Table 229.70.

Number of hate crimes occurring at public schools, percentage of schools reporting any hate crimes, and percentage reporting hate crimes motivated by specific types of bias, by school level: 2015-16, 2017-18, and 2019-20

[Standard errors appear in parentheses]
Type of bias	2015-16												2017-18												2019-20
	Total, all public schools1			School level2									Total, all public schools1			School level2									Total, all public schools1			School level2
				Elementary			Middle			Secondary/ High						Elementary			Middle			Secondary/ High						Elementary			Middle			Secondary/ High
1	2			3			4			5			6			7			8			9			10			11			12			13
Number of hate crimes
Total, all hate crimes	3,200		(950)	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	1,400		(400)	5,700	!	(1,800)	‡		(†)	1,600		(320)	1,100		(260)	5,700	!	(1,810)	‡		(†)	1,400		(300)	1,800		(420)
Percent of schools reporting hate crimes
Total, any hate crimes3	1.0		(0.20)	‡		(†)	1.6	!	(0.52)	3.1		(0.68)	1.9		(0.28)	0.7	!	(0.29)	4.3		(0.62)	3.7		(0.63)	2.3		(0.25)	1.1	!	(0.39)	4.2		(0.69)	4.6		(0.68)
Hate crimes motivated by bias against      a specific characteristic4
Race or color	0.6		(0.17)	‡		(†)	0.7	!	(0.26)	2.0		(0.54)	1.6		(0.25)	0.7	!	(0.29)	3.3		(0.59)	2.6		(0.49)	1.7		(0.25)	0.8	!	(0.35)	3.0		(0.63)	3.5		(0.61)
National origin or ethnicity	0.3	!	(0.09)	‡		(†)	0.6	!	(0.26)	0.9	!	(0.26)	0.9		(0.21)	0.6	!	(0.27)	1.7		(0.37)	1.4		(0.35)	1.1		(0.20)	‡		(†)	2.0		(0.54)	2.0		(0.45)
Sex	0.1	!	(0.05)	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	0.4	!	(0.22)	0.4	!	(0.15)	‡		(†)	0.5	!	(0.25)	0.6	!	(0.21)	0.4		(0.12)	‡		(†)	0.8	!	(0.31)	0.9		(0.28)
Religion	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	0.4		(0.12)	‡		(†)	1.0	!	(0.32)	0.5	!	(0.18)	0.5		(0.13)	‡		(†)	0.9	!	(0.29)	0.8	!	(0.27)
Disability	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	0.3	!	(0.10)	‡		(†)	0.7	!	(0.27)	‡		(†)	0.3	!	(0.11)	‡		(†)	0.5	!	(0.25)	0.5	!	(0.21)
Sexual orientation5	0.3		(0.08)	‡		(†)	0.5	!	(0.23)	1.1		(0.33)	0.6		(0.14)	‡		(†)	1.3		(0.32)	1.2		(0.27)	0.7		(0.15)	‡		(†)	1.1		(0.32)	1.6		(0.43)
Gender identity6	0.2	!	(0.08)	‡		(†)	‡		(†)	0.5	!	(0.21)	0.4		(0.11)	‡		(†)	0.8	!	(0.28)	0.6		(0.18)	0.6		(0.15)	‡		(†)	1.1	!	(0.37)	1.2	!	(0.36)

†Not applicable.

!Interpret data with caution. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is between 30 and 50 percent.

‡Reporting standards not met. Either there are too few cases for a reliable estimate or the coefficient of variation (CV) is 50 percent or greater.

1Total includes data for combined schools, which are not shown separately because they did not meet reporting standards. Combined schools include those with all combinations of grades (including K-12) that do not correspond to the definition of specific school levels presented in this table. Total includes data for elementary schools, although some data in the Elementary columns are suppressed due to reporting standards not being met.

2Elementary schools are defined as schools that enroll students in more of grades K through 4 than in higher grades. Middle schools are defined as schools that enroll students in more of grades 5 through 8 than in higher or lower grades. Secondary/high schools are defined as schools that enroll students in more of grades 9 through 12 than in lower grades.

3In the total percentage of schools reporting any hate crime, each school that reported one or more hate crimes is counted only once, even if the school reported multiple hate crimes and hate crimes motivated by multiple types of bias.

4Schools that reported hate crimes motivated by multiple types of bias are counted separately under each type of bias reported.

5Sexual orientation was defined as "one's emotional or physical attraction to the same and/or opposite sex."

6Gender identity was defined as "one's inner sense of one's own gender, which may or may not match the sex assigned at birth."

NOTE: A hate crime was defined as a "committed criminal offense that is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender's bias(es) against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity." Hate crimes are also known as bias crimes. "At school" was defined as including activities that happen in school buildings, on school grounds, on school buses, and at places that hold school-sponsored events or activities. Respondents were instructed to include incidents that occurred before, during, or after normal school hours or when school activities or events were in session.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16, 2017-18, and 2019-20 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), 2016, 2018, and 2020. (This table was prepared June 2022.)