Suburban students reported the highest rate of school victimization in the country in 2024, according to a federal report released this month. The federal government classifies Hilliard City School District as "Suburban, Large."

The Bureau of Justice Statistics report, published in September 2026, found that nonfatal violent victimization at school rose from 14.2 per 1,000 students in 2023 to 21.8 per 1,000 in 2024 among students ages 12 to 18. Total victimization, which includes theft, reached 27.0 per 1,000 at school, compared with 17.7 per 1,000 away from school.

Students in suburban areas reported a total victimization rate of 31.5 per 1,000, the highest of any locale. Rural students reported 11.0 per 1,000. The urban rate was 27.0 per 1,000, though the report cautioned that estimate is less reliable because of a small sample size. Hilliard City School District serves roughly 16,068 students across Franklin County, according to federal enrollment data.

Simple assault drove much of the increase, Stateline reporter Amanda Watford reported. When simple assault was excluded, the rate of violent victimization at school was 5.8 per 1,000 in 2024. That figure did not differ significantly from 2023 or from a decade earlier. The BJS report also found no statistically significant change in the overall violent victimization rate from 2014 to 2024.

The data comes from the National Crime Victimization Survey, a self-report survey covering crimes experienced from July 1, 2023, through Nov. 30, 2024. In 2024, the survey used a split-sample design during a transition to a redesigned instrument, which reduced estimate precision.

The BJS report found no statistically significant differences in total victimization at school by race, ethnicity or gender. Household income mattered: students in families earning less than $25,000 a year reported 60.3 victimizations per 1,000, more than three times the rate for students in households earning $100,000 or more.

Hilliard City Schools has not publicly responded to the federal report. The district maintains several safety programs. Six Hilliard Division of Police officers serve as school resource officers at the district's three middle schools and three high schools for the 2026-27 school year. In February 2026, Hilliard Police Lt. Tyler Harris received the FBI Director's Award for establishing a district-wide Threat Assessment and Threat Management Team in partnership with the district and the FBI.

On Aug. 17, more than 2,100 district employees participated in the annual Safety Training Day alongside Hilliard police and Norwich Township Fire Department personnel, running active-shooter drills at Hoffman Trails Elementary, Heritage Middle School and Hilliard Darby High School.

Ahead of that training, Superintendent David Stewart said in an Aug. 8 statement, "We all hope a day like this never comes but hope isn't a plan."

Theft at school has declined over the longer term, falling from 14.1 per 1,000 students in 2014 to 5.2 per 1,000 in 2024.

The Hilliard Board of Education meets Monday, Sept. 28, at Central Office at 6:30 p.m. No agenda item related to the federal report has been confirmed.