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While gun violence in high, middle and even elementary schools across the nation receive massive publicity, violence and conflict of a less horrific but very damaging nature is much more prevalent in our schools. Consider that more Americans aged 15 to 24 die from violence than from any other cause. Recent studies have established that more than half of high school girls nationwide will experience violence at the hands of dates or boyfriends before they graduate. More than half a million high school students attempt suicide every year. Youth violence is an equal opportunity threat. It happens in leafy suburbs as well as in gritty urban precincts. Confronted by gruesome headlines about school shootings, many schools have opted for quick-fix preventive measures like installing metal detectors or mandating uniform dress codes. Comprehensive, systematic long-term remedies are more difficult and more elusive.
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