School Violence

School violence threatens the safety of students, teachers, and staff while also disrupting the overall learning environment. Mass shootings on school campuses have become increasingly prevalent in the United States since the late 1990s. Though school shootings attract significant media attention and can result in the loss of many lives, other types of violence are much more common and can have damaging consequences in schools and their communities. More recurrent types of school violence include bullying, cyberbullying, fighting, gender-based violence, and gang violence. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than one-fifth of high school students were involved in a physical fight in 2015.

Research indicates that students perform better academically when they feel safe in...