School Safety

Education news, analysis, and opinion about keeping students safe in the school building from bullying, violence, and environmental hazards, among other things

Explainer

Greeley Police Officer Steve Brown stands in the hallway during passing periods at Northridge High School in Greeley, Colo. on Oct. 21, 2016. While school resource officers, like Brown, are expected to handle responsibilities like any police officer they're faced with unique challenges working day-to-day in schools
School Resource Officers (SROs), Explained
Does the presence of armed officers prevent school violence? Do they contribute for Black children to the 'school to prison pipeline'?
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School Climate & Safety Video WATCH: Columbine Author on Myths, Lessons, and Warning Signs of Violence
David Cullen discusses how educators still grapple with painful lessons from the 1999 shooting.
Evie Blad & Catriona Ni Aolain, April 19, 2024
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1 min read
A group protesting school safety in Laurel County, K.Y., on Feb. 21, 2018. In the wake of a mass shooting at a Florida high school, parents and educators are mobilizing to demand more school safety measures, including armed officers, security cameras, door locks, etc.
A group calls for additional school safety measures in Laurel County, Ky., on Feb. 21, 2018, following a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., in which 14 students and three staff members died. Districts have invested billions in personnel and physical security measures in the 25 years since the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo.
Claire Crouch/Lex18News via AP
School Climate & Safety 25 Years After Columbine, America Spends Billions to Prevent Shootings That Keep Happening
Districts have invested in more personnel and physical security measures to keep students safe, but shootings have continued unabated.
Mark Lieberman, April 18, 2024
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9 min read
Candles burn at a makeshift memorial near Columbine High School on April 27, 1999, for each of the of the 13 people killed during a shooting spree at the Littleton, Colo., school.
Candles burn at a makeshift memorial near Columbine High School on April 27, 1999, for each of the of the 13 people killed during a shooting spree at the Littleton, Colo., school.
Michael S. Green/AP
School Climate & Safety How Columbine Shaped 25 Years of School Safety
Columbine ushered in the modern school safety era. A quarter decade later, its lessons remain relevant—and sometimes elusive.
Evie Blad, April 17, 2024
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14 min read
Image of a school hallway with icons representing lockdowns, SRO, metal detectors.
via Canva
School Climate & Safety Most Teachers Worry a Shooting Could Happen at Their School
Teachers say their schools could do more to prepare them for an active-shooter situation.
Evie Blad, April 11, 2024
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4 min read
Four roses are placed on a fence to honor Hana St. Juliana, 14, Madisyn Baldwin, 17, Tate Myre, 16, and Justin Shilling, 17, the four teens killed in last week's shooting, outside Oxford High School in Oxford, Mich., on Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021.
Four roses are placed on a fence outside Oxford High School in Oxford, Mich., honor Hana St. Juliana, 14, Madisyn Baldwin, 17, Tate Myre, 16, and Justin Shilling, 17, the four teens killed in the Nov. 30, 2021, shooting at the school.
Jake May/The Flint Journal via AP
Law & Courts Oxford School Shooter's Parents Were Convicted. Holding District Liable Could Be Tougher
The conviction of parents in the Oxford, Mich., case expanded the scope of responsibility, but it remains difficult to hold schools liable.
Mark Walsh, April 10, 2024
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12 min read
Illustration of human silhouette and facial recognition.
DigitalVision Vectors / Getty
School Climate & Safety Civil Rights Groups Seek Federal Funding Ban on AI-Powered Surveillance Tools
In a letter to the U.S. Department of Education, the coalition argued these tools could violate students' civil rights.
Lauraine Langreo, April 4, 2024
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4 min read
A woman and stands outside with her arm on the back of a boy as they look up at the sky while wearing special paper glasses made for viewing a solar eclipse.
Jackie Johnson and her son Bradley Johnson, 9, watch a partial solar eclipse at the Frost Science Museum on Oct. 14, 2023, in downtown Miami. In 2024, some districts are planning to delay or cancel school on the day of a total eclipse, out of safety concerns.
Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald via AP
School & District Management The Eclipse Is Great for Learning. But It's Tough on School Logistics
A total solar eclipse will cross a large swath of the country on April 8, sparking tough management choices for leaders of the districts in its path.
Evie Blad, March 27, 2024
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5 min read
President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol on March 7, 2024, in Washington.
President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol on March 7, 2024, in Washington.
Shawn Thew/Pool via AP
Federal Biden Calls for Teacher Pay Raises, Expanded Pre-K in State of the Union
President Joe Biden highlighted a number of his education priorities in a high-stakes speech as he seeks a second term.
Evie Blad, March 7, 2024
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5 min read
Jacqueline Chaney ask her 2nd graders a question during class at New Town Elementary School in Owings Mills, Md., on Oct. 25, 2023.
Jacqueline Chaney ask her 2nd graders a question during class at New Town Elementary School in Owings Mills, Md., on Oct. 25, 2023.
Jaclyn Borowski/Education Week
Teaching Profession The State of Teaching The 'Difficult, Beautiful' Work of Teaching
From sunup to sundown, America's teachers grapple with countless decisions, interruptions, joys, and frustrations.
Madeline Will, Elizabeth Heubeck, Ileana Najarro, Arianna Prothero & Sarah Schwartz, March 6, 2024
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26 min read
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Teaching Profession Video From School Lockdown to 'Business as Usual': A Teacher's Day
From an unexpected school lockdown to building students' confidence in science, it's "business as usual" for this Arizona high school teacher.
Kaylee Domzalski, March 6, 2024
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1 min read
Illustration of a cellphone with a red exclamation mark inside of a word bubble.
iStock/Getty
School Climate & Safety Researchers Analyzed Years of Reports to a School Safety Tipline. Here's What They Learned
More than a third of gun-related tips in one state outlined possible school attacks, a new analysis finds.
Evie Blad, January 31, 2024
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4 min read
Visitors walk past a makeshift memorial honoring those recently killed at Robb Elementary School, Tuesday, July 12, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. A Texas lawmaker says surveillance video from the school hallway where police waited as a gunman opened fire in a fourth-grade classroom will be shown this weekend to residents of Uvalde.
Visitors walk past a makeshift memorial on July 12, 2022, honoring those killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in a May 2022 school shooting. Nearly a year after the Uvalde shooting, lawmakers in Texas passed a bill requiring that every public school classroom have a panic alarm system.
Eric Gay/AP
School Climate & Safety Could Panic Buttons Save Lives in a School Shooting? More Schools Think So
There's legislative momentum to require panic alarm systems in schools. But many districts are installing the systems without a mandate.
Caitlynn Peetz, January 30, 2024
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6 min read
Free gun locks at the Meriden, Conn. police department, June 21, 2019. Police are providing free cable-style gun locks to residents through a partnership with a child safety organization. Some advocates say schools could be distribution sites for gun locks to families, too.
Free gun locks at the Meriden, Conn. police department, June 21, 2019. Police are providing free cable-style gun locks to residents through a partnership with a child safety organization. Some advocates say schools could be distribution sites for gun locks to families, too.
Dave Zajac/Record-Journal via AP
School & District Management White House to Principals: Talk to Parents About Gun Safety
One principal advised being practical, not political, in messaging to parents about firearms.
Olina Banerji, January 29, 2024
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5 min read
Concept image of security breach, system hacked alert with red broken padlock icon showing vulnerable access.
Nicolas Herrbach/iStock/Getty
Privacy & Security A Massive Data Leak Exposed School Lockdown Plans. What Districts Need to Know
More than 4 million records held by school safety software company Raptor Technologies were left inadvertently exposed online.
Arianna Prothero, January 24, 2024
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5 min read
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