Search

This report provides the most recent national indicators on school crime and safety. The information presented in this report serves as a reference for policymakers and practitioners so that they can develop effective programs and policies aimed at violence and school crime prevention. Accurate information about the nature, extent, and scope of the problem being addressed is essential for developing effective programs and policies. The report is organized into five sections: elementary and secondary student and teacher victimization; school environment; fights and weapons; safety, security, and mental health practices; and postsecondary campus safety and security. Each section begins with a set of key findings. In this report, where available, data on victimization that occurred away from school are offered as a point of comparison for data on victimization that occurred at school. Indicators of crime and safety are compared across different population subgroups and over time. All data reflect the most current data available at the time the report was produced. Data throughout this report represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Findings described with comparative language (e.g., higher, lower, increase, and decrease) are statistically significant at the 0.05 level.

This is the 25th edition of Indicators of School Crime and Safety. This report provides summary statistics to inform the nation about current aspects of crime and safety in schools. This report does so by highlighting selected findings from 23 indicators on various school crime and safety topics. By synthesizing findings in this way, the report allows readers to gauge the breadth of the content more efficiently and make connections across indicators. This report covers a variety of topics on school crime and safety. It first examines different types of student victimization, including violent deaths and school shootings, nonfatal criminal victimization, and bullying victimization. Then, the report presents data on teacher victimization. This report concludes the section on crime and safety issues at the elementary and secondary level by examining data on school conditions--such as discipline problems, gangs, hate-related speech, possession of weapons, and use and availability of illegal drugs--as well as data that reflect student perceptions about their personal safety at school. [For the 2021 report, see ED620652.]

On May 15, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division issued a fact sheet highlighting examples of the Division's recent work to protect students and combat segregation and race-based discrimination in schools. The Civil Rights Division has worked for decades to ensure equal educational opportunities for all of America's schoolchildren, as promised by the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision in "Brown v. Board of Education." May 17, 2024 marks the 70th anniversary of the "Brown" decision's fundamental guarantee that education is a "right that must be made available to all on equal terms," and the Division renews its enduring commitment to confront school segregation and race discrimination through enforcement of Title IV and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In May 2023, the Civil Rights Division (the Division) of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Education jointly released this Resource on Confronting Racial Discrimination in Student Discipline. The Resource demonstrates the departments' ongoing commitment to the vigorous enforcement of laws that protect students from discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin in student discipline. The Resource provides examples of the departments' investigations over the last 10 years, reflecting the long-standing approach and continuity in the departments' enforcement practices over time and the continuing urgency of assuring nondiscrimination in student discipline in our nation's schools. The Resource describes how the departments resolved investigations of 14 school districts in 10 states nationwide and demonstrates ways school districts can take steps to proactively improve their administration of student discipline.

Unaccompanied children are children who are under 18 years old, who do not have a parent or guardian in the United States available to provide care and physical custody, and who lack legal immigration status in the United States. Unaccompanied children may live with family members or other adult sponsors in local communities. Under U.S. Supreme Court precedent, unaccompanied children, like all other students, have an equal right to access local public schools. But they may face barriers to educational opportunities due to discrimination because of their national origin or immigration status. This fact sheet highlights specific access to education challenges faced by unaccompanied children, explains to individuals caring for unaccompanied children where to go for help, and aims to help public schools understand their responsibilities to serve unaccompanied children under Federal civil rights laws.

Many children in the United States are highly mobile or have parents or guardians who are highly mobile, including some children who are, or who are part of families with, migratory agricultural workers, migratory fishers, and workers in seasonal industries or positions. These migratory children move regularly from one residence and school district to another, and their mobility often affects their access to education. Some migratory children who lack legal immigration status in the United States or are English Learners may face additional barriers to participation in school. This fact sheet highlights specific access to education challenges faced by migratory children, explains to families where they can go for help, and aims to help public schools understand their responsibilities to serve these children under Federal civil rights laws.

This is the 24th in a series of annual publications. Beginning with the 2020 edition, this report has been redesigned with the intention of increasing its usability for a wider audience. This report does so by highlighting selected findings from 23 indicators on various school crime and safety topics. It first examines different types of student victimization, including violent deaths and school shootings, nonfatal criminal victimization, and bullying victimization. Then, the report presents data on measures of school conditions--such as discipline problems, gangs, hate-related speech, possession of weapons, and use and availability of illegal drugs--as well as data that reflect student perceptions about their personal safety at school. This report wraps up the discussion on crime and safety issues at the elementary and secondary level by examining the percentages of teachers who reported having been threatened or attacked by their students. [For the 2020 report, see ED613654.]

The Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement (CJRP) is administered biennially and collects information from secure and non-secure residential placement facilities that hold youth who were charged with or adjudicated for law violations. These law violations encompass both delinquency offenses and status offenses. Unless noted otherwise, this bulletin focuses on youth under age 21 who are in residential placement after being charged with or adjudicated for an offense. As used in this bulletin, "youth" always refers to those held for an offense. The CJRP shows that the number of youth in placement continues to decline. Between 1997 and 2019, the number of youth in residential placement decreased 65% to 36,479, its lowest level since the data collection began in 1997 when 105,055 youth were held in out-of-home placement. The decrease in the number of youth held for an offense in public facilities was slightly less than the decrease in the number held in private facilities during the same time period (down 64% and 68%, respectively). The number of public facilities decreased 18% between 1997 and 2019, compared with 65% for private facilities. [Written with assistance from Charles Puzzanchera. For the 2017 report, see ED609091.]

On March 15, 2024, the Civil Rights Division (the Division) of the U.S. Department of Justice issued a resource for families and students on confronting discrimination based on religion in public schools. The document recognizes that in schools around the country, students have reported unfair treatment, bullying, and harassment because of their perceived or actual religious beliefs and practices. The document provides examples of the kinds of incidents the Division can investigate and reminds students and parents of specific actions that they can take when schools fail to respond to reports of harassment or other forms of discrimination. It also provides information on how to file a complaint with the Division.

This is the 23rd edition of Indicators of School Crime and Safety, a joint effort of the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This report provides summary statistics to inform the nation about current aspects of crime and safety in schools. This report covers a variety of topics on school crime and safety. It first examines different types of student victimization, including violent deaths and school shootings, nonfatal criminal victimization, and bullying victimization. Then, the report presents data on measures of school conditions--such as gangs, hate-related speech, possession of weapons, and use and availability of illegal drugs--as well as data that reflect student perceptions about their personal safety at school. This report wraps up the discussion on crime and safety issues at the elementary and secondary level by examining the percentages of teachers who reported having been threatened or attacked by their students. It has the most recent available data, compiled from a number of statistical data sources supported by the federal government. [For the 2019 report, see ED606370.]

In October 2018, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) administered the 10th Juvenile Residential Facility Census (JRFC). JRFC began in 2000 with data collections occurring every other year. JRFC routinely collects data on how facilities operate and the services they provide. It includes questions on facility ownership and operation, security, capacity and crowding, and injuries and deaths in custody. The census also collects supplementary information each year on specific services, such as mental and physical health, substance abuse, and education. Nationally, 37,529 juvenile offenders were held in 1,510 residential placement facilities on October 24, 2018. Facilities that hold juvenile offenders vary in their operation, type, size, security features, screening practices, and services provided. To better understand the characteristics of these facilities, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) sponsors the Juvenile Residential Facility Census (JRFC), a biennial survey of public and private juvenile residential facilities in every state. Findings in this bulletin are based on JRFC data collected for 2018. [For the 2016 report, see ED600317.]

Child maltreatment is a serious national problem. In fiscal year 2020 alone, approximately 618,000 children in the United States experienced abuse and neglect, and 1,750 died as a result. OJJDP supports the important work of children's advocacy centers and their multidisciplinary teams of child abuse prevention and intervention professionals. In 2021, 939 local children's advocacy centers served more than 386,000 children across the country. This OJJDP In Focus fact sheet details programs and training and technical assistance for the children's advocacy centers and their multidisciplinary teams of child abuse prevention and intervention professionals.

A joint effort by the National Center for Education Statistics and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, this annual report presents the most recent data available on school crime and student safety. The indicators in this report are based on information drawn from a variety of data sources, including national and international surveys of students, teachers, principals, and postsecondary institutions. This report covers topics such as victimization, bullying and electronic bullying, school conditions, fights, weapons, availability and student use of drugs and alcohol, student perceptions of personal safety at school, and criminal incidents at postsecondary institutions. [For the 2018 report, see ED594245.]

The Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement (CJRP) is administered biennially and collects information from all secure and nonsecure residential placement facilities that house juvenile offenders, defined as persons younger than age 21 who are held in a residential setting as a result of some contact with the justice system (that is, they are charged with or adjudicated for an offense). This encompasses both status offenses and delinquency offenses, and includes youth who are either temporarily detained by the court or committed after adjudication for an offense. The census does not include federal facilities or those exclusively for drug or mental health treatment or for abused/ neglected youth. It also does not capture data from adult prisons or jails. Therefore, CJRP does not include all juveniles whom criminal courts sentenced to incarceration or placement in a residential facility. The CJRP in 2017 shows that the number of youth in placement continues to decline. Between 1997 and 2017, the number of youth in residential placement decreased 59% to 43,580, its lowest level since the data collection began in 1997 when 105,055 youth were held in out-of-home placement. The number of public facilities decreased 12% between 1997 and 2017, compared with 58% for private facilities. Despite this, the decrease in the number of juvenile offenders held at public facilities was slightly greater than the decrease in the number held in private facilities during the same period (down 59% and 57%, respectively).

On December 21, 2018, President Donald J. Trump signed the First Step Act of 2018 into law. Title I of the First Step Act of 2018 (FSA or the Act) is focused on reforms to reduce recidivism among the federal prison population. Many of Title I's reforms hinge on the creation of a risk and needs assessment system. Under the FSA, the Attorney General is charged with developing and releasing a risk and needs assessment system for use in the federal prison system. With this report, Attorney General William P. Barr releases the First Step Act of 2018 Risk and Needs Assessment System. This report outlines the work of the Department of Justice to develop and implement the Risk and Needs Assessment System (System). It also introduces the new System that the Federal Bureau of Prisons will deploy in its facilities. And the report announces the Department of Justice's strategic plan to evaluate, validate, and enhance the System over time.

A joint effort by the National Center for Education Statistics and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, this annual report examines crime occurring in schools and colleges. This report presents data on crime at school from the perspectives of students, teachers, principals, and the general population from an array of sources--the National Crime Victimization Survey, the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, the School Survey on Crime and Safety, the Schools and Staffing Survey, EDFacts, and the Campus Safety and Security Survey. The report covers topics such as victimization, bullying, school conditions, fights, weapons, the presence of security staff at school, availability and student use of drugs and alcohol, student perceptions of personal safety at school, and criminal incidents at postsecondary institutions. [For the 2017 report, see ED581798.]

This literature review discusses the intersection of the educational and the juvenile justice systems. Specifically, it outlines the academic characteristics and challenges of youth in the juvenile justice system (including those in detention and long-term secure residential facilities, and under probation supervision) and interventions aimed at improving educational outcomes for this high-risk population.

In response to the February 14, 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, President Donald Trump established the Federal Commission on School Safety to review safety practices and make meaningful and actionable recommendations of best practices to keep students safe. The Commission conducted field visits, listening sessions, and meetings with hundreds of Americans all across the country. The input of these individuals--state and local policymakers, administrators, principals and teachers, law enforcement and healthcare professionals, students and their families--was critical in identifying best practices and the recommendations contained in this Report. The recommendations are predicated on the policies already working in state and local communities. They outline steps families, communities, schools, houses of worship, law enforcement, medical professionals, government, and others can take to prevent school violence and improve recovery efforts following an incident. The recommendations are organized under three broad categories that represent the Commission's work: (1) Prevent--preventing school violence; (2) Protect and Mitigate--protecting students and teachers and mitigating the effects of violence; and (3) Respond and Recover--responding to and recovering from attacks. An extensive list of federal resources for school safety is also included.

Nationally, 45,567 juvenile offenders were held in 1,772 residential placement facilities on October 26, 2016. Facilities that hold juvenile offenders vary in their operation, type, size, confinement features, screening practices, and services provided. To better understand the characteristics of these facilities, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention sponsors the Juvenile Residential Facility Census (JRFC), a biennial survey of public and private juvenile residential facilities in every state. This biennial census collects data on how juvenile facilities operate and the services they provide. The census also provides information on facility ownership, security, capacity and crowding, and injuries and deaths of youth in custody. Data from the 2016 census indicate that the number of youth in residential placement continues to decline, a trend that has lasted nearly two decades. In 2016, more youth were held in county, city, or municipally operated facilities on the census date than were held in state-operated facilities. Facility crowding affected a relatively small proportion of youth in custody. Most responding facilities routinely evaluated all youth for suicide risk, education needs, substance abuse, and mental health needs. [For "Juvenile Residential Facility Census, 2014: Selected Findings. Juvenile Justice Statistics: National Report Series Bulletin. NCJ 250123," see ED590913.]

