Elementary School Violence Growing Quickly In This Montana City

As much as we don't like to hear about violence in schools, talking about it can be even harder. The truth is, Montana is no stranger to experiencing this type of violence, and that includes Billings.

Billings is seeing a huge jump in elementary school violence, specifically.

For example Billings School District 2 had 30 incidents of students assaulting teachers in 2016. In 2023, that number grew to 90 incidents, and approximately 88 percent of those violent occurrences happened in elementary schools.

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As a parent, those numbers are not only scary but also sad. I can't imagine being a teacher and going to school and wondering if there is going to a book or a chair thrown at you. Or a student yelling and threatening me with violence.

 SCHOOL VIOLENCE STATISTICS

A recent survey showed that 65 percent of Billings teachers do not feel safe at their schools and 35 percent of teachers feel like they need to constantly watch their backs. This is not a feeling that any teacher should ever have to experience. Imagine if the teachers are feeling this way, the students must also feel threatened as well.

What can be done to help teachers and students feel more safe in a place that used to considered a "safe zone"? Do more cameras need to be installed? More security presence? Of course there isn't just one answer to fix these issues, but there does need to be some sort of action taken.

Billings isn't the only city experiencing in-school violence. Nationally, there has been a spike in student-on-teacher assaults.

cc: Billings School District 2