IRS

Information and Reporting Services

SCHOOL SAFETY AND THE EDUCATIONAL CLIMATE

Data Collection || Data Reporting || Accountability


School Safety & Accountability

The "School Safety & Accountability" section contains links to other information regarding SSEC reporting (formerly known as VADIR/DASA reporting).

Federal law requires each state to determine annually which public elementary and secondary schools are “persistently dangerous.” Each state may set its own criteria to assess and compare levels of violence across schools. New York bases its “persistently dangerous” determinations on two years’ worth of VADIR data. Since 2008 New York used a “School Violence Index” (SVI) comprised of a sum of weighted incidents divided by the school’s K-12 enrollment.

Schools designated as persistently dangerous must submit to SED an Incident Reduction Plan explaining the steps to be taken to increase school safety.  In order to be removed from the list, the school superintendent (or chief executive officer of a charter school) must petition the Commissioner of Education.  Before the petition for removal is granted, SED will:
  • Review the school’s most recent SSEC data to verify that the school no longer meets the criteria for designation  
  • Evaluate the school’s SSEC data collection system and data extracts to ensure that the system captures the required information and reports incidents accurately  
  • Conduct a site visit to:
    • Review individual report records for reporting accuracy
    • Review progress with the implementation of the Incident Reduction Plan
    • Complete a safety walk-through to determine that the school meets acceptable standards for safety and security

Once a school meets all of these conditions, the Commissioner (or designee) may grant the petition and remove the school from the list of persistently dangerous schools. 

Safe Schools Against Violence in Education (SAVE) Reports

For professional development and technical assistance: NYS Center for School Safety external link

 

Last Updated: June 5, 2020