A joint effort by the National Center for Education Statistics and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, this annual report examines crime occurring in schools and colleges. This report presents data on crime at school from the perspectives of students, teachers, principals, and the general population from an array of sources--the National Crime Victimization Survey, the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, the School Survey on Crime and Safety, the Schools and Staffing Survey, EDFacts, and the Campus Safety and Security Survey. The report covers topics such as victimization, bullying, school conditions, fights, weapons, the presence of security staff at school, availability and student use of drugs and alcohol, student perceptions of personal safety at school, and criminal incidents at postsecondary institutions. [For the 2016 report, see ED574084.]

Comprehensive reentry efforts for juveniles begin once they enter a residential facility and continue upon their return to the community. The research examined in this literature review highlights that youths returning from out-of-home placements have specific needs that should be considered in reentry planning, chief among them are mental health and substance use treatment, family engagement, education and employment programs, and housing. Therapeutic communities, mentoring, case management, cognitive-behavioral therapies, and reentry courts are examples of types of programs that can help address some of the major barriers youths face as they reenter society.

Mental health disorders are prevalent among youths in the juvenile justice system. This literature review focuses on the scope of mental health problems of at-risk and justice-involved youths; the impact of mental health on justice involvement as well as the impact of justice involvement on mental health; disparities in mental health treatment in the juvenile justice system; and evidence-based programs that have been shown to improve outcomes for youths with mental health issues.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) invests in mentoring programs and services to help ensure positive outcomes for youth. Successful mentoring relationships have been shown to increase youth's self-esteem, improve academic achievement, and steer them away from delinquency, substance use, and other high-risk behaviors. This factsheet highlights the Programs and Training and Technical Assistance of the OJJDP.

Every 2 years, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention conducts the Juvenile Residential Facility Census (JRFC) to collect information about the characteristics of facilities, including facility type, capacity, and type of security, in which youth charged with or adjudicated for law violations are held. Respondents also provide information on the types of evaluations and services they provide to youth entrusted to their care. This bulletin provides findings from the 2014 survey. The population of justice system-involved youth dropped 11% from 2012 to 2014, to the lowest number since 1975. More of these youth were in local facilities on the census day in 2014 than were in state-operated facilities, continuing a trend that began with the 2012 census. The 2014 JRFC data also describe the range of services that facilities provide to youth in their care. Almost all facilities (87%) reported that a portion of all residents attended some type of school. Most responding facilities routinely evaluated all residents for substance abuse (74%), mental health needs (58%), and suicide risk (90%). This bulletin helps the juvenile justice field to track conditions of confinement and the progress that states and communities are making to ensure that system-involved youth receive the treatment and services that they need.

Research suggests that the arts can have a positive impact on youth development, from birth through adolescence. This review explores recent research on arts-based programs and arts therapies. Programs were considered arts-based if at least one of the main components was an arts-related activity, or if there was a deliberate use of arts in the program to bring about a change in behavior. This category includes standalone, arts-based interventions as well as programs incorporating the arts in combination with other approaches (such as mentoring). The review focuses on the following three populations: (1) at-risk youths, (2) justice-involved youths, and (3) traumatized youths.

All children in the United States have an equal right to enroll and participate in public elementary and secondary schools without regard to their or their parents' or guardians' immigration status. When public schools deny equal access to education because of national origin or immigration status, the Educational Opportunities Section of the Civil Rights Division (CRT) at the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Education can help by enforcing federal laws that protect students from discrimination. CRT and OCR will not ask parents, guardians, or children about their immigration status. This factsheet provides examples of the kinds of incidents CRT and OCR may investigate and how to file a complaint.

This bulletin discusses the second National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV II), which was conducted in 2011 as a followup to the original NatSCEV I survey. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) sponsored both surveys. The Crimes against Children Research Center of the University of New Hampshire conducted the NatSCEV I survey between January and May 2008. NatSCEV I represented the first comprehensive national survey of children's past-year and lifetime exposure to violence, crime, and abuse in the home, school, and community across children and youth from ages 1 month to 17 years. As in the first NatSCEV survey, NatSCEV II researchers interviewed a nationally representative sample of children and their caregivers regarding the children's exposure to violence, crime, and abuse across several major categories: conventional crime, child maltreatment, victimization by peers and siblings, sexual victimization, witnessing and indirect victimization (including exposure to community violence, family violence, and school violence and threats), and Internet victimization. In addition to the types of exposure to violence, crime, and abuse covered in the original survey, NatSCEV II asked participants about several new types of exposure in the categories of conventional crime, child maltreatment, peer and sibling victimization, and Internet victimization. In general, NatSCEV II confirms the earlier survey's findings regarding the extent of children's past-year and lifetime exposure to violence, crime, and abuse, with few significant changes in reported exposures between the two surveys. In the NatSCEV II sample, approximately three in five children (57.7 percent) experienced at least one exposure to five aggregate types of violence in the past year (physical assault, sexual victimization, maltreatment, property victimization, and witnessing violence). The NatSCEV I and NatSCEV II surveys allow researchers and policymakers to track trends over time and to monitor the possible effects of social changes and public policies. The survey findings also enable public health officials to educate the public about the harms to children from exposure to violence, crime, and abuse. Moreover, they provide practitioners with risk and protective factor data on which to base evidence-based approaches to reducing children's exposure to violence, crime, and abuse and to craft interventions to prevent and treat the harms resulting from that exposure. [This bulletin was adapted from Finkelhor, D., Turner, H.A., Shattuck, A.M., and Hamby, S.L., "Violence, Crime, and Abuse Exposure in a National Sample of Children and Youth: An Update." "JAMA Pediatrics" v167 n7 p614-621 2013.]

This bulletin is part of a series that presents the results of the Northwestern Juvenile Project--a longitudinal study of youth detained at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center in Chicago, IL. The authors examine youth's perceptions of barriers to mental health services, focusing on youth with alcohol, drug, and mental health disorders. Findings include: (1) Most frequently, youth did not receive services because they believed their problems would go away without outside help (56.5 percent); (2) Nearly one-third of youth (31.7 percent) were not sure whom to contact or where to get help; (3) Nearly one-fifth of the sample (19.1 percent) reported difficulty in obtaining help; and (4) African American and Hispanic detainees received significantly fewer services in the past compared with non-Hispanic white youth. Male detainees also received significantly fewer services in the past when compared with female detainees. The authors interviewed 1,829 juveniles detained in Chicago to determine their need for, use of, and barriers to services. [See report for list of funding support.]

How and why do many serious adolescent offenders stop offending while others continue to commit crimes? The Pathways to Desistance study, a multidisciplinary investigation that attempts to answer this question, followed more than 1,300 serious juvenile offenders for 7 years after their conviction. In this bulletin, the authors investigate the link between perceptions of the threat of sanctions and deterrence from crime among serious adolescent offenders. Specifically, they examine the following questions: (1) Do deterring juveniles' offending and punishment experiences mold offenders' perceptions of risks and consequences of offending (which relate directly to their propensity to be deterred from crimes)? (2) Does placing offenders in a correctional facility have any tangible deterrent effects? and (3) Does longer placement have a more deterrent effect on juveniles? Selected findings include: (1) There was no meaningful reduction in offending or arrests in response to more severe punishment (e.g., correctional placement, longer stays); (2) Policies targeting specific types of offending may be more effective at deterring youth from engaging in these specific offenses as opposed to general policies aimed at overall crime reduction; (3) In response to an arrest, youth slightly increased their risk perceptions, which is a necessary condition for deterrence; and (4) Creating ambiguity about detection probabilities in certain areas or for certain types of crime may have a deterrent effect by enhancing the perceived risk of getting caught. The authors conclude with a discussion of directions for future applied research into deterrence and consider some broader implications for juvenile justice policy and practice.

Implementation science is about finding ways to integrate research evidence into decisions made in real-world settings. The overall goal of implementation science in the juvenile justice field is to find different strategies to encourage and facilitate the use of research on what works and what doesn't work, in order to improve the policies and practices that directly affect at-risk and justice-involved youths. The aim is to provide evidence-based treatment and services to youths, to improve their lives and reduce their involvement in the justice system. It is important for policymakers and practitioners in the juvenile justice system to use available research to inform their decisions about youth programming. It is equally important for researchers to give consideration to the translation and dissemination of their research, so that practitioners and policymakers have an opportunity to access, understand, and apply research findings to everyday practice.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's biennial Juvenile Residential Facility Census (JRFC) collects information about facilities in which juvenile offenders are held. Respondents provide information about facility characteristics, including facility type, capacity, and type of security. JRFC also reports the number of youth who were injured or died in custody during the past 12 months. This bulletin provides findings from the 2012 survey. The juvenile offender population dropped 14% from 2010 to 2012, to the lowest number since 1975. For the first time since 2000, more offenders were in local facilities on the census day in 2012 than were in state-operated facilities. The 2012 JRFC data also describe security features that facilities use. Overall, 43% of facilities lock youth in their sleeping rooms at least some of the time.

Although the overall number of youth involved in the juvenile justice system has been decreasing, there are still more than 60,000 young people in juvenile justice residential facilities in the United States on any given day. With the support of grants administered by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), juvenile justice residential facilities provide educational services to hundreds of thousands of students over the course of each year. Both of the Departments are committed to working with juvenile justice residential facilities to ensure that all students have equal educational opportunities, while supporting these facilities in preparing these students for successful reentry into their communities, so that they are ready to return to their local schools and graduate, to continue or begin a postsecondary program, or enter employment. As a part of those efforts this publication presents a letter written by Catherine E. Lhamon, Assistant Secretery for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, and Vanita Gupta, Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Justice, to employees of the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, and the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, to remind them that the Federal civil rights laws, regulations, and guidance that prohibit race, color, national origin, sex, religion, and disability discrimination against students in traditional public schools also apply to educational services and supports offered or provided to youth in juvenile justice residential facilities. ED's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and DOJ's Civil Rights Division and Office of Justice Programs enforce a number of Federal civil rights laws that apply to juvenile justice residential facilities receiving Federal funds from the respective Departments. Juvenile justice residential facilities and any other entities that receive Federal funds from the Departments--either directly or indirectly through another State or local agency--and that provide educational services in such facilities are subject to the Federal civil rights laws and the specific legal obligations discussed in this letter. This includes, but is not limited to, educational services supported by Title I, Part D of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended, which requires, among other things, that State agencies and school districts that serve youth in juvenile justice residential facilities provide services designed to meet the educational needs of such youth. Youth in confinement, many of whom are students with disabilities and English learner students, are often the students in the greatest need of academic, emotional, and behavioral supports. The letter briefly addresses a few of the subjects that have arisen in the juvenile justice context.

Providing high-quality education in juvenile justice secure care settings presents unique challenges for the administrators, teachers, and staff who are responsible for the education, rehabilitation, and welfare of youths committed to their care. The United States departments of Education (ED) and Justice (DOJ) recognize that while these challenges cannot be overcome without vision, dedication, and leadership, there is also a critical need in the field for supportive resources grounded in the available research, practitioner experiences, and promising practices from around the country. The more than 2,500 juvenile justice residential facilities across the country need support from federal, state, and local educational agencies; the broader juvenile justice system (particularly the juvenile justice agencies that oversee facilities); and their communities to improve services for committed youths. The services provided to them in secure care facilities should be developmentally appropriate and focus on the youths' educational, social-emotional, behavioral, and career planning needs so that their time within a secure care facility is a positive experience during which they attain new skills and move on to a more productive path. Building on prior guidance from the U.S. Department of education (ED) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), this report focuses on five guiding principles recommended by the federal government for providing high-quality education in juvenile justice secure care settings: (1) A safe, healthy facility-wide climate that prioritizes education, provides the conditions for learning, and encourages the necessary behavioral and social support services that address the individual needs of all youths, including those with disabilities and English learners; (2) Necessary funding to support educational opportunities for all youths within long-term secure care facilities, including those with disabilities and English learners, comparable to opportunities for peers who are not system-involved; (3) Recruitment, employment, and retention of qualified education staff with skills relevant in juvenile justice settings who can positively impact long-term student outcomes through demonstrated abilities to create and sustain effective teaching and learning environments; (4) Rigorous and relevant curricula aligned with state academic and career and technical education standards that utilize instructional methods, tools, materials, and practices that promote college- and career-readiness; and (5) Formal processes and procedures--through statutes, memoranda of understanding, and practices--that ensure successful navigation across child-serving systems and smooth reentry into communities. The five guiding principles explained in this document are suggested as a framework for implementing promising practices to provide high-quality education in juvenile justice secure care settings. Consistent with these principles, the document also references a number of requirements specified under various federal laws that, as applicable, must also be considered by the agencies and professionals responsible for the welfare of the youths committed to their care. This report is but a first step toward mobilizing collective action to ensure that all secure care settings can become true engines of hope, opportunity, and advancement for some of our most at-risk young people.

