Safety in Numbers: Collecting and Using Crime, Violence, and Discipline Incident Data to Make a Difference in Schools
Home/Introduction
Chapter 1
  Using Data to Make a Difference
Chapter 2
    Meeting the Challenges of Data Collection
Chapter 3
    Reporting Incident Data
Chapter 4
    Collecting Data
Conclusions
Endnotes
References
Appendices
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Contact:
Ghedam Bairu
(202) 502-7304

Chapter 4: Collecting Data

4.1  Incident Data and Codes 4.2  Perpetrator Information
  Incident Identifier   Perpetrator
  School Number   Perpetrator ID
  Incident Date   Perpetrator Injury
  Time 4.3 Victim Information
  Location (Where)   Victim
  Facilities Code   Victim ID
  Cost   Victim Injury
  Reporter 4.4 Discipline Information
  Reporter ID   Disciplinary Action
  Weapon Type   Start Date of Disciplinary Action
  Injury   End Date of Disciplinary Action
  Reported to Law Enforcement   Duration of Disciplinary Action
  Related Elements   Related to Special Education Manifestation Hearing
      Alcohol-Related   Related to Zero Tolerance Policy
      Drug-Related   Full Year Expulsion
      Gang-Related   Shortened Expulsion
      Hate-Related    
      Weapon-Related    
  Incident Codes    

4.2 Perpetrator Information

These variables identify the type of perpetrator (offender) involved in the incident. As illustrated in figure 4-1 discussed above, recording this information in a separate module permits linking to the incident data table and student and staff databases.18 This will facilitate the coding of multiple perpetrators.

Perpetrator. The codes provided below permit very specific recording of the type of individual(s) who committed the incident. Again, individual schools and districts may find that capturing such detailed information is not useful. If that is the case, use code 100 to record that a student was the perpetrator rather than codes 110 or 120 to describe exactly what type of student committed the incident. Thus, to be comparable, two locales need not both use the specific codes because all "100s" represent students.

100 Student The perpetrator was an individual who was enrolled in an instructional program in a school at the time the incident occurred.
110 Student enrolled in the school where the incident occurred The perpetrator was a regularly enrolled student in the school where the incident was reported at the time the incident occurred.
120 Student enrolled in another school The perpetrator was a student who, at the time the incident occurred, was enrolled in a school other than the one where the incident was reported.
130 Suspended or expelled student The perpetrator was a student who was suspended or expelled from regular classes in the school at the time the incident occurred.
200 Professional Staff The perpetrator was a member of the professional staff at the school at the time the incident occurred.
210 Teacher The perpetrator was a teacher in the school at the time the incident occurred.
220 Substitute The perpetrator was a substitute teacher in the school at the time the incident occurred.
230 Media specialist/
Librarian		 The perpetrator was a media specialist or librarian in the school at the time the incident occurred.
240 Counselor The perpetrator was a school counselor (e.g., guidance counselor) in the school at the time the incident occurred.
250 Social worker/
School psychologist		 The perpetrator was a social worker or school psychologist in the school at the time the incident occurred.
260 Medical staff The perpetrator was a member of the medical staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
297 Other professional staff The type of perpetrator cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the perpetrator was a professional staff member.
300 Administrator The perpetrator was an administrator in the school (or school district) at the time the incident occurred.
310 Principal/Head of school The perpetrator was principal or head of the school at the time the incident occurred.
320 Assistant principal/ Vice principal The perpetrator was an assistant principal or vice principal in the school at the time the incident occurred.
330 Dean The perpetrator was a dean in the school at the time the incident occurred.
340 District level administrator The perpetrator was a district level administrator at the time the incident occurred.
350 School board member The perpetrator was a school board member in the school district at the time the incident occurred.
397 Other administrator The type of perpetrator cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the perpetrator was an administrator.
400 Other School Staff The perpetrator was another school staff member (e.g., school support personnel, maintenance personnel) in the school at the time the incident occurred.
410 Bus driver/
Transportation staff		 The perpetrator was a bus driver or member of the transportation staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
420 Clerical staff The perpetrator was a member of the clerical staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
430 Custodial staff The perpetrator was a member of the custodial staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
440 Food service staff The perpetrator was a member of the food service staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
450 Paraprofessional, aide, assistant The perpetrator was a paraprofessional, aide, or assistant in the school at the time the incident occurred.
460 Security personnel The perpetrator was a security officer (for law enforcement officer's see code 500) in the school at the time the incident occurred.
497 Other staff The type of perpetrator cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the perpetrator was a school staff member.
500 Law Enforcement Officer The perpetrator was a law enforcement officer at the time the incident occurred.
510 Municipal law enforcement officer assigned to the school The perpetrator was a municipal law enforcement officer (e.g., town, city, county police officer, school resource officer, sheriff) assigned to the school.
520 Municipal law enforcement officer not assigned to the school The perpetrator was a municipal law enforcement officer (e.g., town, city, county police officer, school resource officer, sheriff) not assigned to the school.
530 School district police officer assigned to the school The perpetrator was a school district police officer (i.e., directly employed by the school district) assigned to the school for some or all of the school day at the time the incident occurred.
540 School district police officer not assigned to the school The perpetrator was a school district police officer (i.e., directly employed by the school district) not assigned to the school for some or all of the school day at the time the incident occurred.
597 Other law enforcement officer The type of perpetrator cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the perpetrator was a law enforcement officer.
600 Nonschool Personnel The perpetrator was an individual who did not attend or work for the school (e.g., parent, community member).
610 Parent/guardian The perpetrator was a parent or guardian of a student.
620 Representative of
visiting school		 The perpetrator was a representative of a visiting school (e.g., teacher, coach).
630 Other adult The perpetrator was another adult in the community.
640 Nonstudent youth The perpetrator was a nonstudent youth (e.g., dropout).
697 Other nonschool personnel The type of perpetrator cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the perpetrator was another type of nonschool personnel.
999 Unknown The perpetrator is unknown.

