While taking a look at our analytics and determining the most-read stories of 2024, it was made abundantly clear that K-12 safety and security leaders continue to wear many different hats as more responsibilities are constantly being added to their plates.
Most of the articles that made the list this year have little to do with the other. However, while the topics of cell phone bans, transgender rights, and arming teachers don’t have much in common, they all require careful and thoughtful consideration from leaders during times of social unrest and political divide.
Here are the top 10 most-read K-12 stories from 2024.
1. Apalachee High School Shooting and Subsequent Investigative Follow-Ups
It comes as no surprise that Campus Safety’s article about the tragedy at Apalachee High School was one of the most-read this year. Four people were fatally shot and nine others were hospitalized in the Sept. 4 shooting. The deceased victims are 39-year-old Richard Aspinwall, 53-year-old Christina Irimie, 14-year-old Mason Schermerhorn, and 14-year-old Christian Angulo.
Investigators found many mistakes were made leading up to the shooting, including law enforcement’s failure to notify the shooter’s school district that he had been under investigation for making school shooting threats. Similar to the Oxford school shooting, the gunman’s father was also arrested and charged with second-degree murder because he bought his son the gun used in the shooting despite knowing his son had been struggling emotionally.
Other stories related to the shooting that were widely read include:
- Apalachee School Shooting Suspect, Father Indicted on Dozens of New Charges
- GBI: Apalachee Suspect Had School Shooter Shrine, Concealed Gun in Poster Board
- Mother of Apalachee Shooting Suspect Called to Warn School 30 Minutes Before Attack
2. School Threats Spike Following Apalachee High School Shooting
Threats of school violence historically surge following high-profile shootings. In the two weeks following the 2018 Marjory Stoneman High School shooting, the Educator’s School Safety Network determined there were at least 638 threats made against schools. However, the number of school violence threats and subsequent arrests made in less than a month since the Apalachee High School shooting is unprecedented. In the three weeks following the incident, more than 700 children and teens were arrested for making threats.
So, while we know threats of school violence typically increase following school shootings, what makes this time different?
“I think it’s really hard to know … one of the reasons why children and teenagers are more likely to engage in this behavior is because there’s a lot of accessibility and fairly easy anonymity,” Karin Price, Chief of Psychology at Texas Children’s Hospital, told Houston Public Media. “But I do know – I think we all know – that kids feel less safe now than they did maybe ten years ago, and I do think it could be a factor [in the threats].”
Here is the full article.
And here are some additional resources for addressing these threats:
- Swatting Incidents: 4 Ways to Reduce Widespread Panic, Improve Response
- School Swatting Threats: How Common Are They and What Do They Cost Taxpayers?
- School Swatting: Why It’s So Dangerous and How to Combat It
- Can Campuses Stop School ‘Swatting’ Threats?
3. De-Escalation Skills for School Leaders
De-escalation is the process of using communication and other techniques to reduce friction in a tense situation of conflict. Whether dealing with an angry parent, a student who is struggling emotionally, or a teacher who is burned out, having the skills to diffuse a situation before it turns violent is crucial to school safety.
In this popular article from 2024, the author provides five de-escalation disciplines that will help school leaders effectively deal with angry students, staff, family members, or visitors.
Read the full article here.
4. Which States Let Teachers Carry Guns in School?
In just one week in April, Tennessee and Iowa joined the growing list of states that allow trained school staff to carry guns on public school grounds. As of the writing of this article, only 16 states and the District of Columbia have laws specifically prohibiting teachers from carrying guns.
Arming teachers continues to be a hotly debated topic which is why we weren’t surprised to see it on the most-read list.
Although we updated this article throughout the year as more legislation was passed, make sure you ALWAYS check with your state legislature or school district for the most up-to-date laws and policies.
See which states are arming teachers and which ones aren’t.
5. Teacher Shortages by State and How Schools Are Trying to Fix the Problem
According to the Learning Policy Institute, at least 406,964 teaching positions in the United States are either unfilled or filled by teachers who are not fully certified, representing one in eight of all teaching positions nationally.
While teacher shortages predate the pandemic, particularly for substitute teachers and in hard-to-staff subjects such as math, science, special education, and bilingual education, these shortages have grown in the past two years and expanded to encompass other positions such as bus drivers, school nurses, and food service workers
This article offers data on teacher shortages and also strategies both schools and lawmakers have taken to alleviate the shortage.
