Newswise — Following are Purdue University experts who can talk about school and youth violence in the aftermath of the Minnesota killing rampage Monday (3/2) that left 10 people dead and injured several others). A student at Minnesota's Red Lake High School shot 21 people, including classmates, a teacher and his grandparents, and killing nine before turning the gun on himself. It is the country's deadliest school shooting since 1999's massacre at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo.
Thomas K. Capozzoli, a professor of organizational leadership and supervision, can talk about a wide range of issues related to school violence, including prevention techniques, safety procedures and sources of violence. He is the author of the book "Kids Killing Kids: Violence and Gangs in Schools," which was published shortly after the 1999 shooting at Colorado's Columbine High School, which left 15 dead.
Capozzoli, who is also director of Purdue's College of Technology in Kokomo and Lafayette, Ind., has also studied schools shootings in Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Oregon and Arkansas and is a frequent consultant on workplace and school safety.
Jean Peterson, associate professor in educational studies, can talk about how bullying can lead to violence. Her recent study, due to be published soon, points out the depth of feelings related to peer victimization at school. She says there are steps teachers and school administrators can take to anticipate and avoid incidents of violence.
J. William (Jack) Spencer, associate professor of sociology who studies youth violence, can talk about issues related to school shootings. He also looks at the cultural meanings of such events, and how the media depict acts of youth violence in school shootings. Spencer can talk about the frequency of school violence and how school shootings compare to other forms of youth violence.
During summer 2004, he worked as a fellow at the Crime Control Policy Center in Indianapolis on a book about how the media portray violent youth.
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