On April 20, 1999, two Columbine High School students started a shooting rampage, ultimately killing 12 students and one teacher, wounding 21 victims, then completing suicide. Using media frame analysis (MFA), we examined 265 transcribed major network television news stories aired during the 48 hours following the shooting. In these stories, we…

The reasons for committing to active shooter drills and exercises are based on psychological survival and decision-making research, along with experiences and lessons learned. However, in the realm of education, the origins and research-based purposes of active shooter drills are mostly unknown. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the…

Multiple professional associations and agencies have recommended that schools establish threat assessment processes and procedures. Such recommendations have been directed at school districts in Colorado, a state that has experienced multiple school shootings. In this exploratory study, the nature and prevalence of threat assessment conducted in…

As many American teachers have or will experience unsafe working conditions (McMahon et al., 2014), it is critical to understand the role real or potential violence can play in shaping teachers' perceptions and experiences of their work. This study affirmed the critical need for researchers to understand teacher perceptions of workplace gun…

The issue of school safety is of paramount concern but what is lacking is clarity on the best course of action aimed at bolstering safety in public schools. We sought to answer the following research questions: What topics are addressed in school board policies related to arming employees? What outlying policy topics are addressed in school board…

Scholars have explored ways in which school shooting events have impacted students' perception of safety. However, less is known on whether the effects of school shootings are stable across time and event. This study uses data collected through the Delaware School Survey before and after three school shootings, Columbine (1999), Virginia Tech…

Schools should be safe places for young people, educators, school staff, and community members, and policies and practices can help create learning environments where kids thrive. Gun violence in U.S. schools has prompted calls for increased school safety measures; however, which policies contribute to safe school environments is often a topic of…

As a result of extensive media coverage, the tragedies at Columbine High School, Sandy Hook Elementary School, and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School are etched into the collective memory of American society. Shortly after the events at Sandy Hook, the National Rifle Association (NRA) presented a program to address student safety by arming…

The use of School Resource Officers (SRO's) has become an increasingly popular strategy in attempting to create safe learning environments on school campuses in the United States. The implementation of SROs saw a significant increase following the school shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, CO on April 20, 1999. As media attention and…

U.S. policymakers, educators and advocates have identified a need to increase school safety following several high-profile incidents of school violence. Some of the proposed solutions are not supported by evidence of their effectiveness. In the 2018-2019 budget process, both the Colorado State House and Senate amended the budget to address school…

The role of student affairs educators is to ensure that students not only obtain an educational experience, but also that out-of-classroom experiences contribute to holistic development. In particular, student affairs professionals often coordinate residential living, student activities, and advising programs. These programmatic offerings need to…

Much of the research on school shootings emphasizes the need for peers, not school officials, to share information about students of concern. This qualitative case study examined the information school officials had prior to a school shooting, which left two students dead. The data came from school officials' deposition testimony and school…

Bullying is prevalent in our culture and can be recognizable through a competitive, capitalistic economy and a dominance hierarchy. Based on dominance, bullying continues to be a problem in our public schools as witnessed through nationally televised stories in Colorado (Columbine), Vermont (Ryan Halligan), and Missouri (Megan Meier), to name a…

On April 20, 1999, two Columbine High School students walked into their school midday and killed 12 students and one teacher. Twenty-one other students were injured. All that had been normal came to an abrupt end. Education leaders in Jefferson County, Colorado, quickly realized they were laying the groundwork for a new normal. Colorado's…

Bully-Proofing Your School (BPYS), a school-based intervention program designed to reduce bullying and school violence, is evaluated for its impact on bullying and related aggressive behaviors in a multiple nonequivalent control group, pretest-posttest design with ex ante selection of treatment and comparison groups. Outcome measures included…