Perpetrator ID. This variable allows coding of pre-existing school or district staff and student identifiers, when the perpetrator is a student or staff member. This will allow descriptive information about the individual to be linked to the incident via the student or staff database.19

Perpetrator Injury. Record whether or not the perpetrator was physically injured, and if so, identify whether the injury was major or minor.

10 Minor injury The perpetrator received a minor physical injury as a result of the incident. A minor injury is one that does not require professional medical attention such as a scrape on the body, knee or elbow; and/or minor bruising. Medical attention from the school nurse qualifies the injury as minor unless further medical attention is required.
20 Major injury The perpetrator received a major physical injury as a result of the incident. A major injury is one that requires professional medical attention which may include, but is not limited to, a bullet wound, a stab or puncture wound, fractured or broken bones, concussions, cuts requiring stitches, and any other injury with profuse or excessive bleeding.
96 No injury No one was physically injured during the course of the incident.

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4.3 Victim Information

These variables identify the type of victim involved in the incident. As discussed above, recording this information in a separate data table permits links to the incident module and student and staff databases.20 This will facilitate the coding of multiple victims.

Victim. The codes provided below permit very specific recording of the type of individual(s) victimized in an incident. Again, individual schools and districts may find that capturing such detailed information is not useful. If that is the case, using code 100 records that a student was victimized. It is not necessary to code 110 or 120 to describe exactly what type of student was victimized. Thus, to be comparable, two locales need not both use the specific codes, since all "100s" represent students.

