School
School shootings are sobering and tragic events that cause much concern about the safety of children. Despite these events, schools remain a very safe place for children to spend their days. In fact, the vast majority of children and youth homicides occur outside school hours and property.

To learn how these events may be prevented, CDC is conducting ongoing research to learn more about the nature of school associated violent deaths. Here are some of the key facts from this research:

Facts
* The number of children and youth homicides that are school-related make up one percent of the total number of child and youth homicides in the United States.

* Most school associated violent deaths occurred during transition times such as the start or end of the school day, or during the lunch period.

* We have also seen that school-associated homicides are more likely to occur at the start of each semester.

* Nearly 50 percent of the homicide perpetrators (this includes adults, children and youth) gave some type of warning signal (e.g., a threat, a note) prior to the event.

* Among the students who committed a school-associated homicide, 20% were known to have been victims of bullying and 12% were known to have expressed suicidal thoughts or engage in suicidal behavior.

Q: What kind of preventive measures may help to prevent school-associated violent deaths?

CDC in partnership with the Departments of Education and Justice is gathering information about school-associated violent deaths to identify trends that can help schools develop preventive measures to protect and promote the health, safety and development of all students. These prevention measures include:

* Encouraging efforts to reduce crowding, increase supervision, and institute plans/policies to handle disputes during transition times that may reduce the likelihood of potential conflicts and injuries.

* Taking threats seriously: students need to know who to go to when they have learned of a threat to anyone at the school, while parents, educators, and mentors should be encouraged to take an active role in helping troubled children and teens.

* Taking talk of suicide seriously: it is important to address risk factors for suicidal behavior when trying to prevent violence toward self and others.

* Promoting prevention programs that are designed to help teachers and other school staff recognize and respond to incidences of bullying between students.

* Ensuring at the start of each semester that schools� security plans are being enforced and that staff are trained and prepared to use the plans.

Q: Are there any specific youth violence prevention programs or practices that parents, communities and institutions, such as schools, can learn from to help prevent youth violence?

There are number of resources that educators, parents and others with a special interest in youth violence prevention can refer to for guidance. They include:

* CDC's "Best Practices of Youth Violence Prevention" - A source book for Community Action. Best Practices is the first of its kind to look at the effectiveness of specific violence prevention practices in four key areas: parents and families; home visiting; social and conflict resolution skills; and mentoring.

* "Blueprints for Violence Prevention" which identifies 11 violence prevention and intervention programs that meet a strict scientific standard of program effectiveness. The 11 model programs, called "Blueprints," have been effective in reducing adolescent violent crime, aggression, delinquency, and substance abuse

* Early Warning, Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools
This guide offers research-based practices designed to assist school communities identify these warning signs early and develop prevention, intervention and crisis response plans.

 

CDC

 

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