School Shootings

Education news, analysis, and opinion about gun violence at schools and during school events

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Sign indicating school zone.
School Shootings This Year: How Many and Where
Education Week is tracking K-12 school shootings in 2024 with injuries or deaths. See the number of incidents and where they occurred.
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Visitors walk past a makeshift memorial honoring those recently killed at Robb Elementary School, Tuesday, July 12, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. A Texas lawmaker says surveillance video from the school hallway where police waited as a gunman opened fire in a fourth-grade classroom will be shown this weekend to residents of Uvalde.
Visitors walk past a makeshift memorial on July 12, 2022, honoring those killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in a May 2022 school shooting. Nearly a year after the Uvalde shooting, lawmakers in Texas passed a bill requiring that every public school classroom have a panic alarm system.
Eric Gay/AP
School Climate & Safety Could Panic Buttons Save Lives in a School Shooting? More Schools Think So
There's legislative momentum to require panic alarm systems in schools. But many districts are installing the systems without a mandate.
Caitlynn Peetz, January 30, 2024
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6 min read
Attorney General Merrick Garland, right, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, left, tour murals of shooting victims on Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, right, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, left, tour murals of shooting victims on Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Details of the U.S. Department of Justice Department's long-awaited investigation into the tragedy were released Jan. 18.
Eric Gay/AP
School Climate & Safety 'Cascade of Failures' in Response to Uvalde School Shooting, Investigation Finds
The long-awaited federal review emphasized law enforcement failures, but also noted lapses in the district's safety policies.
Evie Blad, January 18, 2024
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6 min read
Police respond to Perry High School in Perry, Iowa., on Jan. 4, 2024. Police say there has been a shooting at the city's high school.
Police respond to Perry High School in Perry, Iowa., on Jan. 4, 2024. Police say there has been a shooting at the city's high school.
Andrew Harnik/AP
School Climate & Safety 6th Grader Killed and 5 Others Injured in Iowa School Shooting
The shooting was reported early Thursday, before classes began.
Caitlynn Peetz & Mark Lieberman, January 4, 2024
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4 min read
Photo of no gun sign on door.
iStock
School Climate & Safety School Shootings in 2023: Fewer Injuries and Deaths While Gun Violence Continues
Fewer people died or were injured than in the previous two years. But EdWeek still counted 38 school shootings.
Mark Lieberman, Hyon-Young Kim & Holly Peele, December 29, 2023
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2 min read
Illustration of teen boy making threats on social media.
iStock / Getty Images Plus
School Climate & Safety Opinion The Troubling Legal Gap in Schools' Ability to Prevent Mass Shootings
I'm a school district lawyer. You don't want to know how many principals bring me violent threats they're not sure how to act on.
Chris W. McCarty, November 1, 2023
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5 min read
In an undergraduate public policy course at the University of North Carolina, Simona Goldin asked students, "What do you need now?" just four days after an active shooter killed a faculty member on campus earlier this year. These are their answers.
In an undergraduate public policy course at the University of North Carolina, Simona Goldin asked students, "What do you need now?" just four days after an active shooter killed a faculty member on campus earlier this year. These are their answers.
Courtesy of Simona Goldin
Student Well-Being Opinion ‘What Is a Teacher to Do?’: Returning to the Classroom After a Tragedy
Earlier this year, an active shooter shook my campus. Here are my 3 lessons on preparing for the first day back in front of class.
Simona Goldin, October 26, 2023
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4 min read
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., speaks to members of the media as crowds of people participate in the "March for Our Lives" rally in support of gun control on March 24, 2018, in San Francisco.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., speaks to members of the media as crowds of people participate in the "March for Our Lives" rally in support of gun control on March 24, 2018, in San Francisco.
Josh Edelson/AP
Federal Dianne Feinstein's Fight to Stop Gun Violence in Schools Central to Her Legacy
The California Senator will be remembered for her strong support of gun restrictions to stop school shootings.
