Chardon High Shooting Follows Pattern of Student Gunmen

An unidentified 17-year-old gunman opened fire in the school cafeteria at Chardon High School in Ohio on February 27, 2012. The assailant shot four boys and one girl, with one of the victims being pronounced dead at the hospital shortly upon arrival. While details are still scarce, authorities have stated that at 9 A.M. the shooter had been detained after fleeing on foot a short distance from the school. School district administrators have shut down county schools for the day, and have sent out messages to parents advising them that remaining students are safe. While each school shooting occurrence sends a wave of shock through the community and heightens the anxiety in each family home, the details surrounding each shooter in recent history are disturbingly similar. Of the few statements released from current Chardon students, the gunman was described as, an outcast who felt bullied with another student claiming the shooter had actually made a post on the social media site Twitter, alluding to his plans of bringing firearms to school, which the student had not taken seriously at first glance. These few statements construct a picture of a person not too unlike other infamous gunmen around the country, who claimed to have felt slighted and treated unjustly by society. These sentiments often stem from interactions with those in their home life, school, community, or others that have made efforts to bully them. In schools, bullying is often a result of perceived lower social status, cognitive impairments, and other superficial measures of character. Most school shooters in the past have felt bullied or rejected by their peers and this young man appears to be no exception. A study by the Secret Service identified characteristics that school shooters appeared to have in common. They plan, acquire weapons, and take a very public path leading up to the shooting. They feel rejected by peers, but have some friends that often know of their plans. With only two exceptions, all school shooters have been male and feel they have grievances against others. The earliest school shooting in the US was recorded in 1784 near Greencastle, PA. Four Lenape American Indians entered a school and killed the school master and eight or nine children. Thirteen school shootings were recorded in the 1800s. Fifty-six were recorded from 1900 to 1989. Today, school violence remains a threat in districts all over the country and can single-handedly uproot the peace of mind in communities. While the anxiety can be overwhelming at the time of a shooting, it is critical that parents, teachers, and administrators be well-versed in picking up on the signs of a student contemplating these violent behaviors. These students are often described as keeping to themselves, but having a habit of confiding their plans in a select few friends. Many times these plans will be conveyed in a fleeting statement to a close friend, but the potential shooter has usually already gone through meticulous plans of acquiring firearms and a list of people they feel have wronged them in the past. To ensure the most efficient prevention plans for school violence, students and teachers alike need to understand that threats of violence are to be taken seriously. In my own experience dealing with children and adolescents prone to violence, many of these students come from a fractured family background, making personal attachment very difficult and creating an overall sense of distrust in the childs life. These people tend to have a me against the

world mentality whereby those in the community are perceived to be the enemy. As their sense of self-worth dwindles, they feel that they must prove their own strength, and that eventual imprisonment or suicide is better than their current state. The proper psychological assessments can unveil the roots of a students problems, whether it is prior trauma, poor attachment, or deficiencies in brain growth. So often these kids lives can be made better by therapists who are able to frame their problems in a different way and help them get away from the me against the world mentality. Overall, by combing the use of risk assessments with training for staff, schools can become better at identifying those most at risk for violence and take the necessary actions to help troubled youth. While it will require proactive time and effort to focus on prevention, its a small price to pay when considering that it could save the lives of many of todays youth.