ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses how school shootings are increasing in the United States while other forms of US school violence are decreasing. It addresses how the Columbine High School shooting on April 20, 1999, has transformed school safety policies and practices and the expectation on teachers to act as first responders. This chapter addresses how current school shooting prevention strategies are ineffective, highlighting research about the era of zero-tolerance policies that increased after the Columbine High School shooting and data showing the controversial nature of active shooter drills and lockdown drills. The chapter explains how the school shooting pandemic was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, shows how school safety policies disproportionally affect students of Color, gives a brief history of school violence, and concludes with the significance of the problem: the importance of a positive school climate in school violence prevention and the impact school shootings are having on the school climate.
