A study of school principals in the Mississippi delta area of Arkansas explored principals' perceptions of violence in school, and their feelings towards the necessity of violence-prevention programs. Questionnaires were mailed to 292 principals of elementary, middle, and high schools, and 239 responded (81.8 percent). Of the responses, there were 109 elementary, 39 middle school, and 91 high school principals. The responses showed that 96.6 percent of the principals feel there is a need for violence-prevention programs for students, and 97.1 percent believe that inservice violence-prevention programs are needed for teachers. The study shows there is a feeling among principals that greater emphasis on crime prevention in needed in the middle and high schools. Middle school principals reported the highest level of gang-related incidence; however, there is little difference among the three school levels on the number of violent acts committed in school. All the principals identified fights as the most common acts of violence. Fewer than one-half of the principals reported violence involving weapons, and fewer than one-fourth reported gang-related violence. The study revealed that even among rural high schools violence is an issue, and violence prevention is a key concern among most principals. Includes seven tables and nine references. (KDP)