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

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'?
Photograph of crime scene tape and school.
F. Sheehan for Education Week / Getty
School Climate & Safety Leading a District After a School Shooting Is Hard. These Superintendents Want to Help
A network of superintendents who've led districts after school shootings plans to support colleagues recovering from similar crises.
Evie Blad, March 18, 2025
4 min read
Illustration of Covid-19 impacting 3 years of school
Vanessa Solis/Education Week and Getty Images
School & District Management Infographic 9 Charts That Show the Lasting Effects of COVID on Schools
Key data on some of the move consequential changes, five years later.
Maya Riser-Kositsky, March 18, 2025
3 min read
Local residents pray during a candlelight vigil following a shooting at Perry High School, on Jan. 4, 2024, in Perry, Iowa.
Local residents pray during a candlelight vigil following a shooting at Perry High School, on Jan. 4, 2024, in Perry, Iowa. The deaths in school shootings last year have led to new legislation in a half-dozen states.
Charlie Neibergall/AP
School Climate & Safety States Emphasize School Violence Prevention, Not Just Security
In the wake of school shootings in their states last year, legislators hope to avert future tragedies.
Evie Blad, February 14, 2025
7 min read
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks at a news conference at the Capitol in Washington on March 6, 2021.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks at a news conference at the Capitol in Washington on March 6, 2021. He has criticized the Trump Administration's move in January 2025 to nix a school safety panel created by federal legisation.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Federal Schumer Tells Trump to Immediately Reinstate School Safety Board
Trump must immediately reinstate a federal school safety board, Schumer demanded.
Evie Blad, January 27, 2025
2 min read
President-elect Donald Trump speaks at meeting of the House GOP conference, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, in Washington.
Donald Trump speaks at meeting of the House GOP conference, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, in Washington. He returned to the White House this week, taking a flurry of executive actions, some of which could affect schools.
Alex Brandon/AP
Federal Here Are Trump's First-Week Actions That Could Affect Schools
There's been a lot to keep track of during Trump's first week back in the White House. Here's how it all could affect schools.
Brooke Schultz, January 24, 2025
8 min read
Image of a school hallway with icons representing lockdowns, SRO, metal detectors.
via Canva
Federal Trump Admin. Axes Newly Created School Safety Board
The Trump administration disbanded a board that advises agencies on school safety strategies. Members include parents of school shooting victims.
Evie Blad, January 23, 2025
4 min read
Sign indicating school zone.
iStock/Getty
School Climate & Safety Tracker School Shootings This Year: How Many and Where
Education Week is tracking K-12 school shootings in 2025 with injuries or deaths. See the number of incidents and where they occurred.
January 22, 2025
3 min read
Illustration of dark tunnel with figure at end.
francescoch/Getty
School Climate & Safety Opinion 'Get Out of the Building Now': A Teacher Reflects on Violence
A bomb threat brings home to a veteran educator why schools and teachers matter.
Adam Patric Miller, December 18, 2024
3 min read
Emergency vehicles are parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting, Monday, Dec. 16, 2024.
Emergency vehicles parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where policy said a teenage student shot and killed a teacher and a classmate and injured several others on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024.
Scott Bauer/AP
School Climate & Safety Teacher and Teen Student Killed in Wisconsin School Shooting
At least six others were injured in what is the 39th school shooting of 2024 in which someone was killed or hurt.
Olina Banerji, December 16, 2024
5 min read
School Climate & Safety Spotlight Spotlight on Reimagining School Safety: A Holistic Approach
This Spotlight will help you examine strategies to create safe learning environments that promote student well-being and academic success.
December 2, 2024
Vector illustration of a businessman trying to catapult through stack of warning signs.
iStock/Getty
School Climate & Safety How to Judge If Anonymous Threats to Schools Are Legit: 5 Expert Tips
School officials need to take all threats seriously, but the nature of the threat can inform the size of the response.
Caitlynn Peetz, November 21, 2024
3 min read
Tightly cropped photo of hands on a laptop with a red glowing danger icon with the exclamation mark inside of a triangle overlaying the photo
iStock/Getty
School Climate & Safety What Schools Need To Know About Anonymous Threats—And How to Prevent Them
Anonymous threats are on the rise. Schools should act now to plan their responses, but also take measures to prevent them.
Caitlynn Peetz, November 20, 2024
3 min read
A woman looks at a hand held device on a train in New Jersey.
Black students—as young as middle schoolers—have received racists texts invoking slavery in the wake of the presidential election. Educators say they're starting to see inflammatory campaign rhetoric make its way into classrooms.
Jenny Kane/AP
Student Well-Being School Leaders Confront Racist Texts, Harmful Rhetoric After Divisive Election
Educators say inflammatory rhetoric from the campaign trail has made its way into schools.
Brooke Schultz, November 13, 2024
7 min read
Education Week opinion letters submissions
Gwen Keraval for Education Week
School Climate & Safety Letter to the Editor School Safety Should Be Built In, Not Tacked On
Schools and communities must address ways to prevent school violence by first working with people, says this letter to the editor.
October 22, 2024
1 min read