Federal Activities Addressing Violence in Schools
Surveillance
Monitoring the Status of Homicides Among Young People and Fatal and Nonfatal Firearm-related Assaultive Injuries
CDC is conducting descriptive analyses of data reported on death certificates filed in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Measures of mortality include the number of deaths, crude, age-specific, and age-adjusted death rates, classified in accordance with the International Classification of Diseases. Analysis is also being conducted on nonfatal firearm-related injuries treated in US hospital emergency departments (EDs) using nationally representative data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS). NEISS is operated by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. In July 2000, NEISS was expanded to capture data on all types and causes of injuries treated in EDs, including all causes of assaultive nonfatal injuries.
Lead/Funder: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC)
Collaborators: National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS)
(770) 488-4656
JLA1@cdc.gov
Lois Fingerhut
(301) 458-4213
LAF4@cdc.gov
www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars/
National Morbidity Surveillance Data Sources
CDC operates a number of data collection systems to monitor injury morbidity nationally. The NHAMCS (National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey) has data on diagnosis at visit to hospital emergency departments and place of injury occurrence. The National Health Interview Survey, beginning with 1997 data, has data on cause of injury, activity at time of injury and place of injury occurrence. These and other data sets are available to the public.
Lead/Funder: National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS)
School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey
BJS and the National Center for Education Statistics collaborated to add a special supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey to collect data on aspects of school crime. Household members aged 12 years or older who attend school were asked questions about their school environment. These data represent an estimated 22 million students, aged 12-19 years. Information was obtained on availability of drugs at school, existence of street gangs, prevalence of gang fights, presence of guns at school, victimization, and fear of being attacked or harmed.
Lead/Funder: Department of Education (ED)
Collaborators: Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)
School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS)
SHPPS is a national survey periodically conducted to assess school health policies and programs at the state, district, school, and classroom levels. SHPPS was first conducted in 1994 and was repeated in 2000. SHPPS provides information on health education, programs, environmental strategies, and policies that states, districts, and schools use to address violence prevention.
Lead/Funder: Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH)
Collaborators: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
(NCIPC), Department of Education (ED)
School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSoCS)
The School Survey on Crime and Safety is a survey used to collect data from principals about crimes, violent incidents, and policies in their schools. The study will use a nationally representative sample of elementary, middle, and senior high schools and will be conducted biennially beginning in the year 2000.
Lead/Funder: Department of Education (ED)
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS)
The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System was developed to monitor priority health risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of mortality, morbidity, and social problems among young people in the United States. The YRBSS consists of national, state, and local school-based surveys of representative samples of 9th through 12th grade students, a national household-based survey of 12- through 21- year olds, and a national mail survey of college students. The school-based surveys are conducted biennially and provide information on a variety of violence-related behaviors both on school property and in general.
Lead/Funder: Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH)
Collaborators: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
(NCIPC), Department of Education (ED)