Updated Metadescription: School violence prevention starts with awareness. Learn 5 powerful ways your district can protect students and create a safer, more supportive environment.
It's National Youth Violence Prevention Week (NYVPW), a week dedicated to focusing on effective strategies to prevent youth violence while celebrating and commending the ways young people take an active role in creating safe and supportive environments within their school communities.
School districts are especially important in protecting and caring for our youth. With 44% of district leaders reporting an increase in school violence threats in 2021 compared to 2019, we're in a crucial moment for school officials to be taking steps against youth violence prevention.
Youth violence is tragic and can be mind-boggling, but it's not often random. Many children who engage in violent behavior showcase some early warning signs beforehand. The US Department of Homeland Security reports that acts of mass violence, such as school shootings, "are rarely spontaneous and are almost always preceded by warning signs, thereby offering opportunities for prevention."
The same is true for self-targeted violence: The National Institute of Mental Health (NIHM) has published research showing that approximately 80% of children who died by suicide had talked about it in the past, underscoring the urgent need for schools to identify risk factors early.
Statistic Image: 44% of district leaders reporting an increase in school violence threats in 2021 compared to 2019.
Alt Text: Graphic text reading: “44% of district leaders reported an increase in school violence threats in 2021 compared to 2019.”
This means that the more tools and violence prevention programs we have to identify those early warning signs, the more hope there is for prevention. For district leaders, here are five preventative solutions for violence in schools that your school district can take to help reduce school violence and support student safety.
In addition to having psychologists, counselors, or social workers available for students in your district, it's also important to provide training for school staff on how to recognize early warning signs of violent behavior, self-harm, and bullying.
Though direct safety concerns like physical altercations, destruction of school property, or threats of violence may be more obvious, the most effective way of intervening is recognizing the early indicators that can go unnoticed. These may include behaviors like social withdrawal, low interest in school or hobbies, uncontrolled anger, and patterns of impulsive or chronic bullying behaviors. These may indicate that a child is in need of support from a mental health professional.
School districts should consider including violence prevention training programs in teachers' ongoing professional development plans. When educators know what to look for, they can be better prepared to note changes or patterns in a student's behavior and feelings. They can also be more in tune with each child's needs to build healthy relationships with their classroom community.
In fact, the US Department of Education's School Guiding Principles for Creating Safe, Inclusive, Supportive, and Fair School Climates identifies educators' ability to "build strong relationships with students by expressing care, challenging growth, providing support, sharing power, and inspiring students to be successful" directly aids in school violence prevention.
Keep in mind that these early indicators should not be used to diagnose or treat an individual young person as violent. These signs are varied and should only be used to refer children to a professional, such as a school psychologist or counselor who can make a diagnosis.
Quote Graphic: "Educators' ability to 'build strong relationships with students by expressing care, challenging growth, providing support, sharing power, and inspiring students to be successful' directly aids in school violence prevention."
Alt Text: Graphic text reading: “44% of district leaders reported an increase in school violence threats in 2021 compared to 2019.”
Anonymous reporting systems and tip lines are gaining traction in schools as a way for students to feel comfortable reporting concerns about their classmates. Many children who commit violence express their intentions to someone beforehand, and often, that someone is a classmate. Yet, even when it threatens their well-being, young students can feel too intimidated to report their peers to school officials or the police.
To help prevent violence and encourage children to feel safe revealing things they've seen or heard, enable them to report anonymously. Give children multiple avenues for safely and privately voicing their concerns — and communicate these to them frequently — whether telling a teacher or school counselor, calling a school-run tip line, or writing in through a secure message board (or physical suggestion box).
Communicate with students, parents, and community members about the use of technology for monitoring or reporting, the value these tools add, and the ways that privacy and security are addressed. Allowing families, children, and teachers alike a chance to participate in these conversations and get answers to their questions or concerns can reduce resistance and help schools gain support for the technology.
Whether you engage with an anonymous reporting system or create your own channels within your district for students to anonymously raise concerns, give children a voice in their own safety. Because they're easy for children to use and don't require face-to-face disclosure, these systems are among the most accessible resources for identifying potential threats and stopping youth violence before it happens.
