Next week, the State Board of Education will release the Annual Report of School Crime and Violence. This report tracks serious crimes like possession of drugs, sexual assault, arson, and robbery.

The report shows that school violence increased for the 2005-2006 school year. Last year there were 10,959 total acts of crime and violence or 7.9 acts per 1,000 students. This is up from 10,107 acts or 7.49 acts per 1,000 students for the 2004-2005 school year. There was a 10.9 percent increase in the number of reported cases of the possession of a controlled substance and a 7.1 percent increase in cases of the possession of a weapon.

Last year, the Charlotte Observer reported that school crime numbers are higher than what the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools disclosed to the public. It is safe to assume that incidents of crime and violence continue to be underreported statewide.