As a student, feeling safe on campus, whether it’s elementary school, university, or somewhere in between, is imperative. With learning environments increasingly becoming targets of mass violence, there is increased responsibility on school security teams to make their campuses secure, yet welcoming and friendly. From security management plans to emergency notification systems to employing CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) throughout school property, there are a number of ways campuses can work to improve their security programs.
The National Center for Education Statistics shows in its latest report that 65 percent of public schools recorded at least one violent incident in the 2013-2014 school year. That’s about 15 crimes per 1,000 students. This number was lower in elementary schools than in middle schools or high schools. Of those, 13 percent reported a serious violent incident such as rape, physical assault with or without a weapon, and robbery with or without a weapon.
The good news? These numbers have actually declined in the past two decades. The U.S. Department of Education also reports that criminal offenses on postsecondary campuses are steadily declining each year. In 2005, there were 84,483 reported criminal offenses, while in 2014, that number went down to 49,870. While securing school campuses is fraught with challenges, these statistics show that security departments are on the right path.