This fact sheet provides an overview of the nation's gang problem and summarizes findings from the 2012 survey. Of the 2,538 survey recipients, 2,199 (87 percent) responded to the survey. In 2012, there were an estimated 30,700 gangs (an increase from 29,900 in 2011) and 850,000 gang members (an increase from 782,500 in 2011) throughout 3,100 jurisdictions with gang problems (down from 3,300 in 2011). The number of reported gang-related homicides increased 20 percent from 1,824 in 2011 to 2,363 in 2012. Estimates of the number of gangs, gang members, and gang-related homicides all increased in 2012 as compared with 2011 and with the previous 5-year average.

The Second Chance Act authorizes federal grants for comprehensive reentry planning, direct pre- and postrelease services, and sustainable justice system improvements that promote positive youth and family outcomes, reduce recidivism, and increase public safety. This "In Focus" briefly describes two types of Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) Second Chance Act program grants: (1) youth reentry programs; and (2) correctional facility programs that address the needs of incarcerated parents and their minor children.

For young people to learn, grow, and thrive, they must first be safe. In fiscal year 2020, approximately 618,000 children in the United States experienced abuse and neglect, and 1,750 died as a result. The effects of child abuse, which can include failure in school, depression, substance use, or involvement in the justice system, can be mitigated if children receive timely, trauma-informed services. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) supports the work and expansion of children's advocacy centers nationwide. In 2021 alone, the 939 centers served more than 386,000 children--treating victims and investigating and prosecuting cases of child abuse--and trained nearly 2.9 million people on how to prevent child abuse.

Many students face bullying, harassment, and discrimination based on sex stereotypes and assumptions about what it means to be a boy or a girl. Students who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, nonbinary, or otherwise gender non-conforming may face harassment based on how they dress or act, or for simply being who they are. It is important to know that discrimination against students based on their sexual orientation or gender identity is a form of sex discrimination prohibited by federal law. It is also important that LGBTQI+ students feel safe and know what to do if they experience discrimination. Public elementary and secondary schools, as well as public and private colleges and universities, have a responsibility to investigate and address sex discrimination, including sexual harassment, against students because of their perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity. When schools fail to respond appropriately, the Educational Opportunities Section of the Civil Rights Division (CRT) at the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Education can help by enforcing federal laws that protect students from discrimination. CRT and OCR can also provide information to assist schools in meeting their legal obligations. This resource shares examples of the kinds of incidents CRT and OCR can investigate, and provides a list of actions to take if a student experiences discrimination in school.

These Questions and Answers are intended to assist states and school districts in meeting their legal obligations to ensure that their enrollment policies and practices at the elementary and secondary school levels do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin, and do not bar or discourage students' enrollment in elementary and secondary school based on their or their parents' actual or perceived immigration status. The U.S. Departments of Education and Justice encourage states and districts to proactively implement supportive enrollment policies and practices that create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all students. [This Questions and Answers document accompanied the "Dear Colleague" letter on the Rights of All Children to Enroll in School, issued by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice on May 6, 2011. For this document, see ED595953.]

Under Federal law, State and local educational agencies (hereinafter "districts") are required to provide all children with equal access to public education at the elementary and secondary level. Thie Dear Colleague letter was written to remind school districts of the Federal obligation to provide equal educational opportunities to all children residing within each district and to offer Federal assistance to ensure that the districts comply with the law. To comply with these Federal civil rights laws, as well as the mandates of the Supreme Court, districts must not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin, and that students are not barred from enrolling in public schools at the elementary and secondary level on the basis of their own citizenship or immigration status or that of their parents or guardians. Moreover, districts may not request information with the purpose or result of denying access to public schools on the basis of race, color, or national origin. This letter updates and replaces the May 6, 2011 letter and provides examples of permissible enrollment practices, as well as examples of the types of information that may not be used as a basis for denying a student entrance to school.

The problem of bullying has become a topic of national conversation over the past decades. To address this problem, numerous anti-bullying interventions have been developed and implemented, and advocates have worked to pass state and local laws and policies on bullying. A critical accompaniment to these efforts has been the growing field of research on bullying, which strives to understand the causes of bullying, its predictors, its effects, and ways of effectively intervening and preventing it.