Read it in full here.
6. Which States Have Banned Cell Phones in Schools?
One of the most discussed topics within the education world in recent months is cell phones. More schools and states are adopting policies or legislation that either completely ban or significantly limit student cell phone usage during the school day.
The most common argument from proponents of these increasingly common policies is the inability for students to communicate with first responders or loved ones during an emergency. Supporters of these policies argue allowing access to phones during emergencies could put students in even more danger.
One study finds most parents (64%) support banning cell phones during the school day. Another finds three out of four teachers support it. Whatever ones viewpoint might be, most can agree that these policies are not “one-size-fits-all” and that exceptions should be made in specific circumstances.
As of Nov. 20, ten states have signed or already enacted laws and policies regarding student cell phone usage.
Read the full article here.
Also, the U.S. Department of Education just released a new resource to help states, school districts, and schools adopt policies for student use of cell phones and other personal devices on campus.
7. School Fires Georgia Teacher Who Allegedly Threatened to Behead Student over Israeli Flag Comments
While incidents and protests surrounding the ongoing war in the Middle East have largely taken place on college campuses, K-12 schools have seen their fair share of social unrest.
At the beginning of 2024, a teacher at Warner Robins Middle School in Georgia was fired after he allegedly threatened to behead a student who objected to him flying the Israeli flag in his classroom. One witness said hey heard him threaten “he would kick her f*****g a**, slit her god***n throat and drag her a** outside and cut her head off.”
While the incident happened in Dec. 2023, it made headlines at the start of 2024 and received steady pageviews throughout the year.
Read more about the incident here.
8. Teen with Autism Sentenced to 5 Years for Beating Teacher
In August, a teen who violently attacked his aide at Matanzas High School in Florida last year was sentenced to five years in prison and 15 years probation.
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins ordered 18-year-old Brendan Depa, who has autism and has been diagnosed with several other mental health disorders, to receive a full mental health evaluation and treatment once in the state prison system. He will receive credit for 17 1/2 months served as he awaited sentencing.
The decision created much debate about consequences for young people with disabilities. The judge says his size and history of violence was taken into consideration in his sentencing and an expert testified that the violence was not related to his autism. On the contrary, when school officials met after the incident, they determined the teen’s attack was a “manifestation of his disability.”
Many others, including his mother and defense attorney, have pushed for him to be placed a special living facility and not a prison.
Here is the full article.
9. No Charges to Be Filed in Oklahoma School Bathroom Fight Involving Nex Benedict
This tragic incident likely made this year’s list for main two reasons:
- It involves transgender student rights
- It reignited discussions on if people should or can be held liable for someone’s suicide
Nex Benedict, a 16-year-old who identified as non-binary, was involved in a fight with three girls in an Owasso (Okla.) High School bathroom back in March. After the fight, Benedict was taken to a local hospital for examination and released that same day. The following day, they died by suicide. An autopsy report ruled Benedict’s death was caused by the combined toxicity of two drugs.
In 2017, 18-year-old Michelle Carter was convicted of manslaughter for encouraging her boyfriend, Conrad Roy, to commit suicide. In the days before he took his own life, Carter sent numerous texts to Roy urging him to go through with his plan.
In 2019, a former Boston College student was indicted on an involuntary manslaughter charge for encouraging her boyfriend to take his own life. Inyoung You sent more than 47,000 text messages to Alexander Urtula in the last two months of their relationship, some stating, “Go kill yourself” and “Go die.” You had been tracking Urtula and was present when he jumped off a parking garage.
Following an investigation into Benedict’s death, the Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office ultimately decided not to file charges against the involved students.
Read the full article.
10. Law Enforcement’s Response to Uvalde School Massacre a ‘Significant Failure,’ DOJ Rules
Following a nearly two-year investigation, in Jan. 2024, the Department of Justice released its report on the on the May 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The scathing report found law enforcement’s response to the active shooter was a “significant failure” and that responding police officials “demonstrated no urgency.”
The report cited failures in leadership, command, and coordination. Some of the specific topics discussed in the report included police response, family reunification, trauma and support services, school safety and security, and pre-incident planning and preparation.
Read more about the report.
As we wrap up 2024, we wanted thank all of our K-12 readers and practitioners for the work you do in keeping kids safe and well cared for. We look forward to seeing and hearing what you do next year to help your students learn and grow in a safe and secure environment.
