the majority of the 3,400 plus participants were on-campus,” Martin said.

The ranking comes several weeks after the campus underwent lockdown protocol in the face of an active shooter. Local authorities, including university police, received praise for their quick response time and adept handling of the situation.

In a recent press release, the university noted that this quick and efficient response time during the Dec. 10 incident was a tangible benefit to the extensive active shooter training students and faculty must undergo. The same report stressed that, while active shooter training is important, it is not the primary concern for A-State students.

“Safety begins with each individual,” Martin said. “Being aware of your surroundings, and knowledgeable of skills and resources near you and at your disposal, is critical.”