Violence Rose In Worcester Public Schools Last Year, Data Shows

WORCESTER, MA — There was an increase in violent incidents at Worcester Public Schools from the 2023-2024 school year to the 2024-2025 school year, according to data provided to the School Committee.

The school district has seen an increase in both physical and verbal assaults on employees, as well as more instances of fighting, marijuana use and possession of weapons, like knives, according to the data.

The data covers every school in the district, as a spokesperson for the district clarified, it does not separate incidents by grade or school level.

The data shows that there were 158 instances of physical assault on an employee in the 2024-2025 school year, up from 92 instances in the 2023-2024 school year. There were 127 instances of verbal assault on an employee in the 2024-2025 school year, up from a total of 107 in the 2023-2024 school year.

The percentage of both physical and verbal assaults on an employee went up by a considerable margin.

“We take any incident involving harm to staff seriously,” wrote school district spokesperson Daniel O’Brien in a statement to Patch.

Similarly, there were 23 more fighting incidents in 2024-2025 than in 2023-2024, bringing the total to 222 between the school years, according to the data. However, the number of instances of physical assaults on a student actually went down from 369 in the school year 2023-2024 to 336 in the school year 2024-2025.

“In addition to reviewing data entry practices to ensure accuracy and consistency across all schools, WPS is taking several steps to reduce physical incidents from occurring,” said O’Brien. “These steps include increased and consistent training for staff on physical and emotional de-escalation techniques, behavioral supports, and trauma-informed practices. Additionally, WPS will continue to strengthen communication, training and support systems for both staff safety and student well-being.”

Apart from violent incidents, there were 83 marijuana related offenses in 2024-2025, up from 51 in 2023-2024. Additionally, between the two school years, there were seven bomb threats, 110 instances of possession of knives, both large and small.

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