Education provides us with knowledge and perspective when growing up.
It helps us to form opinions and views on the way the world works, and acts as a foundation
for success in later life.
A safe school for students and teachers is essential so we can study hard and gain a
good education.
But as with all human social environments, where people of different ages and cultural
backgrounds spend many hours together each day, there will always be disruption and danger.
On today’s show, we’re going to look at schools in America.
Which are the most dangerous, what makes them dangerous, and why some schools are more dangerous
than others.
We’ll be reviewing all the latest government data, seeing what the media has to say, and
building our list of 10 schools that top the crime list.
Welcome to this episode of the Infographics Show: The Most Dangerous Schools in America.
At number 10, we have Wilkinsburg Middle School in Pennsylvania.
A study by the Pennsylvania think tank, Commonwealth Foundation, found the worst-performing schools
in the state to be five times more likely to be the location of violent crimes.
Wilkinsburgh was found to have the highest crime rate in Pennsylvania with 137 incidents
per 100 students.
Wilkinsburgh Senior High followed with a rate of 78 incidents per 100 students, with the
two combining to make 192 assaults on both teachers and students in the years 2010-2011.
Next at number 9, let’s take a look at Northwestern High School Baltimore, Maryland.
This city is famous for a few things including Edgar Allen Poe, the TV show The Wire, and,
of course, the Baltimore Ravens.
But the city still has a lot of work to do.
With a crime rate of 1,417 per 100,000 residents, this school is located in an unfortunate area
where the criminal behavior overlaps into the education system.
At number 8 is Dewit School New York.
This school in the Bronx would be as dangerous inside the walls as it is on the streets outside,
if it was not for the metal detectors that greet students when they arrive for class.
Weapons such as brass knuckles, guns, and knives were seized 33 times during routine
screenings in 2010.
It became known as New York’s most heavily armed school.
In the same year, the school had 252 reports of violent or disruptive behavior.
At number 7 is Fort Pierce Westwood High School St. Lucie.
This school was featured in the news in 2017, when a 10th-grade student was arrested at
the school and charged with possession of a weapon on school property, possession of
a controlled substance without a prescription, possession of marijuana with intent to sell,
possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Number 6 is Strawberry Mansion High School in Philadelphia.
ABC news reported in 2013 that this school of 437 students had 94 security cameras lining
the halls, and each morning students were screened for razor blades in tin foil and
knives hidden in backpacks.
Some children even came to school with Vaseline on their faces to avoid scratches in fights.
Up until 2013, the school had spent 62 years on Pennsylvania's list of "persistently dangerous
high schools.”
Lucky for the school, Principal Linda Cliatt-Wayman arrived to pull it out of trouble, which partially
turned the school around.
At number 5, we have Abraham Lincoln High School in Philadelphia.
It has been federal law since 2006 that states must label schools that meet a certain number
of crimes per student for two or more consecutive years as “persistently dangerous.”
In Pennsylvania, Lincoln High has made the list every year since the rule took effect.
In December 2017, three students from the school were arrested and charged as adults
in the beating death of a man in Northeast Philadelphia’s Holmesburg area.
At number 4, we have Northwestern Middle School in Jacksonville, Florida.
Duval county is ranked as one of the most dangerous counties in the state of Florida.
During the 2014-2015 school year, Duval County had 11,537 total incidents of crime, violence
and disruptive behavior.
The next closest on the list is Miami-Dade County with 8,854 total incidents.
Being located here does not help, and North Western Middle School reports arson, sex crimes,
weapons discovered, and approximately 3 violent fights minimum each week.
At number 3 is South Philadelphia High School.
The area is known for gang behavior and violence, but not only is it a problem outside in the
streets, it has found its way into the school classrooms and playgrounds.
Gangs are thought to be a big problem, and are being linked to increases in bullying
at the school.
Back in 2010, this was displayed at its worst, when 70 students stormed the cafeteria, beating
up several Asian students.
John Bowne High School in Queens is at number 2.
This school has been in the media on a number of occasions.
In 2017, they featured in the New York Daily News, which mentioned there had been multiple
incidents reported, including a student being stabbed, a police officer assaulted, and multiple
teens arrested with weapons and drugs.
And at number 1 we have Cutler Bay Middle School in Florida.
This school has 1,100 students and is often featured in the media, particularly for the
number of fights…as many as 188 reported in a single school year.
There have also been multiple incidents of battery, theft, and drug related issues.
It is the school with the most fighting reports in the state.
So that’s our list of the 10 most dangerous schools in America.
Do you know of other dangerous schools that should have been mentioned?
Let us know in the comments!
Also, be sure to check out our other video called 10 Most Dangerous Cities in the World
That You Should Probably NOT Visit.
Thanks for watching, and, as always, don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe.
See you next time!