MANASSAS, Va. -- George Mason University on Tuesday held day two of a three-day national conference to discuss tourism, sexual assaults and other issues on university campuses.

The event is being held at the school's Manassas campus.

University officials said more than 300 investigators from colleges around the United States attended the event.

Campus safety is a big concern for many parents who are sending their kids back to school in the coming weeks.

Officials said that coeds are often easy targets for crimes.

Erin Weed's sorority sister was murdered in 2001 while at a college in Illinois.

"I went to a college that was in a very rural area, so I thought that nothing could happen to me or my friends, and that was not the case," Weed said.

Erin is sharing her experiences at the GMU seminar. She said the experience is what caused her to become a campus security expert.

Going away to college can be a life changing experience for many, but is also dangerous for some.

Jeff Levy's son, Jonathan, died in a car accident after a night of illegal drinking on a Virginia college campus. Levy now heads a parent safety group.

"Parents need to be more concerned about what the rules are and how they are enforced. They need to get a better sense of the environment that their kids are going to face," said Levy. "I did not have that until after my son's death. I was completely unaware of the environment."

Levy said that in the next year, over 1,5700 college students will die from alcohol-related deaths and that another 600,000 will be injured.

"You can certainly go online to a lot of college, universities' police departments ... and they have that information and you can download it. And you don't even have to go there, call them or write them to find out," said Thomas Baciagalupi of the George Mason police department.

Experts said that parents and students should have a security plan in place to combat campus crime.

The event, which will also be held on Wednesday, begins at 9:30a.m.