Create clearly defined rules and emergency response plans for what to do when a student is identified as potentially dangerous to themselves or others. This means educating teachers and faculty on what to do in the event that they see, hear, or are told of a potential threat. Your written process should include names and contact information for key people to reach out to, such as the district leader, school administrator, school psychologist, and other contacts.
It should also include clear rules and responsibilities while answering the following questions:
Who will assess a potential threat or a warning sign flagged by monitoring technology?
Who will reach out to the student's parents if necessary?
Who will speak directly with the student?
Work with your district mental health professionals to develop tips for teachers and faculty (who aren't trained in school violence prevention protocols) on how best to respond when they witness or are told of an imminent threat. It may be that a child approaches a trusted teacher to reveal their intent to self-harm, or a staff member witnesses a child bullying or targeting a potential victim.
Infographic: What Should Be in Your Written Response Plan?
Names and Contact Info for Key People:
• District leader
• School administrator
• School psychologist
• Other relevant contacts
Include Clear Rules and Responsibilities:
Who will assess a flagged threat or warning sign?
Who will contact the student's parents?
Who will speak directly with the student?
Alt Text: Graphic listing what to include in a school’s written response plan: contact info for district leaders, school administrators, and psychologists, plus clear rules and answers to who will assess threats, contact parents, and speak with the student.
Remember that not all of your staff are trained in mental health crises, so it can help to give them actionable resources and guidance on how to act in the moment to best support a student and reduce the risks of violence.
Keep these policies updated and posted somewhere easy for your faculty and staff to access. Review them frequently in ongoing professional development sessions. Just as everyone should know who to call in a medical emergency, everyone throughout your district should know precisely who to call if there's a risk of youth violence.
Involved and well-informed staff are more likely to recognize risk factors early and intervene appropriately, helping maintain safe spaces for students and prevent serious consequences.
Monitoring technology has become imperative in modern efforts against youth violence prevention. Web filtering solutions that began as tools to block inappropriate content have now evolved into sophisticated tools that can flag keyword phrases or other online behaviors that may indicate a child is at risk.
Your staff cannot have eyes and ears everywhere at once, and even if they did, not all youth at risk of violent behavior show outward signs of destructive behavior. This is where monitoring technology bridges the gap, acting as eyes and ears to help educators listen to children crying out for support.
For example, children may feel uncomfortable sharing their feelings with adults or friends. Still, they may privately search for content online to validate their feelings or help them carry out harmful acts.
Linewize's student safety platform, Linewize Monitor, uses artificial intelligence to flag key terms that indicate warning signs of youth violence. Then, it sends red flag alerts to school administrators in real time. Administrators can involve school counselors, parents, and other professionals to address the concern and get support for the child as quickly as possible. Tools like these have helped professionals intercede before a student commits an act of harm toward themselves or others.
Monitoring tools like these work best when paired with broader education and communication efforts. Consider offering families and faculty insight into how these tools work. Schools can also encourage volunteer parent groups or youth leaders to promote safe digital behavior and act as ambassadors for these tools.
While the best youth violence prevention programs are focused on interfering far before an act happens, it's equally important to have physical measures in place,
This includes managing the way you control access at building entrances and exits, upgrading locking mechanisms for classroom doors and windows, or increasing security presence at your school sites. These steps not only prepare your school to react during a violent event but can also act as deterrents to people thinking of committing violence by making it harder to pass through unnoticed.
Keep in mind that new security measures can come across as intimidating or scary to students. Be sure to communicate transparently with children during assemblies and school-wide drills to prepare them for any change in security at school and to explain that these changes are positive — they're here to help.
Set up channels where children can ask questions about on-site measures at school to help remove any negative connotations around security.
With technology and human awareness combined, district leaders can do a lot toward the prevention of school violence. If we know how to listen and what to look for, we have powerful opportunities to create safer schools, act as a positive role model, and support young people who are hurting and overwhelmed.