The Commissioner's annual report provides the Governor and Legislature with information reported by school districts concerning incidents of serious student misconduct grouped into the following five major reporting categories: violence; vandalism; harassment, intimidation and bullying (HIB); weapons; and substance abuse. An analysis of trends yields indications of progress and ongoing concerns, and provides guidance to districts, other agencies, and the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) as they endeavor to focus resources on areas of need. The "Programmatic Response" section of this report provides recommendations to address areas of concern and describes the support that the NJDOE will provide to districts. The "Key Findings" section summarizes the data self-reported by districts over the Electronic Violence and Vandalism Reporting System (EVVRS). In addition to statewide EVVRS data, this report summarizes data submitted over the Harassment Intimidation, and Bullying--Investigations, Trainings, and Programs (HIB-ITP) data collection system. The "Key Findings" section is followed by a summary of the Department's programmatic response, that is, its efforts to create safe and secure school environments that are optimal settings for promoting student learning and growth.