This paper examines the impact of high-fatality school shootings on the subsequent outcomes of the survivors of those events. We focus specifically on the shootings at Columbine High School (Littleton, CO), Sandy Hook Elementary (Newtown, CT), and Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School (Parkland, FL). We assess the subsequent educational record,…

Much of the existing research on adolescent firearm and weapon carrying lacks a theoretical framework. Relatedly, few studies have examined the relationship between weapon carrying and bullying victimization experienced at school, which has been established as a key strain in adolescence. The present study seeks to provide a partial test of…

Shooting incidents at kindergarten through grade 12 (K-12) schools in the United States have sparked calls to increase security or adopt altogether new approaches to school safety. These approaches include allowing teachers or staff to carry firearms in some schools. To learn what teachers across the United States think about school safety…

This study uses open source information to examine school shootings in the United States for the 1990-2016 period. We innovatively created a national-level database to address the gaps in existing research and identified 652 school shootings. These shootings included 473 intentional shootings (encompassing 354 with known offenders and 119 with…

The federal Gun-Free Schools Act (GFSA) enacted in1994 requires U.S. public school systems to report any incident of a student bringing a firearm to school or being in possession of a firearm on school property, the law applies to all states and jurisdictions funded under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. Under federal…

Virginia law mandates the use of threat assessment in all public schools, yet there is little research on grade-level differences. This study investigated a statewide sample of 3,282 threats from 1,021 schools. Threats significantly differed across grade level in demographics, characteristics, and outcome. As grade increased, students were more…

The tables in this report provide national-level estimates of the extent to which students ages 12-18 enrolled in grades 6-12 experience bullying during school. The tables show how bullying victimization varies by student and school characteristics such as sex, race/ethnicity, grade, household income, region, school locale, school enrollment size,…

The federal Gun-Free Schools Act (GFSA) was introduced into law as part of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994. The federal law requires states funded under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 to have a state law in effect that requires local education agencies (LEAs) to expel students for firearm offenses for a…

The current study examines the association between risk behaviors and victimization and race-based victimization amongst U.S.-born and foreign-born Asian, Black, and Latinx adolescents. Data were derived from the U.S. subset of the 2009-2010 Health Behavior in School-aged Children study. Samples include 662 Asian, 2413 Black, and 3188 Latinx…

The federal Gun-Free Schools Act (GFSA) enacted in1994 requires U.S. public school systems to report any incident of a student bringing a firearm to school or being in possession of a firearm on school property, the law applies to all states and jurisdictions funded under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. Under federal…

This report presents information provided by New Jersey public schools on disciplinary infractions and their consequences for the 2018-19 school year to the Student Safety Data System (SSDS). The SSDS collects incidents of violence, vandalism, weapons, substance use, and harassment, intimidation and bullying (HIB), as well as HIB trainings and…

This report has been revised to best highlight information from the new Student Safety Data System for the 2017-18 school year. The New Jersey Department of Education (Department) migrated to a new reporting system, the Student Safety Data System (SSDS), which includes improved definitions, new reporting fields, and updated guidance for reporting…

Although studies have identified risk factors for adolescent handgun carrying, previous research on risk factors for carrying a handgun to school specifically is sparse. This study examines self-report data from 122,840 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students from 426 schools across Arizona, from three survey administrations (2014, 2016, and 2018). In…

Using data from the School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), this report presents findings both on crime and violence in U.S. public schools and on the practices and programs schools have used to promote school safety. SSOCS collects data from public school principals about violent and nonviolent crimes in their schools. The survey also collects…

Annually, the Department of Education (Department) collects data from school districts across the state on disciplinary infractions and their consequences. These data are analyzed in a state-level report developed by the Department for the Governor and the Legislature to fulfill the requirements of the "Public School Safety Law N.J.S.A."…