School Shootings

Children place flowers at a makeshift memorial outside Silver Rail Elementary in Bend, Ore., Friday, Oct. 16, 2026, a day after a deadly shooting. The child victims, ages 5, 8, and 11, include the youngest person killed in a school shooting since Education Week began<a href="https://www.edweek.org/leadership/school-shootings-this-year-how-many-and-where/2026/01" target="_blank" link-data="{&quot;cms.site.owner&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;00000173-0561-d1f0-a17f-adef4bee0000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;ae3387cc-b875-31b7-b82d-63fd8d758c20&quot;},&quot;cms.content.publishDate&quot;:1792177418426,&quot;cms.content.publishUser&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;00000180-d7b2-d193-a1b2-dfbba3aa0001&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc&quot;},&quot;cms.content.updateDate&quot;:1792177418426,&quot;cms.content.updateUser&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;00000180-d7b2-d193-a1b2-dfbba3aa0001&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc&quot;},&quot;link&quot;:{&quot;disableUtmTracking&quot;:false,&quot;target&quot;:&quot;NEW&quot;,&quot;attributes&quot;:[],&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.edweek.org/leadership/school-shootings-this-year-how-many-and-where/2026/01&quot;,&quot;_id&quot;:&quot;000001a1-4619-d1d1-a3f3-f77b151b0000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;ff658216-e70f-39d0-b660-bdfe57a5599a&quot;},&quot;linkText&quot;:&quot; tracking these incidents&quot;,&quot;theme.brightspot-theme-default.:core:enhancement:Enhancement.hbs.enhancementAlignment&quot;:null,&quot;theme.brightspot-theme-default.:core:link:Link.hbs._template&quot;:null,&quot;theme.brightspot-theme-default.:core:link:Link.hbs.type&quot;:null,&quot;theme.brightspot-theme-default.:core:link:Link.hbs._preset&quot;:null,&quot;theme.brightspot-theme-default.:core:enhancement:Enhancement.hbs._preset&quot;:null,&quot;_id&quot;:&quot;000001a1-4619-d1d1-a3f3-f77b14b10001&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;809caec9-30e2-3666-8b71-b32ddbffc288&quot;}"> </a>tracking those incidents eight years ago.

Authorities investigate the scene after a deadly shooting at Marshall County High School in Benton, Ky., on Jan. 23, 2018. Patricia Greer, who was serving as principal during the incident, and other current and former school leaders have updated a guide on leading schools in the aftermath of gun violence.

A Campus Guardian Angel drone circles a dummy during a demonstration at the Florida Association of School Resource Officers' conference in Jacksonville, Fla. on July 22, 2026. Such drones, which are designed to distract a school attacker, are a largely untested strategy in the school safety world.

A high school football field in Crofton, Md., on Aug. 22, 2026. Gunfire has wounded or killed someone at 43 high school football games since 2018, according to tracking by Education Week. Safety specialists suggest deliberate planning ahead of football season and clear assignments for school staff at games, among other steps schools can take to enhance security.

Teachers talk during lunch in the teacher’s lounge at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on May 5, 2026. Teachers here have spent the nine months since last August’s mass shooting trying to create normalcy in a school year that’s been anything but normal.

Drones fly around a mannequin during a demonstration on how to neutralize a shooter in a school, at the headquarters of Campus Guardian Angel, a school safety startup, on May 8, 2026, in Austin, Texas.

Law enforcement kept an eye on proceedings at the Maywood Academy High School graduation ceremony at East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park, Calif., on June 12, 2025. Graduation ceremonies pose a unique logistical challenge for school districts, with many considerations to take into account.

A mother holds her children at a memorial outside Annunciation Catholic Church following the Aug. 27 shooting at the Minneapolis Catholic school. The shooting, in which two children died and 21 people were injured, was the largest school shooting of 2025, a year during which there were fewer school shootings than in any year since 2020.

A faculty member at Findley Oaks Elementary School holds a Centegix crisis alert badge during a training on Monday, March 20, 2023. Emergency alert systems have spread quickly to schools around the country as a safety measure. The nation's largest district is the latest to adopt one.

Right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones speaks to the media outside a federal courthouse on June 14, 2024, in Houston. The U.S. Supreme Court this week declined to hear his appeal of a $1.4 billion judgment over his allegations that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn., was staged.

People gather for a vigil at a local park after a shooting at the Annunciation Catholic School on Aug. 27, 2025, in Minneapolis.

Parents await news during an active shooter situation at the Annunciation Church in Minneapolis on Aug. 27, 2025. This is the first school shooting of the new academic year.

Volunteer student actors are led out of a middle school building as the Fountain Police Department conducts a training exercise for law enforcement on June 9, 2017, in Fountain, Colo. A new consensus report recommends schools avoid tactics like realistic simulations when conducting drills for students.