My mom would be horrified by the rash of violence in our schools today. The most recent tragedy at Covenant School in Nashville where three students and three adults were shot to death is devastating. It was unimaginable 40 years ago.

Mom was an elementary school secretary for 20 years. She wanted us—her four children—to become teachers. A key reason was schools were safe places for kids, teachers and staff—-places where students learned the fundamental skills required in life.

Little did our parents know that schools today would be fraught with danger. They would not have understood the mass killings since the Columbine tragedy in 1999. They would not believe the once-coveted teacher jobs are now vacant; or, the lack of respect some parents and students show teachers and administrators. Likewise, they would not have imagined citizens’ views being wantonly cast aside by school boards.

Today, we have family members who are students, teachers, coaches, administrators and school psychologists. As parents and grandparents, we worry about their safety, health and emotional well-being.

Approximately one-third of teachers report that they experienced at least one incident of verbal harassment or threat of violence from students during COVID. Even today, almost half expressed a plan or desire to quit or transfer jobs, according to Psychology Today.

PT states the most recent national indicators of school crime and safety reveal that of 3.8 million teachers, 10% (373,900) recounted that a student had threatened them with injury. Another 6%, (220,300) of teachers affirmed a student had physically attacked them.

In 2021, there were 1.4 million assaults in the United States where personal weapons, such as hands, fists or feet, were used. There were more than 1,000 murders attributed to stabbings. Additionally, there were 69,423 aggravated assaults where handguns were used, Statista Research reported last October.

Bullying was identified as a primary reason for violence in schools. Today, it is rampant.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health found one in five high school students reported being bullied on school property. More than one in six high school students reported being bullied electronically in the last year.

Gun violence is a huge problem in America today. According to The Washington Post, no less than 348,000 children have experienced gun violence at school in the USA in the last 24 years. The 2023 trend is not good. To date, there have been 130 mass shootings in our country thus far this year, which works out at just shy of 1.5 mass shootings per day. There were 51 school shootings in 2022.