Schools have long been a venue for bias and hate, where students can be targeted by their peers for their race, ethnicity, religion, immigration status, gender, sexuality, or disability.

In the last year, as the political environment has grown especially divisive, reports of bias and hate incidents in the nation's schools became even more prominent. In an unscientific survey of 10,000 educators following the 2016 election by Teaching Tolerance, a Southern Poverty Law Center education project, two-thirds of respondents said that school and district administrators had responded to reports of harassment and bigotry that were connected to the divisive presidential election. But 40 percent also said they don't think their schools are prepared to handle such incidents of hate and bias.

When hate-fueled episodes of harassment and bias occur in schools, principals and teachers are often on the frontlines of witnessing them and addressing them. They face pressure to prevent and respond to these incidents under the glare of a very public spotlight. But how common is it for hate crimes to happen in the country's K-12 schools?

It’s a difficult question to answer because the data behind such incidents is weak.

About This Project

Education Week is asking readers to help create a fuller picture on hate crimes, including those that take place in K-12 schools. If you have witnessed or been the victim of a suspected hate crime or bias incident, you can submit information through the form below.

Reporters at Education Week and other media organizations will review and verify submissions, but will not share your name and contact information with anyone not involved in the Documenting Hate project. Incidents you report will become part of a national database that Education Week reporters and journalists from other partner media organizations may use in the course of reporting on hate crimes and bias incidents.

If you've got an incident or experience to share, please use this form: