Protecting our children is not simply a matter of public policy. It is a matter of strengthening basic values, of teaching children right from wrong, of instilling in them respect for others. We each have a responsibility to work to end youth violence and to keep schools safe for children and for those who teach them. Youth violence in many schools has reached universal proportions. It is not only happening in our high schools, it has also made its way into our elementary and middle schools. Everyone seems to have a different perspective on why there is such a problem with school safety. Some say it is the parents' fault, some

For as long as we can remember there have been crimes at school, whether they were stealing or starting fights in the cafeteria. What is especially frightening these days is the increased availability of weapons, guns in particular. The fact that more and more weapons are showing up in schools underscores how readily accessible they are. In 1996, 5 percent of all 12th graders reported that they had been injured on purpose with a weapon such as a knife, gun, or club during the prior 12 months while they were at school, and 12 percent reported that they had been injured on purpose without a weapon. This number has not significantly changed during the past 20 years. Between 1993 and 1997, there was an overall decline in the percentage of students in grades 9 to 12 who reported carrying a weapon to school at least 1 day in the prior 30 days. About 3 percent of high school seniors reported carrying a gun to school at least 1 day during the previous 4 weeks. Although serious violent crimes constitute a small percentage of the total amount of school crime and homicide is extremely rare, the possibility still exists. In the 1992-93 and 1993-94 school years combined, 63 students ages 5-19 were murdered at school. The number of multiple -victim homicide events at school has increased, from two in the 1992-93 school year to six in 1997-98. The number of victims has also increased. What is it going to take to open our e

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Approximate Word count = 954
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)