Nearly 80% of North Carolina public schools reported five or fewer acts of reportable criminal offenses during the 2024-25 academic year, with 44% of schools reporting none at all, according to a new annual report presented to the State Board of Education. The report shows declines in school crime, violence, suspensions, and dropout rates compared to previous years.
The data indicate that fewer than 1% of the state’s approximately 1.5 million students committed a reportable offense, while less than 13% received any form of disciplinary action such as suspension, alternative placement for disciplinary reasons, or expulsion. The groups with the highest rates for both reportable offenses and suspensions included male students, Black students, economically disadvantaged students, and students with disabilities; however, these groups also saw decreases compared to prior years.
Suspension rates were highest among middle grades (6-8), and grade 9 continued to be identified as the primary risk point for suspensions, reportable offenses, and dropouts.
“Students and educators deserve safe places to teach, learn and grow,” said North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction Maurice “Mo” Green. “While there is still work to be done to address instances of reportable criminal offenses, it is good to know that the vast majority of our schools experience a minimal amount of such acts and that more than 99% of our public school students are not committing these acts. It is also encouraging to see the downward trend of not only in those offenses, but also declines in suspensions and dropouts, as we know how critical being in school is to student success.”
The newly titled discipline, alternative learning and dropout data report now includes executive summaries alongside full tables and charts. While it presents trends over ten years, officials emphasized focusing on post-pandemic years due to COVID-19’s impact on education.
“While the report includes 10-year trends, it’s critical to separate data before and after the COVID-19 pandemic due to its impacts on the education landscape,” said Dr. Michael Maher, Chief Accountability Officer at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. “This year’s report provides evidence of continued improvements in school safety across North Carolina’s public schools and points to areas for further study to strengthen our understanding of student support across the academic continuum.”
In line with its strategic plan aiming for educational excellence by 2030, NCDPI highlighted actions including establishing targeted transition initiatives from middle-to-high school; expanding annual reporting with advanced analyses; and continuing training for local education units on discipline-related data.
The annual discipline report is required by law to be submitted each year by March 15.
During the 2024-25 year there were 11,470 reported acts among both student and non-student offenders—representing a decrease for a third consecutive year. Over three-quarters (78.2%) of schools had between zero and five incidents—a slight improvement over last year. Instances classified as seven specific crimes dropped by nearly 7%, while violent crimes remained rare.
About two-thirds of all offenses involved possession of controlled substances or alcoholic beverages. Possession of controlled substances increased slightly (by about 1.5%), remaining the most common offense in both middle and high schools.
Rates for in-school suspension fell more than ten percent compared with last year; roughly eight percent of students received this consequence statewide. Alternative learning placements as discipline also decreased for a third straight year.
Short-term out-of-school suspensions have declined over three years running; long-term suspensions fell as well; expulsions remained rare at just thirty-four cases statewide during the academic year.
Dropout numbers continue trending down: there were just over ten thousand statewide during 2024–25—a decrease from last year—with ninth graders remaining most at risk.
For corporal punishment—no instances were reported anywhere in North Carolina for a seventh consecutive year.
