US shootings: Highest average casualties at educational institutions

Educational institutions record the highest average casualties in US shooting incidents, highlighting persistent safety risks for students and faculty

The active shooting incident at Brown University on December 13 in the United States (US) left two students dead and nine wounded, after the attacker Claudio Neves Valente opened fire on the campus building. Valente then proceeded to kill Nuno Loureiro, a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a fellow Portuguese native, who allegedly studied together in the same academic programme as Valente in Portugal in the 1990s.  

Fewer casualties in 2024

  In 2018, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation recorded 5 active shooter incidents at educational institutions, in which 29 people were killed and 52 wounded. The casualties (both dead and wounded people) were fewer in 2024 than in 2018. 

  Most shooting incidents at open spaces 

Open spaces and commercial establishments were the major targets of such shooting incidents during 2020-24. However, the highest average casualties were seen when educational institutions became the target. 

  Rise in deaths of Indian students  The number of Indian students killed abroad due to violence and attacks rose from just 1 in 2019 to 7 in 2024. Of the 7 deaths, 4 were in Canada, while the US and Aus­tralia saw 2 and 1 deaths, respectively.  In a recent incident, a 20-year-old Indian-origin doctoral student was shot dead on December 26, near the University of Toronto Scarborough campus in Canada.