Safe Schools Act would send funds directly to districts.

The Safe Schools Act of 1993 is, according to Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley, the first federal program that would allocate funds to local school districts for the specific purpose of increasing safety. The legislation, sent to Congress before the August recess, would establish a $75 million fund from which Department of Education grants could be awarded in 1994.

Under the bill, eligible school districts could receive up to $3 million per year for two years. A school district facing high rates of crime, violence and disciplinary problems could compete for funding provided that at least 6,500, or 15 percent, of its children come from economically disadvantaged families. The districts would have to submit an application that includes assessments of current problems with violence and crime, assurance that the district has written policies regarding school safety, descriptions of the community, proposals for use of grant money and a plan to establish a school-level advisory committee composed of faculty, parents, staff and students.

In order to receive the grant for a second year, the district would have to present a comprehensive, long-term school safety plan for combating and preventing school violence and discipline problems. The bill gives school districts flexibility in designing programs to meet local needs, but stipulates that no more than 33 percent of the grant can be used for metal detectors and security personnel.

According to a Department of Education spokesperson, the language of the bill emphasizes prevention and intervention. Recommended appropriate programs mentioned in the legislation include: student-led peer mediation; peer counseling; student courts; conflict resolution and social skills development for students, teachers, aides, other school personnel and parents; coordination of school-based activities designed to promote school safety and reduce or prevent school violence and discipline problems.

At the time of publication, the bill had been approved with a voice vote by the full Senate Committee, but no action had been taken in the House. Although the legislation has obvious merits, it carries with it a $75 million price tag for fiscal year 1994 and $100 million in fiscal year 1995 with the cost adjusted, according to the bill itself, to "such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 1996 and each of the two succeeding fiscal years." With controversy brewing over distribution, and, in light of budgetary problems, the cost may force an already divided Congress into drastically reducing the scope of the program or killing it entirely.

Violence on the Rise in America's Schools

* Every day, 10 Americans aged 19 and under are killed in gun accidents, suicides and homicides.

* One in seven students is affected by bullying.

* About one in 12 students has stayed home from school because they fear being hurt at school. One in five students has feared being attacked at school; one in eight has feared being attacked going to and from school.

* One in 11 students reported being a crime victim at school. Property crimes affected 7 percent of students and violent crimes victimized 2 percent.

* Fifteen percent of students reported gangs present at their schools. Of these, 35 percent feared attack at school; 24 percent feared attack going to or from school.