School Violence

I've been trying to publish this for several weeks. I'm struggling with my own thoughts and my own process of these events, and I don't yet feel I have done them justice. But, I think I just need to hit publish and stop questioning myself. I have tried to avoid bias and assumptions, and I could be wrong, but I still want to examine a few things.

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My older son graduated from high school about three weeks ago. My younger son will begin attending this same school in the fall.

The seniors finished classes on June 5th, with graduation being on June 12th. On June 10th, the rest of the school, some 2000 students and staff, experienced something communities have learned to fear: a student's act of gun violence on campus. As a result, our community lost two young men; one was the victim, one was the perpetrator. These young men seemed to have all the promise in the world; good kids, good students, good sons. Two sons went off to school, like any other day, on the second-to-last day of classes for the 2013-2014 school year. Sons who were expected to return home at the end of the school day, but who never again will. Our community grieves, deeply.

Of course, much conversation surrounds these events. We hear questions posed by the media such as these: How did the young man gain access to the weapon? Why did no one know he was in this frame of mind? What can we do in the future to prevent this type of event? Gun control? School security? Holding family members responsible when children access their weapons?

I'm no expert and I don't propose any solutions. However, based on the continued prevalence of school shootings, it would seem that we (as a society) haven't yet found the right combination of steps to effectively prevent them.

I can't help but wonder if more prevention and intervention at the school level could help. I'm not just guessing in the dark, either. A recent article by the NASW (National Association of Social Workers) shares this concern:

"Headlines announcing the latest incidents of school violence have become common, and calls for solutions have been open to debate. Rather than promote a fortress mentality to protect students from violence, social workers are urging more programs and resources that provide early mental health screenings and treatments for school children. In addition, social workers are promoting the value of a community approach to aid troubled students before they feel the need to act out in violence."

The 2002 U.S. Secret Service Safe Schools Initiative reports that nearly 75% of perpetrators of school violence experienced acts of bullying or exclusion by peers, and over 75% had a history of suicidal thoughts, actions, or experience of depression. Having been 12 years since this report, a cursory examination of school violence since could indicate a similar trend.

In other words, I don't believe school violence happens in a vacuum.

I think school counseling staff members have a unique position in this process. They are on the front lines of the things their students struggle with; academically, but also socially, mentally, and emotionally. Yet, so many schools lack adequate counseling staff to be effective in this area. In the case of our school, an eight member counseling staff serves some 2400+ students. We have only one social worker among them.

Of course, I also don't suggest it is only the counseling staff members' responsibility; after all, students also have teachers, families, social groups, sports groups, spiritual or religious groups, friends, jobs...there are any number of people who may be able to spot potential trouble. But, there is evidently a need for more school staff members who are trained in counseling to identify and intervene in problematic issues. When there are too few counselors, this is difficult.

It's not my intention to place blame. Staffing shortages in public schools are such an enormous, systemic problem in our educational system that it would be unfair to blame any one person, group, school, district, or government entity. It's simply an observation that the current system may need to change.

I have no way to know whether or not any relationship with a school counselor existed or could have prevented this specific act of violence at my son's school. I just wonder if, in general, more school counselors and social workers would reduce the risk of these types of acts of violence. I know that's impossible to quantify, but I can't help but be thoughtful about it.

Unfortunately, in the wake of school violence, odds are more money will be spent to upgrade security measures at this school than will be spent in the areas of increasing staffing for earlier identification and prevention of the types of issues that may lead to school violence. I do think it has to be holistic; yes, maybe more active protection of students is necessary, but also more staff who are trained in identifying potential trouble, and who may know how to take steps to intervene.

I don't know the solution, if there even is one. I think there are a variety of steps that could be taken to help reduce these incidents. I don't know how to implement those steps, or who to charge with that process. I do think an increase in school counseling staff and a greater importance placed on early identification and intervention could help. I understand many school districts would have to rethink their budgets for this to happen, and I readily admit that I don't know where the money ought to come from.

I just know that, for a few hours one Tuesday morning two weeks ago, thousands of parents in our community waited to hear whether or not their teenagers were safe. Two families would learn their sons were not. Our community lost two youth, and we deeply grieve for their families and friends.

I also know that it's impossible to say whether or not any changes have taken place in recent decades have succeeded at prevention. We can't know if more acts of violence have been prevented than have occurred. I don't know that we can ever fully eliminate this type of event.

I do believe we still ought to be thinking about it. Is a ratio of 300/1 students to counseling staff members effective enough?

*** Update: I did some further research. According to the American School Counselor Association, they recommend a ratio of 250:1, but most states have their own guidelines or mandates.
Oregon does not have any counselor to student ratio mandates.
Oregon's statewide 2010-2011 ratio was 533:1.
Oregon Administrative Rule 581-022 recommends compliance with the ASCA.