Alyson Klein, September 29, 2023
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5 min read
Educators with the Benjamin Logan Local School District receive training from the Logan County Sheriff's office to join the district's armed response team in Bellefontaine, Ohio, on June 26, 2023.
Educators with the Benjamin Logan Local School District receive training from the Logan County Sheriff's Office to join the district's Armed Response Team in Bellefontaine, Ohio, on June 26, 2023.
Eli Hiller for Education Week
School Climate & Safety Teachers With Guns: District by District, a Push to Arm Educators Is Growing
The number of districts with armed educators is rising. An inside look at one of them.
Caitlynn Peetz, September 27, 2023
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12 min read
President Joe Biden speaks about gun safety on Sept. 22, 2023, from the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., applauds at left.
President Joe Biden speaks about gun safety on Sept. 22, 2023, from the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., applauds at left.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Federal Biden Credits School Shooting Survivors as He Creates Gun Violence Prevention Office
President Biden announced the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, fulfilling a long-time goal of school shooting survivors.
Evie Blad, September 22, 2023
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5 min read
A man with grey hair and glasses sits with his chin rested on his folded hands.
Scot Peterson, a former school resource officer at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, looks in the direction of prosecutors during his trial in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on June 15, 2023. Jurors acquitted Peterson, a former Broward County sheriff's deputy, of criminal charges for his failure to enter the high school to confront the shooter who killed 17 people and injured 17 others.
Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP
School Climate & Safety Parkland Officer Found Not Guilty in Case That Shed Light on Police Role in School Safety
A jury acquitted the former deputy of all criminal charges connected to his response to the 2018 mass shooting.
Evie Blad, June 29, 2023
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3 min read
Flowers are placed in front of the Altria Theater which was the site of a mass shooting after a graduation ceremony, June 7, 2023, in Richmond, Va.
Flowers are placed in front of the Altria Theater which was the site of a mass shooting after a graduation ceremony, June 7, 2023, in Richmond, Va.
Steve Helber/AP
School Climate & Safety Superintendent 'Devastated' by Deadly, Post-Graduation Shooting
Violence disrupts a cherished rite of passage.
Caitlyn Meisner, June 7, 2023
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3 min read
Illustration of a group of people forming the shape of a shield around a school building.
iStock + E+/Getty Images +Education Week
School Climate & Safety Opinion 5 Critical Strategies to Make Your School Safer
There's no single solution to defend students’ physical, mental, and emotional health, but these five actionable steps are a place to start.
Doug Roberts, Ann Levett & Shanna Downs, June 1, 2023
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5 min read
A mourner stops to pay his respects at a memorial at Robb Elementary School, created to honor the victims killed in the recent school shooting, June 9, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas.
A mourner stops to pay his respects at a memorial at Robb Elementary School, created to honor the victims killed in the recent school shooting, June 9, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas.
Eric Gay/AP
School Climate & Safety Photo Essay Photos: A Year of Grieving and Struggling for Answers After Uvalde School Shooting
A year after a gunman killed 21 people in a Uvalde, Texas, elementary school, the community still searches for answers.
Evie Blad, May 23, 2023
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3 min read
Oxford High School student return to school after they walked out of classes on May 26, 2022, in Oxford, Mich., to show their support for the Uvalde, Texas community and the recent mass shooting that occurred at an elementary school. A judge says a lawsuit can go forward against a Michigan school district that is accused of making poor decisions before a teenager killed four fellow students in 2021.
Oxford High School student return to school after they walked out of classes on May 26, 2022, in Oxford, Mich., to show their support for the Uvalde, Texas, community and the recent mass shooting that occurred at an elementary school.
Mandi Wright/Detroit Free Press via AP
School & District Management School Shooting Survivors at Odds With District Over Graduation Cords
Oxford graduating seniors want to wear special orange gun violence survivor cords at commencement. But the district says no.
Jennifer Chambers, The Detroit News, May 16, 2023
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4 min read
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