Federal Data Show Decrease in School Violence and Drug Use

(From EdWeek) The latest federal safety data reveal a decline in violent crime and drug use across most grade levels in schools, with a notable decrease in assault incidents from 71% to 67% between 2017-18 and 2021-22. Nonviolent crimes, like thefts, also decreased by 6 percentage points. However, hate crimes increased by 1 percentage point to 3%. Middle schools reported persistent challenges, with 90% experiencing at least one violent incident and higher rates of bullying. While schools offered social-emotional learning and behavior interventions, services for troubled students showed a decline, possibly due to staffing and funding challenges.

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