How Much Bullying Happens In Your Somerset County School District?

SOMERSET COUNTY, NJ— Newly released data shows exactly how much bullying happened in New Jersey schools last year, and the results are promising.

Statewide, bullying was down statewide, according to self-reported data released by the state Department of Education. In Somerset County districts all 19 schools reported at least 1 incident of any kind.

The top five Somerset County school districts with most incidents are:

1. Franklin Township - 122
2. Bridgewater-Raritan Regional - 107
3. Bound Brook Borough - 79
4. Somerville Borough - 55
5. North Plainfield Borough - 53

Five types of incidents were measured: violence, vandalism, weapons, substances and HIB (harassment, intimidation and bullying) offences. Most types of violence were fights, and the most common type of weapon for a student to be found with was a knife or similar object.

The data also includes instances of cyberbullying, which might not have happened on school grounds.

A total of 666 incidents were reported at 19 school districts in Somerset County, with violence leading the most with 234 incidents. Followed by HIB with 195, Substance with 150, Vandalism with 62 and Weapons with 49.

A total of five Somerset County school districts had less than 10 incidents reported:

1. Bedminster Township - 1
2. Branchburg Township - 2
3. Watchung Borough - 2
4. Green Brook Township - 6
5. Somerset County Vocational - 9

You can see the full data for Somerset County here:

You can find state- data by clicking here.

Are you happy with how your district handles bullying? Let Patch know in the comments.

(Image via Shutterstock)

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