Worcester County Public Schools
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Published – September 20, 2024
Worcester County Public Schools (WCPS) sparred with local law enforcement after reports showed increased levels of student violence during the 2022-23 academic year. WMDT 47 News reported comments made during a press conference in February 2024:
“‘You cannot say something is a priority, and then not move on suggested safety solutions for months,’ said Worcester County Sheriff Matt Crisafulli… ‘You are far more likely to be assaulted in a Worcester County Public School than you are anywhere else in Worcester County,’ remarked Worcester County State’s Attorney Kris Heiser.”
WMDT 47 also said the district showed a 67% increase in physical attacks among students, a 171% increase in school fights, and a 32% increase in verbal threats, as well as a 225% increase in physical assaults on staff members.
WCPS officials refuted the data accusing law enforcement of only analyzing one school year.
The district’s reported rates of increase—20% in student attacks, 42% in student fights, 73% in attacks on staff, and 8% in verbal threats—included the 2018-19 and the 2022-23 academic years. Superintendent Louis Taylor said these numbers indicate “student discipline referrals” not law violations.
Regardless of the period of time shown in the data, WCPS students are proven to be increasingly violent toward authority figures and their peers. Furthermore, Attorney Heiser insisted that data provided by the district was primarily based on incidents WCPS will “admit” to occurring on school grounds. Heiser said, “These numbers don’t include weapons offenses, drug offenses, sex offenses, or disorderly conduct-type offenses.”
A back-and-forth ensued for several weeks until the district announced in March 2024 that it was ending all public communications with the Sheriff’s and State Attorney’s Office. WCPS’s official statements include the following quote in response to a video posted by Sheriff Crisafulli and Attorney Heiser:
“As stewards of the safety, well-being, and education of the thousands of students in [WCPS], the Board of Education and system staff will no longer be engaging in public statement trading with law enforcement officials. We believe it is counterproductive, and our focus must remain on keeping our schools the safe and welcoming learning environments that our students and staff deserve.”
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Worcester County Public Schools has over 6,800 students enrolled across 14 schools.
