SWYS 2001 News - Teens Feel Safe in Southwest Wisconsin

Teens Who Feel Safe in Their Community
Teens who "agree" or "strongly agree" with the statement, "I feel safe walking around in my community".

More than 90% of 7th through 12th graders in southwest Wisconsin feel safe walking around in their communities and that same percentage is not involved in gang activity. About 80% of southwest Wisconsin teens don't get involved in physical fights, although fights don't stop just because the students aren't on the playground anymore.

Those are among the findings of the Southwest Wisconsin Youth Survey (SWYS) survey conducted by 19 of 31 school districts in the Cooperative Educational Service Agency (CESA) District 3. The school districts of Argyle, Barneveld, Benton, Belmont, Black Hawk, Cassville, Darlington, Dodgeville, Iowa-Grant, Lancaster, Mineral Point, Pecatonica, Platteville, Potosi, River Ridge, River Valley, Seneca, Shullsburg and Southwestern surveyed more than 5,700 students in September of 2001. UW-Extension faculty in Grant, Iowa and Lafayette counties are involved in processing and presenting the findings.

"The teen survey asked students to provide information on a wide variety of topics including community issues. When asked how much they agreed with the statement ‘I feel safe walking around in my community,' 47% of the teens strongly agreed and 46% agreed. Teens who strongly disagreed with feeling safe in the community also reported lower levels of family rule enforcement and parental monitoring", says Ruth Schriefer, Iowa County Family Living Agent. "Although they feel safe, teens in southwest Wisconsin are not content with the number of fun things offered for kids their age in their communities. This satisfaction decreases dramatically as the teens get older with a range of 59% of 7th grade boys and girls who agree that there are plenty of fun things to do to only 23% of 12th grade boys and 7% of 12th grade girls who agree with that idea."

"Eighty percent of all students surveyed report that they were not involved in any physical fights and yet 3% of all students reported that they were involved in four or more physical fights in the month before the survey", says Tom Schmitz, Grant/Lafayette County UW-Extension Youth Development Educator. "Teens who report increasing numbers of physical fights also indicated lower school satisfaction, lower levels of parental monitoring and enforcement of family rules, and higher rates of physical abuse by an adult."

"Another community issue centered on local law enforcement and students were asked if they could count on police if they were having a problem or needed help", reports Deb Ivey, Iowa County 4-H Youth Development Agent. "Most of the students agreed with statement (69%) and girls were more likely to see the police as a resource in a time of need. In general, 7th and 8th grade students report seeing the police as a resource most often."

Ivey also reviewed the survey data for indications of neighborhood monitoring. "Neighborhood monitoring can be described as other adults looking out for your kids", explains Ivey. "In the survey, about 87% of all students believed that if an adult in their town saw them drinking alcohol, smoking, vandalizing property, or doing drugs, they would probably tell their parents."

According to Grant County Interim Family Living Agent Christina Kenney, being part of a community involves concern, care and help for others. Kenney found that the teens in southwest Wisconsin are caring and considerate. "About 97% of the teens reported that it is important to help other people and that same number indicated they also care about other people's feelings. These numbers were consistent across the grade levels and gender lines", says Kenney.

Kenney also reports that only 69% of males and 74% of females believe that adults in their communities respect and listen to their opinions, values and ideas. "The girls were more confident that adults were listening with a range of 69% of the junior girls to 82% of freshmen girls. About 63% of the sophomore boys thought other adults respected and listened to them while 74% of freshmen boys agreed with that statement."

The SWYS survey was funded in large part by the Grant County Tobacco-Free Coalition, the Lafayette County Tobacco-Free Coalition and the Iowa County Tobacco Coalition. Other funders included Lafayette County Families First, participating school districts, the Department of Transportation, United Way of Iowa County, Iowa County Family Preservation and Support, UW-Extension Southern District Resource Management Team, the Biddick Foundation, the Alliant Foundation, and the Iowa County Domestic Violence Task Force.

A full report on the SWYS survey results is due out this spring. Schmitz, Kenney, Ivey and Schriefer are also giving community presentations on the data. For more information on the survey contact your local school district, Schmitz or Kenney at 723-2125 or Ivey and Schriefer at 935-0391.

Return to 2001 News Releases

Tom Schmitz, Grant/Lafayette County Youth Development Educator
Youth and Agriculture Center P.O. Box 31, Lancaster, WI 53813
Phone: 608-723-2125   Fax: 608:723-4315   
E-mail: thomas.schmitz@ces.uwex.edu