ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — Bullying and drug use in New York schools passed pre-pandemic levels statewide in the 2023/2024 school year, with official reports of violent crimes like assault almost disappearing—not necessarily because of safer hallways, but because of new reporting guidelines. State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli released the findings on Monday in an audit of safety data from the 2017/2018 school year through last year.
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“Reliable public data about school safety is critical and informs where we need to address problems and identify solutions,” DiNapoli said in a press release Monday. “It’s disturbing to see the rise in bullying and drug-related incidents.”
Schools reported bullying more than any other type of incident during 2023/2024. Statewide, administrators logged 29,718 cases, about 1.24 incidents for every 100 students.
New York City saw the biggest increase. There, reports of bullying rose from 1.05 incidents per 100 students in 2019/2020 to 2.58 in 2023/2024. That increase coincided with NYC officials clarifying harassment definitions and examples in their disciplinary codes in 2021. The report converted that incident rate into a percentage, claiming 2.6% students reported being bullied at school.
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But upstate—meaning every county not in NYC except Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess, Ulster, and Sullivan—bullying took a back seat. Despite an increase since returning to class in person, bullying still hadn’t reached the pre-COVID levels in 2023/2024 in secondary school, which included middle schools, junior highs, and high schools…