After East Montpelier, Vt., canceled school seven times because of bomb threats, officials instituted a new policy: classes move outside when threats are called in, and trucks haul in lunch and Porta Potties.

Schools everywhere are experimenting with security measures developed in juvenile jails. Unmanned metal detectors--around which students can pass weapons--are out, and random checks with wand detectors are in. Urged on by the President, many schools have adopted uniforms--or at least require tucked-in shirts, which can't hide pistols. Some districts have purchased surveillance cameras or fancy fire alarms that guard against pranks. But critics complain that such measures erase whatever fragile trust exists between students and administrators, making it less likely for kids to offer information about students on the edge. (Even at touchy-feely Trumbull, sophomore Mike Schubert notes the dangers: "You want to keep your mouth shut, or you might end up dead somewhere.") What's more, the high-tech gizmos probably couldn't have prevented any of the shootings of the past two years. Real prevention is much harder; it means addressing the underlying causes of violence. The boys involved in last year's shootings shared three traits: they were estranged from family and classmates (in some cases owing to poorly treated mental illness); they had immersed themselves in a violent entertainment subculture; and they had ready access to guns.

So does anything work? Sort of. Dedicated mentors can make a difference, and--though they sound hopelessly mushy--programs that help bullies deal with frustration have been shown to reduce school violence. Schools that try very hard to connect to families and communities can find potentially destructive students earlier. Not surprisingly, the districts that have had the most success are the ones with schools in or near big cities, which have had to combat violence the longest. Five years ago, DeKalb County officials in Georgia were finding so many weapons on campus that they began a campaign to alert parents.

"We spoke at churches, community groups--and we stressed gun responsibility," says Garry McGiboney, who heads the system's disciplinary tribunal. "We'd tell them, 'If you think your kids don't know you have a gun, you're kidding yourself. Or if you think they don't know where that gun is, you're also kidding yourself.'"

DeKalb officials urge kids to warn them about troubled classmates, and a civic group gives $100 rewards for students who tattle on weapons violators. Counselors look for bullies; dogs hunt for guns. DeKalb has this success to report: five years ago, it confiscated 76 weapons; this year, it confiscated "only" eight. That may be the best schools can do. "The society outside our schools today means the unbelievable availability of weapons and the reinforcement of the violence culture by the media," says Jose Garcia, principal of a Florida middle school that had a fatal shooting in 1997. "No principal can shut that out of a school. Nobody can."

Questions

1. What steps can schools take in an effort to prevent violence on campus?

2. What deeper social issues underlie the problem of campus violence?

Answers

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