Report on the Implementation of the Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 in the States and Outlying Areas: School Year 2002-03

摘要

The Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 (GFSA) was reauthorized by Section 4141 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) as amended by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110). GFSA requires that each state or outlying area receiving federal funds under the ESEA have a law that requires all local education agencies (LEAs) in these states and outlying areas to expel from school for at least one year any student found bringing a firearm to school or possessing a firearm at school. State laws also must authorize the LEA chief administering officer to modify, in writing, any such expulsion on a case-by-case basis. In addition, the GFSA states that the law must be construed so as to be consistent with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The GFSA requires states and outlying areas to report information about the implementation of the GFSA annually to the secretary of education. In order to meet this requirement and to monitor compliance with the GFSA, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) requires each state and outlying area to submit an annual report that provides information on student expulsions by various categories. Reporting for the 2002-03 school year changed slightly. States and outlying areas were asked to provide additional data on incidents in the GFSA 2002-03 report found in Appendix B. Question 1b and the alternative placement questions (Questions 3a and 3b) of the GFSA report were the additions. Several states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and outlying areas misinterpreted Question 1b and, therefore, a data caveat explaining the misinterpretation is located on each state and outlying area profile. In addition, several did not have specific information on alternative placements due to the timing of data collection. Following information on data interpretation and quality, this report summarizes the 2002-03 data submitted by the states and outlying areas, first with a brief summary of the overall findings, and then with a summary of the 2002-03 data in bulleted, graphic, and tabular form as well as with a comparison between the 2002-03 data and data submitted in previous years. The report also presents the data submitted by each state and outlying area, as well as any caveats or notes accompanying the respective data. Finally, there are two appendices to the report as noted above: Appendix A contains a copy of the amended Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 and Appendix B contains a copy of the 2002-03 GFSA data collection instrument for states and outlying areas.