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Annual Report on School Safety--October 1998
The vast majority of America's schools are safe places. Two decades of comprehensive research support this conclusion. Yet, reports of gun-, gang-, and drug-induced violence sometimes create the impression that such violence is pervasive in our Nation's schools and instill fear in the minds of parents, students, and teachers. While this fear is understandable, it is not based on fact.
It is true that some schools do have serious crime and violence problems and that these problems both compromise the learning environment and endanger our children and educators. These problems urgently need to be identified, analyzed, and addressed. All children deserve to have a safe, orderly school environment in which to learn and grow.
The first Annual Report on School Safety presents a description of the nature and extent of crime and violence on school property. It shows what measures some schools have taken to prevent or address school violence and provides parents, students, and educators with information and resources to evaluate and enhance their own school's level of safety. The report is divided into four chapters: The Nature and Scope of School Violence, What Communities Can Do Through Collaboration, Model Programs, and Resources.
Chapter 1 presents the nature and scope of school violence in the United States. A national perspective on school crime and safety issues is presented by examining data on crimes against students, violent student deaths at school, crime at public schools as reported to police, crimes against teachers, gangs at school, weapons at school, the relationship between school crime and drug availability, student perceptions of school safety, and efforts by schools to increase school safety. More detailed presentations of these and other related national data can be found in Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 1998 by the National Center for Education Statistics and the Bureau of Justice Statistics (see References). State and local data on school crime and safety are also presented in the form of student risk behavior data (such as self-reported weapon carrying).
Chapter 2 describes steps that communities can take to develop a comprehensive plan to reduce school crime and violence. It also highlights what schools, students, parents, police and juvenile justice authorities, businesses, and elected officials and government agencies can do to create a safe learning environment for all students.
Chapter 3 presents summary information on model programs that have demonstrated success or are promising in addressing the problems and issues related to school crime. Communities can consider these programs in developing and implementing their comprehensive plans. The chapter is organized by the types of problems schools encounter: aggression/fighting, bullying, family issues, gangs, racial and other bias-related conflict, sexual harassment/sexual violence, substance abuse, truancy/dropout, vandalism, and weapons.
Chapter 4 lists resources for more information about school safety and crime issues. These resources include organizations, Web sites, listserves, videos, Federal resources, and publications.
Throughout the report, school profiles highlight several schools that are doing an exemplary job of creating and maintaining safe environments. The highlighted schools have developed and implemented comprehensive approaches for safety that will be continued or enhanced in the future. These schools have put in place a combination of programs and strategies that include school security, schoolwide education in violence prevention, counseling, and specialized student services such as alternative educational approaches for high-risk students.
[Chapter 1: The Nature and Scope of School Violence]