GOVERNOR CORZINE AND EDUCATION COMMISSIONER DAVY ANNOUNCE RELEASE OF VIOLENCE AND VANDALISM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS REPORT

TRENTON - Governor Jon S. Corzine and Education Commissioner Lucille E. Davy today announced the release of the Department of Education’s annual report on school violence and vandalism, which shows a continued decline in the number of incidents of violence, vandalism and weapons in New Jersey’s public schools.

The annual report to the Legislature reveals a 5-percent decline in the total number of incidents reported between the 2006-07 and 2007-08 school years. Individual offense categories that experienced major declines include: violence at 5 percent, vandalism at 11 percent and weapons at 14 percent.

In general, the total number of incidents reported decreased by almost 1,000 to 17,666 in 2007-08; 18,633 incidents were reported in 2006-07.

Commissioner Davy also announced today that no school has been classified under the state’s policy definition as a “persistently dangerous school” in accordance with the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Plainfield High School had been identified last year as meeting the state’s definition, but the school’s 2007-08 data does not meet the same criteria. The district also developed and implemented a corrective action plan as per state regulations.

“It is encouraging to see a continued decline of violent incidents and vandalism in New Jersey’s public schools,” said Commissioner Davy. “The state is systematic in its efforts to team with local school districts and law enforcement among others to identify and prevent violent or destructive behavior, and to help students at all ages make positive life choices.”

The department analyzes the self-reported data to produce the annual report. The analysis in the 2009 report includes data from the 2005-06 through 2007-08 school years.

A 1982 state law requires the Commissioner of Education to file with the Legislature an annual report detailing the level of violence and vandalism in the state’s public schools. Districts are required to report incidents if they occur on school grounds during school hours, on a school bus or at a school-sponsored event.

Beginning in the 1999-2000 school year, school districts and charter schools were required to report incidents of violence, vandalism and substance abuse via the Internet using DOE’s Electronic Violence and Vandalism Reporting System (EVVRS). Each year, districts are required to publicly report their EVVRS data and are encouraged to use it as a tool to assess the effectiveness of their policies, programs and practices, and to identify other school-level needs. 

A copy of the report can be found at:

www.nj.gov/education/schools/vandv/0708/

Three-year trends in the type of violent incidents reported by school districts show a 5-percent decline between 2005-06 and 2007-08 in the number of fights, while the number of terroristic threats increased by 70 incidents or 36 percent. Incidents of harassment, intimidation, bullying and threat (HIBT) increased by 7 percent, according to the three-year trends.

Within the category of vandalism, three-year declines were seen in all but one sub-category of reported incidents. Damage to property and theft saw the largest decreases in three-year trends at 21 percent and 20 percent, respectively. Bomb threats increased by 6 percent to 144 incidents.

Three-year trends of weapons incidents decreased or remained steady from 2005-06 to 2007-08. Among the sub-categories, incidents involving a weapon other than a firearm decreased 12 percent.

Among incidents involving substances, the three-year comparison showed a 17 percent decline in the number of occurrences involving alcohol. There were 195 reported incidents of unauthorized use of prescription drugs in 2007-08 compared to 110 cases in 2005-06, a 77 percent increase.

“Protecting students from all types of violence and discouraging substance abuse have been key aspects of the Corzine Administration’s efforts to safeguard our children,” said Commissioner Davy.  “Whether it is strategies to decrease truancy rates or transforming our high schools to keep students actively engaged and productive, Governor Corzine has employed a multi-faceted approach to making our schools safer.”

The annual report also includes regulations, initiatives and programs carried out by DOE and other state departments in a coordinated effort to stop and prevent violence in and around schools and substance use by students. Initiatives detailed in the report include:

●          Homeland Security Grant – The state Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness awarded DOE a grant to be utilized through the 2009-10 school year to support two key school safety and security goals. The first goal is to ensure that schools identify and reduce vulnerabilities they may have in protecting students, staff and facilities, and that schools are ready to effectively respond to critical incidents. The second goal of the grant is to provide training and direct assistance to school staff and review local school safety and security plans. Between the 2007 and 2009 school years, DOE’s School Security Unit trained approximately 4,400 people.

●          Developing Safe and Civil Schools (DSACS) – DOE collaborates with Rutgers University to assist school districts in infusing social-emotional and character development into educational programs. The five-year program helps school personnel create classroom conditions that result in a reduction of at-risk student behavior, the development of positive-learning environments and improved academic performance. More than 180 schools have participated in the on-going project.

●          Truancy Reduction Pilot Project – DOE provides funding, resources and technical support to schools in six cities taking part in the project, which is designed to reduce truancy and increase student engagement in the learning process. The pilot is part of the Governor’s Plan for Safe Streets and Neighborhoods.

●          N.J. High School Graduation Campaign – This year-long effort is intended to combat the high rate of high school dropouts. The campaign, which also is part of the Governor’s Plan for Safe Streets and Neighborhoods program, involves 500 partners from across the state, including schools, businesses, and non-profit and faith-based organizations.

●          Social Norms Project – DOE has been collaborating with Rowan University’s Center for Addiction Studies and Awareness on a five-year project that uses established social psychological principles to reduce HIB behavior among students at the 12 participating middle schools, and reduce the use of alcohol, tobacco and drugs among students at 13 high schools involved in the project in 2009-10.

●          School Security Task Force – Created by Governor Corzine in October 2006, the task force evaluates security measures at New Jersey schools. It brings together state, county and local government officials, and members of the education and law enforcement communities.

●          Secondary School Transformation – The redesign of the state’s middle and high schools to make programs more rigorous is intended to better prepare students for the workplace and college and to help them make positive life choices.

●          Personalized Student Learning Plans – Part of high school transformation, personalized learning plans are designed to engage middle school students to set education and career goals, and map out paths to achieve them. The plans, which follow the students through high school graduation, will be tested during a two-year pilot program that began this fall at the sixth and ninth grades in 16 schools.

●          Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (SDFSCA) performance report – Districts receiving federal SDFSCA funds under Title IV-A of No Child Left Behind must report on how they use the funds. Reports include their efforts to prevent substance abuse and violence; how they involve parents and community members; how they use data in prevention planning and evaluation; and their utilization of school resource officers and substance abuse coordinators.

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