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Table 35.  Percentage of public schools with a threat assessment team, by frequency of threat assessment team meetings and selected school characteristics: School year 2015–16

 
  Percentage distribution of frequency of threat assessment team meetings for schools with threat assessment teams  
School characteristic Percentage of schools with a threat assessment team   At least once a week   At least once a month   On occasion   Never  
All public schools 41.6   9.2   27.3   61.5   2.0 !
                   
Level1                  
Primary 39.4   5.8 ! 27.7   63.6   2.9 !
Middle 45.2   12.3   23.9   62.7   1.1 !
High School 52.0   14.3   30.1   54.5  
Combined 27.9        
                     
Enrollment size                    
Less than 300 30.9   7.6 ! 20.5   69.5    
300–499 39.7   7.9   31.4   59.5    
500–999 45.1   9.6   24.7   62.7   3.0 !
1,000 or more 56.6   11.9   34.5   52.9    
                     
Locale                    
City 47.0   9.7   31.8   56.6    
Suburb 44.5   8.6   29.9   59.5    
Town 33.9   17.0   24.7   54.2    
Rural 36.3   5.8 ! 18.7   74.2    
                     
Crime level where students live2                    
High 51.5   6.3 ! 42.2   51.5    
Moderate 43.9   12.6 ! 30.8   56.3    
Low 38.7   8.8   23.6   65.3   2.3 !
Mixed 43.8   7.2   24.2   62.9    
                     
Percent combined enrollment of Black, Hispanic, Asian, Pacific Islander, and American Indian/ Alaska Native students, and students of Two or more races                    
Less than 5 percent 39.4     14.6 ! 76.3    
5 to less than 20 percent 39.8   12.3   24.1   58.9   4.8 !
20 to less than 50 percent 42.6   11.4   25.0   62.4    
50 percent or more 42.4   6.0   32.4   60.4    
                     
Percent of students below 15th percentile on standardized tests                    
0–5 percent 39.8   10.0   28.2   57.7   4.2 !
6–15 percent 41.2   10.8   20.3   66.6   2.2 !
More than 15 percent 43.4   6.8   34.2   58.6    
                     
Percent of students likely to attend college                    
0–35 percent 38.2   4.2 ! 28.6   67.1    
36–60 percent 37.4   12.8   29.9   56.6    
More than 60 percent 44.6   9.2   26.0   61.7   3.2 !
                     
Percent of students who consider academic achievement very important                    
0–25 percent 37.5     28.4 ! 70.8    
26–50 percent 41.9   8.9 ! 31.7   57.3    
51–75 percent 39.1   11.0   26.9   60.9    
More than 75 percent 43.4   9.1   26.0   62.3   2.6 !
                     
Percent male enrollment                    
0–44 percent 42.5   3.6 ! 25.1 ! 66.5    
45–55 percent 41.9   10.2   26.9   61.1   1.7 !
More than 55 percent 38.1   3.7 ! 33.3   60.5    
                     
Student-to-FTE ratio3                    
Less than 12 students 36.3   11.0 ! 21.0   65.9    
12–16 students 44.1   10.4   32.0   56.6    
More than 16 students 41.3   7.8   25.4   64.0   2.8 !
                     
Number of classroom changes4                    
0–3 changes 41.6   3.9 ! 22.0   71.1    
4–6 changes 41.4   9.4   31.1   57.7    
More than 6 changes 41.8   12.7   26.1   59.5    
                     
Regular use of security staff5                    
Regular use 48.0   10.1   29.1   59.2   1.6 !
No regular use 33.3   7.3   24.1   65.8    
                     
Number of serious discipline problems6                    
No problems 41.2   8.3   27.1   62.9   1.7 !
1 problem 41.3   12.6 ! 25.9   56.3    
2 problems 42.8   9.1 ! 29.0   61.4    
3 or more problems 50.2   16.4 ! 34.8   47.3    
                     
Transfers as a percentage of enrollment7                    
Less than 6 percent 44.1   7.6   24.1   64.2   4.1 !
6 to less than 11 percent 37.3   12.3   26.8   58.3    
11 to less than 21 percent 40.2   8.7   27.8   62.4   1.1 !
21 percent or more 44.4   9.0 ! 31.3   59.8    
                     
Prevalence of schoolwide disruptions8                    
No disruptions 40.1   9.2   26.4   62.3   2.2 !
Any disruptions 57.2   9.1 ! 34.5   55.5    
                     
Percent of students absent
on a daily basis
                   
0–2 percent 34.1   7.9 ! 17.2 ! 71.0    
3–5 percent 40.9   8.0   25.1   65.2   1.6 !
6–10 percent 44.0   12.5   34.3   51.2    
More than 10 percent 48.3   6.2 ! 27.6   62.9    
                     
Prevalence of violent incidents 9                    
No violent incidents 35.3   2.9 ! 24.9   71.4    
Any violent incidents 44.4   11.4   28.2   57.9   2.5 !
!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.
1Primary schools are defined as schools in which the lowest grade is not higher than grade 3 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 8. Middle schools are defined as schools in which the lowest grade is not lower than grade 4 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 9. High schools are defined as schools in which the lowest grade is not lower than grade 9 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 12. Combined schools include all other combinations of grades, including K–12 schools.
2Respondents were asked, "How would you describe the crime level in the area(s) in which your students live?" Response options included "high level of crime," "moderate level of crime," "low level of crime," and "students come from areas with very different levels of crime."
3Student-to-FTE ratio was calculated by dividing the total number of students enrolled in the school by the total number of full-time-equivalent teachers and aides. The total number of full-time-equivalent teachers and aides is a combination of the full-time and part-time teachers and aides, including special education teachers and aides, with an adjustment to compensate for the part-time status.
4Respondents were asked, "How many classroom changes do most students make in a typical day?" Responses exclude morning arrival and afternoon departure.
5Regular use of security staff includes full- or part-time school resource officers, sworn law enforcement officers, or security guards or security personnel present at school at least once a week.
6Serious discipline problems include student racial/ethnic tensions, student bullying, student sexual harassment of other students, student harassment of other students based on sexual orientation, student harassment of other students based on gender identity, widespread disorder in classrooms, student verbal abuse of teachers, student acts of disrespect for teachers other than verbal abuse, and gang activities. If a respondent reported that any of these problems occurred daily or weekly in their school, each was counted once in the total number of serious discipline problems.
7Transfers as a percentage of enrollment combines the number of students who were transferred to a school and the number of students who were transferred from a school divided by the total number of students enrolled in the school.
8Schoolwide disruptions include actions that disrupted school activities such as death threats, bomb threats, and chemical, biological, or radiological threats. Respondents were instructed to exclude all fire alarms, including false alarms.
9Violent incidents include rape or attempted rape, sexual assault other than rape (including threatened rape), physical attack or fight with or without a weapon, threat of physical attack with or without a weapon, and robbery (taking things by force) with or without a weapon.
NOTE: A threat assessment team is a formalized group of persons who meet on a regular basis with the common purpose of identifying, assessing, and managing students who may pose a threat of targeted violence in schools. Responses were provided by the principal or the person most knowledgeable about school crime and policies to provide a safe environment.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015–16 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), 2016.