I recently updated an article for Campus Safety Magazine, and I am sharing some updated statistics and sources with you in today’s post.  The article addresses some of the unintended consequences that could occur if classroom barricade devices are used as a retrofit security measure, and the products’ impact on fire safety, emergency response, unauthorized use, accessibility, and potential liability.

I’d like to focus on three statistics related to school security and safety, as I have seen cases where facilities are trying to address the possibility of an active shooting and have overlooked other hazards in the process.  I’ve written about these at length before, and you can read more in the updated Campus Safety article, so here the brief summaries:

• Fires in Educational Facilities:  Some proponents of classroom barricade devices have argued that security should be prioritized over fire safety because fires rarely occur in schools. In reality, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that between 2018 and 2022, an average of 3,768 structure fires occurred each year in U.S. educational facilities. Because of strong code requirements and proactive enforcement, fatalities in these fires are extremely rare. However, without the codes protecting the life safety of building occupants, it’s likely the high-fatality school fires of the past would reoccur.
• School Crime and Nonfatal Victimization: The practice of storing a barricade device next to a classroom door could allow an unauthorized person to deploy it, effectively trapping occupants in a room against their will. The risk of school crime should not be underestimated. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2022, students ages 12–18 experienced about 568,100 criminal victimizations at school, including thefts and nonfatal violent victimizations (the latter includes rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault). While school shootings are a very serious threat, they are not nearly as common as other types of crimes that occur in schools.  It’s crucial for school staff and emergency responders to be able enter a room quickly to render aid.
• Active Shooter Events:  In comparison with the statistics above, active shooter events in educational facilities are relatively rare.  According to the FBI report: Active Shooter Incidents in the United States in 2023, there were a total of 48 incidents in 2023 that met the definition of an active shooter event.  Of those 48 active shooter events, three occurred in educational facilities:  Michigan State University (three fatalities, five injuries), Covenant Presbyterian School in Nashville (six fatalities, one injury), and University of Nevada, Las Vegas (three fatalities, one injury).

Of course, every school shooting is a tragedy, and there are important steps to be taken to help ensure that schools and classrooms are protected against unwanted entry.  But the security of these buildings must be improved in a way that will not negatively affect fire protection, accessibility, response by staff and emergency responders, nor increase the liability of school districts, colleges, and universities.

Click here to read the article on Campus Safety’s website.

For FBI statics on previous years, you can access the annual reports here.

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