Virginia High School Safety Study

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The Virginia High School Safety Study examined student safety, discipline, and support practices that best maintain a safe and orderly school environment and facilitate learning. Our study was initiated in 2007 with a statewide survey of ninth grade students and teachers that assessed school climate and safety conditions. Survey results were then linked to other state databases such as school discipline records, standardized achievement results, and graduation rates.

Thanks to the support of the Virginia Center for School Safety in the Department of Criminal Justice Services and the Department of Education, more than 90% of Virginia’s public high schools participated in the student and teacher surveys. We have produced a series of studies that have been presented at state and national conferences and published in scientific journals in education and psychology.

One-page Research Summaries

To communicate key study findings more concisely to high school administrators, we prepared a series of one-page research summaries. For copies, click below.

Issue 1: Be Strict or Be Supportive?		Issue 2: How Should Schools Respond to Student Threats of Violence?
Issue 3: How Much Teacher Victimization Occurs in Virginia High Schools?		Issue 4: How Can We Encourage Students to Seek Help to Prevent Violence?
Issue 5: Does School Safety Influence SOL Achievement?		Issue 6: Why do Suspension Rates Vary so Much From School to School?
Issue 7: How are Suspension Rates Related to Dropout Rates?		Issue 8: Can a Supportive School Climate Reduce Suspension Rates for Black and White Students?
Issue 9: Do Larger Schools Really Have more Bullying and Student Victimization?

Study Reports Background Report. We prepared a background report with details of survey administration, content, and results. Download the Executive Summary (10 pages) or the Full Report (132 pages, including Executive Summary). 2008 Symposium at the American Psychological Association National Convention. Download a two-page summary of these findings, which show how school demographics, disciplinary structure, and student support efforts are consistently associated with safety outcomes.

Referred Journal Articles

To obtain a copy of one of these articles, send us a request.

1. Gregory, A., Cornell, D., & Fan, X. (in press). The relationship of school structure and support to suspension rates for Black and White high school students. American Educational Research Journal.

2. Cornell, D., Gregory, A., & Fan, X. (in press). Reductions in long-term suspensions following adoption of the Virginia Student Threat Assessment Guidelines. Bulletin of the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

3. Cornell, D., Klein, J., Konold, T., & Huang, F. (2011). Effects of validity screening items on adolescent survey data. Psychological Assessment. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1037/a0024824

4. Lee, T., Cornell, D., Gregory, A., & Fan, X. (2011). High suspension schools and dropout rates for black and white students. Education and Treatment of Children, 34, 167-192

5. Gregory, A., Cornell, D., Fan, X., Sheras, P., Shih, T., & Huang, F. (2010). Authoritative school discipline: High school practices associated with lower student bullying and victimization. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102, 483-496.

6. Eliot, M., Cornell, D., Gregory, A., & Fan, X. (2010). Supportive school climate and student willingness to seek help for bullying and threats of violence. Journal of School Psychology, 48, 533-553.

7. Klein, J., & Cornell, D. (2010). Is the link between large high schools and student victimization an illusion? Journal of Educational Psychology, 102, 933-946. doi: 10.1037/a0019896

8. Gregory, A., & Cornell, D. (2009). “Tolerating” adolescent needs: Moving beyond zero tolerance policies in high school. Theory into Practice, 48, 106-113.

9. Bandyopadhyay, S., Cornell, D., & Konold, T. (2009). Internal and external validity of three school climate scales from the School Climate Bullying Survey. School Psychology Review, 38, 338-355.

10. Cornell, D., Sheras, P., Gregory, A., & Fan, X. (2009). A retrospective study of school safety conditions in high schools using the Virginia Threat Assessment Guidelines versus alternative approaches. School Psychology Quarterly, 24, 119-129.

Papers in progress:

11. Mehta, S., Cornell, D., Fan, X., & Gregory, A. (submitted). Bullying climate and school engagement in ninth grade students.

12. Thompson, A., Gregory, A., Cornell, D., Fan, X. (submitted). Are schools fair for all? An examination of black and white student perceptions of their school environment.

13. Lacey, A., & Cornell, D. (2011, August). The impact of bullying climate on schoolwide academic performance. Poster presented at the Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.

14. Cornell, D., Gregory, A., Huang, F., & Fan, X. (submitted). Bullying climate predicts high school dropout rates.