The start of a new school year means lots of anxieties for parents: “Will Johnny have a good teacher this year? Will he be able to make friends and get along with the other children?”
Unfortunately, many families, particularly those in cities such as Washington, D.C., have more serious things to worry about — like whether their children will be safe during the upcoming school year.
The Heritage Foundation and the Lexington Institute published a report today examining the incidence of crime and violence reported at schools in the District of Columbia. According to data provided by the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, there were 900 calls to 911 concerning violent incidents at D.C. schools during the 2007–08 school year. While we should be cautious when using police data to draw conclusions about the general safety of different kinds of schools, the Metropolitan Police Department reports that a drastically higher number of crimes and violent incidents were reported at traditional public schools than at private or charter schools. In all, in D.C. public schools, there were reports of 912 incidents of violent crime, 1,338 incidents of property crime, and 1,250 other incidents.
The lack of safety in D.C. public schools has been cited by parents as a main reason why they want to be able to choose their children’s schools. Looking at the numbers of violent or criminal incidents reported at some of the District’s public schools help us see why.
It also helps us understand why the Obama administration’s decision to withdraw scholarships from the 216 students who had recently been admitted to the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program was so devastating for their families. According to our analysis, many of these 216 students are now being assigned to attend public schools with high rates of crime and violence. For example, five of these students were assigned to go to Anacostia Senior High, where 60 violent incidents (6.3 per 100 students) were reported, including 47 reports of simple and aggravated assaults. Three students were assigned to go to Ballou Senior High, where 46 violent incidents (2.2 per 100 students) were reported to the police, including 8 robberies (seven involving firearms or knives).
In an editorial today, the Washington Post highlights these findings and other compelling evidence that shows how the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program has benefited students. The Post again urges the administration and Congress to reconsider their decision to deny these low-income families the ability to choose a safe and effective school for their kids:
As we’ve said before, vouchers aren’t the answer to Washington’s school troubles; we enthusiastically support public school reform and quality charter schools, too. But vouchers are an answer for some children whose options otherwise are bleak. In Washington, they also are part of a carefully designed social-science experiment that may provide useful evidence for all schools on helping low-income children learn. Why would a Democratic administration and Congress want to cut such an experiment short?
— Dan Lips is senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation.