Crime and Violence in Schools
Other than school administrators and resource officers, most people including parents of the students, and certainly the general public, are unaware of the many types of crime and violence in schools. In fact, most people believe school crime and violence to be petty crimes such as stolen pencils or one-off, isolated incidents such as a school shootings. This simply isn't true.
"During the 2014-15 school year, there were 1,500 reported firearm possession incidents at K-12 schools in the United States."
What are some of the more common crimes found in schools?
- Bullying and other forms of mental or physical harassment such as tripping someone as they walk by
- Fighting and assaults which may arise from simple disputes or be part of a much larger gang related problem
- Firearms and other weapons such as knives. Whether used or simply possessed these weapons are a serious threat to students and staff alike.
- Drugs and other harmful substances either being used or sold at or near the school
- Vandalism, which is the partial or complete destruction of an others property, is one of the more common crimes in schools. Often times, the destruction can be "to have fun" or part of larger problem such as an escalation in the bullying process
- Robbing and/or stealing property from the school or other students.
- Sexual harassment and sexual abuse including rape. Sexual violence crimes are on the rise especially in sub-urban and rural. Often times this is either censored or covered up in order to protect the school.
- Intruders or unauthorized visitors. Whether adults or juveniles who have been expelled from campus, unwanted "guests" can can be a threat to everyone.
"21% of 12-18 year olds admit to being bullied in 2015."
How can TapToReport help reduce crime in schools? With a simple press of a button, school staff and volunteers can easily, directly and discreetly report incidents directly to administrators and the resource officers. With quick and easy reporting, many problems can be caught early and, as everyone knows, getting in front of a problem gives you an opportunity to reduce or eliminate the problem entirely.
What happens when a staff member reports an incident? Within seconds, the alert is received by our servers where warnings are retransmitted to the appropriate staff. In the case of active shooter events or other serious problems, the entire faculty and staff would be notified (generally in less than 30 seconds) giving everyone an opportunity for complete lock down.
Read the latest report on school crime and safety produced by National Center for Education Statistics. Report: Indicators of School Crime and Safety 2016
In the spring of 2014, about 15 percent of third-graders reported that they were frequently teased, made fun of, or called names by other students; 22 percent were frequently the subject of lies or untrue stories; 14 percent were frequently pushed, shoved, slapped, hit, or kicked; and 15 percent were frequently excluded from play on purpose.