100 Student The victim was an individual who was enrolled in an instructional program in a school at the time the incident occurred.
110 Student enrolled in the school where the incident occurred The victim was a regularly enrolled student in the school where the incident was reported at the time the incident occurred.
120 Student enrolled in another school The victim was a student who, at the time the incident occurred, was enrolled in a school other than the one where the incident was reported.
130 Suspended or expelled student The victim was a student who was suspended or expelled from regular classes in the school at the time the incident occurred.
200 Professional Staff The victim was a member of the professional staff at the school at the time the incident occurred.
210 Teacher The victim was a teacher in the school at the time the incident occurred.
220 Substitute The victim was a substitute teacher in the school at the time the incident occurred.
230 Media specialist/
Librarian		 The victim was a media specialist or librarian in the school at the time the incident occurred.
240 Counselor The victim was a counselor (e.g., guidance counselor) in the school at the time the incident occurred.
250 Social worker/ School psychologist The victim was a social worker or school psychologist in the school at the time the incident occurred.
260 Medical staff The victim was a member of the medical staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
297 Other professional staff The type of victim cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the victim was a professional staff member.
300 Administrator The victim was an administrator in the school (or school district) at the time the incident occurred.
310 Principal/Head of school The victim was the principal or head of the school at the time the incident occurred.
320 Assistant principal/Vice principal The victim was an assistant principal or vice principal in the school at the time the incident occurred.
330 Dean The victim was a dean in the school at the time the incident occurred.
340 District level administrator The victim was a district level administrator at the time the incident occurred.
350 School board member The victim was a school board member in the school district at the time the incident occurred.
397 Other administrator The type of victim cannot be captured by one the above codes, but the victim was an administrator.
400 Other School Staff The victim was another school staff member (e.g., school support personnel, maintenance personnel) in the school at the time the incident occurred.
410 Bus driver/
Transportation staff		 The victim was a bus driver or member of the transportation staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
420 Clerical staff The victim was a member of the clerical staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
430 Custodial staff The victim was a member of the custodial staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
440 Food service staff The victim was a member of the food service staff in the school at the time the incident occurred.
450 Paraprofessional, aide, assistant The victim was a paraprofessional, aide, or assistant in the school at the time the incident occurred.
460 Security personnel The perpetrator was a security officer (for law enforcement officers see code 500) in the school at the time the incident occurred.
497 Other staff The type of victim cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the victim was a school staff member.
500 Law Enforcement Officer The victim was a law enforcement officer at the time the incident occurred.
510 Municipal law enforcement officer assigned to the school The victim was a municipal law enforcement officer (e.g., town, city, county police officer, school resource officer, or sheriff) assigned to the school.
520 Municipal law enforcement officer not assigned to the school The victim was a municipal law enforcement officer (e.g., town, city, county police officer, school resource officer, or sheriff) not assigned to the school.
530 School district police officer assigned to the school The victim was a school district police officer (i.e., directly employed by the school district) assigned to the school for some or all of the school day at the time the incident occurred.
540 School district police officer not assigned to the school The victim was a school district police officer (i.e., directly employed by the school district) not assigned to the school for some or all of the school day at the time the incident occurred.
597 Other law enforcement officer The type of victim cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the victim was a law enforcement officer.
600 Nonschool Personnel The victim was an individual who did not attend or work for the school (e.g., parent, community member).
610 Parent/guardian The victim was a parent or guardian of a student.
620 Representative of
visiting school		 The victim was a representative of a visiting school (e.g., teacher, coach).
630 Other adult The victim was another adult in the community.
640 Nonstudent youth The victim was a nonstudent youth (e.g., dropout).
697 Other nonschool personnel The type of victim cannot be captured by one of the above codes, but the victim was another type of personnel.
700 None Use this code for incidents where no persons were victimized (e.g., vandalism, drug possession).

Victim ID. This variable allows coding of pre-existing school or district staff and student identifiers when the victim is a student or staff member. This allows descriptive information about the individual to be linked to the incident via the student or staff database.21

Victim Injury. Record whether or not the victim was physically injured and, if so, identify whether the injury was major or minor.

10 Minor injury The victim received a minor physical injury as a result of the incident. A minor injury is one that does not require professional medical attention such as a scrape on the body, knee or elbow; and/or minor bruising. Medical attention from the school nurse qualifies the injury as minor unless further medical attention is required.
20 Major injury The victim received a major physical injury as a result of the incident. A major injury is one that requires professional medical attention which may include, but is not limited to, a bullet wound, a stab or puncture wound, fractured or broken bones, concussions, cuts requiring stitches, and any other injury with profuse or excessive bleeding.
96 No injury No one was physically injured during the course of the incident.
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