Schools and Gun Violence - What Do We Know About the Prevalence and Effects?

Oct 15, 2026

Four-part research overview on school firearm violence addresses what is known about its prevalence and effects, emphasizing both the immediate outcomes and the broader psychological impact on students and educators. Drawing on analyzed public data and reported findings, it frames schools as relatively safer than media narratives suggest while highlighting incidents that still produce significant harm. The materials also examines prevention efforts and widely used practices such as lockdown drills.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages64

Reading Time2 h 41 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

What We Know About Foiled and Failed Mass School Shootings

Lockdown Drills: A Widely Used Yet Often Misunderstood Practice

Overview of The American School Shooting Study (TASSS)

The Effects of Firearm Violence on Children

Schools and Gun Violence What Do We Know About the Prevalence and Effects? Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium December 2022 As policymakers, school administrators, and other vested stakeholders continue to grapple with how to keep schools free of guns and address their associated impacts, it is critical to plan not only for the worst day but for every instance of firearm violence on school grounds. This four-part series examines different aspects of this complex issue. ABOUT THE AUTHORS What We Know About Foiled and Failed Mass School Shootings Jason R. Silva is an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at William Paterson University Emily Greene-Colozzi is an assistant professor in the School of Criminology and Justice Studies at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell Lockdown Drills: A Widely Used Yet Often Misunderstood Practice Jaclyn Schildkraut is the interim executive director at the Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium (RGVRC) at the Rockefeller Institute of Government and an associate professor of criminal justice at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Oswego. She is the co-author of the book Lockdown Drills: Connecting Research and Best Practices for School Administrators, Teachers, and Parents (MIT Press, 2022) with fellow RGVRC member Amanda B. Nickerson Overview of The American School Shooting Study Joshua D. Freilich is a professor in the Criminal Justice Department at John Jay College Steven M. Chermak is a professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University Nadine M. Connell is an associate professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Griffith University Brent R. Klein is an assistant professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of South Carolina Emily A. Greene-Colozzi is an assistant professor in the School of Criminology and Justice Studies at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell The Effects of Firearm Violence on Children Amanda Nickerson is a professor of school psychology and director of the Alberti Center for Bullying Abuse Prevention at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York Sonali Rajan is an associate professor in the Department of Health and Behavior Studies at Teachers College, Columbia University, with a secondary faculty appointment in the Department of Epidemiology at the Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University CONTENTS Introduction Whate We Know About Foiled and Failed Mass School Shootings Jason R. Silva and Emily A. Greene-Colozzi Lockdown Drills: A Widely Used Yet Often Misunderstood Practice Jaclyn Schildkraut Overview of The American School Shooting Study (TASSS) Joshua D. Freilich, Steven M. Chermak, Nadine M. Connell Brent R. Klein, and Emily A. Green Colozzi The Effects of Firearm Violence on Children: Implications for Its Prevention in Our Schools and Communities Amanda Nickerson and Sonali Rajan 5 9 29 43 51 Schools and Gun Violence What Do We Know About the Prevalence and Effects? As the 2021-22 academic year came to a close, the United States was rocked by the news of another school mass shooting, this time at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Nineteen fourth-grade students and two of their teachers were killed when an 18-year-old former student entered the school through an unlocked door, made his way to his former fourth-grade classroom, and opened fire during a 77-minute rampage. Seventeen others were injured in the attack. The tragedy in Uvalde conjured up memories of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Nearly 10 years earlier, 20 first-grade students and six of their educators, including the school’s principal, were killed after a 20-year-old shot his way into the building. Two others were injured during the six-minute attack. In the aftermath of the shooting in Uvalde, administrators and policymakers struggled to implement polici

FAQs

Are schools generally safe from gun violence according to available data?

Schools are relatively safe overall, with a small fraction of youth homicides occurring at school. However, high-profile events can make mass shootings seem more common than they are.

What kinds of effects can firearm violence have on students and teachers?

Exposure can lead to both short- and long-term psychological effects such as posttraumatic stress, anger and aggression, withdrawal, and desensitization to violence.

Why do policymakers struggle with prevention after major incidents?

After events like Uvalde, administrators and policymakers try to implement procedures to prevent similar attacks or reduce loss of life, even when evidence for some proposed measures is limited.

Oct 15, 2026

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