Hundreds of people in the US have been killed in shootings in places like offices, stores and theaters over the past 25 years, but the carnage may hit hardest when it takes place in schools and universities.
In those cases, the victims are children who still have some of their baby teeth, newly adult students with career and family dreams, and teachers who often become role models and mentors for their young students.
A shooting Monday at a Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, was the latest in a long list of shootings at American schools and colleges since the Columbine High School massacre in Colorado in 1999.
The shootings include:
ABUNDANT LIFE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, December 2024, 2 deaths
A 15-year-old student killed another teen and a teacher at a nondenominational Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, just a week before the start of the Christmas holidays, police said. She also injured six others and died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
APALACHEE HIGH SCHOOL, September 2024, 4 deaths
A 14-year-old student opened fire at a high school in Winder, Georgia, with an assault rifle, killing two other 14-year-old students and two teachers, authorities said. Students took shelter in classrooms — eventually fleeing to the football stadium — as officers swarmed the campus. The shooter surrendered and is charged with murder. That includes his father, who is accused of knowingly giving his son the gun.
PERRY HIGH SCHOOLJanuary 2024, 2 deaths
A 17-year-old opened fire at a high school in Perry, Iowa, just before classes on the first day after winter break, killing a sixth grader and wounding the school’s principal, who risked his life to save students and later died of his injuries. Four others were injured, and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation said the gunman also died of what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
THE CONNECTED SCHOOLMarch 2023, 6 deaths
A 28-year-old gunman, wielding two “assault rifles” and a handgun, killed three students and three adults at a private Christian school in Nashville. The gunman, who police said had previously visited the school, died after being shot by police.
RICHNECK ELEMENTARY SCHOOLJanuary 2023, 1 injured
A first-grade teacher in Newport News, Virginia, was shot in the hand and chest by a 6-year-old student who said he was using his mother’s gun, according to police search warrants. The boy’s mother was charged with child neglect and sentenced to two years in prison.
STARTS HERE, January 2023, 2 deaths
An 18-year-old man with a gun entered a common area of a school for at-risk students in Des Moines, Iowa, and shot at teens before fleeing in a car driven by another teen. A 16-year-old and 18-year-old student were killed and the school’s founder was injured. Authorities said the shooting stemmed from an ongoing gang dispute.
CENTRAL VISUAL ARTS AND PERFORMANCE ARTS HIGH SCHOOL, 2 deaths
An armed, 19-year-old former student broke into a St. Louis high school and warned, “You’re all going to die!” before fatally shooting a teacher and a teenage girl. He also wounded seven others before police killed him in a gunfire.
ROBB PRIMARY SCHOOLMay 2022, 21 deaths
An 18-year-old gunman opened fire at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, killing 19 children and two adults. Law enforcement officers killed the attacker.
OXFORD HIGH SCHOOLNovember 2021, 4 deaths
A college sophomore killed four people and injured others at his school in Oxford, Michigan, near Detroit. Authorities said his parents failed to obtain a gun and ignored their son’s mental health needs before the shooting. Both were charged and convicted of involuntary manslaughter. The shooter is serving a life sentence for murder and other crimes.
SANTA FE HIGH SCHOOLMay 2018, 10 deaths
A gunman opened fire at a Houston-area high school, killing 10 people, most of them students. A then 17-year-old student was charged with murder but was later declared incompetent to stand trial, and he has been held in a state hospital since 2019.
MARJORY STONEMAN DOUGLAS HIGH SCHOOLFebruary 2018, 17 deaths
A gunman opened fire at a school in Parkland, Florida, killing fourteen students and three staff members and wounding many others. The shooter was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
UMPQUA COMMUNITY COLLEGEOctober 2015, 9 deaths
A man killed nine people at a school in Roseburg, Oregon, and injured nine others. He then committed suicide.
MARYSVILLE-PILCHUCK HIGH SCHOOLOctober 2014, 4 deaths
A 15-year-old used text messages to lure several cousins and friends to his cafeteria table at Marysville-Pilchuck High School in Washington state. He fatally shot four of them before killing himself.
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SANTA BARBARAMay 2014, 6 deaths
A 22-year-old student, frustrated by sexual rejection, fatally stabbed or shot six students near the school in Isla Vista, California. He injured several others before killing himself.
SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOLDecember 2012, 27 deaths
A 19-year-old man murdered his mother in their home in Newtown, Connecticut, then went to nearby Sandy Hook Elementary School and killed 20 first-graders and six teachers. He took his own life.
OIKOS UNIVERSITYApril 2012, 7 deaths
A former nursing student shot and killed seven people at a small private school in East Oakland, California. He died in prison in 2019.
NORTHERN UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOISFebruary 2008, 5 deaths
A 27-year-old former student shot and killed five people and injured more than 20 others at a school in DeKalb, Illinois, before killing himself.
VIRGINIA TECHApril 2007, 32 deaths
A 23-year-old student killed 32 people on campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, in April 2007; more than two dozen others were injured. The shooter then committed suicide.
WEST NICKEL MINES AMISH SCHOOLOctober 2006, 5 deaths
A 32-year-old man entered an Amish schoolhouse near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, turned the boys away, tied up the girls and fatally shot five of them before killing himself. Five others were injured.
RED LAKE HIGH SCHOOLMarch 2005, 9 deaths
A 16-year-old student killed his grandfather and the man’s companion in their Minnesota home and then went to nearby Red Lake High School, where he killed five students, a teacher and a security guard before shooting himself.
COLUMBINE HIGH SCHOOLApril 1999, 13 deaths
Two students killed twelve of their peers and a teacher at a school in Littleton, Colorado, and injured many others before killing themselves.