Web-scraping for School Security Spending

• In Event: Methodological Pluralism for Comprehensive Evaluation of the Implementation and Impacts of School Security Equipment

Abstract

Objectives or purposes
Although we know that the school security industry has blossomed into a multi-billion dollar industry, expenditures on school security remain poorly understood including types and amounts of security expenditures. The purpose of this study is to provide methodological guidance for systematically gathering and analyzing data on school security spending. It uses a case study of Virginia public schools to demonstrate the potential and possibilities of this approach.

Perspective(s) or theoretical framework
Conceptually, we situate this study within the framework of neoliberalism, where actors endeavor to solve social problems such as school violence through market-based initiatives. We understand schools’ spending on security and surveillance to represent only one possible approach to addressing school violence, and view it as particularly representative of a neoliberal approach to the issue.

Methods
We use web-scraping methods to identify and collect relevant data on Virginia public schools’ security-related spending. These methods include both automated extraction of publicly available data and a series of theoretically informed filters and decisions to balance the sensitivity and specificity of the web scraping.

Data sources, evidence, objects, or materials
All public entities in Virginia are required by state law to have transparent processes for procurement of services including bidding and awarding of contracts. We capitalize on this required documentation by using these public posts as our data. These data sources include school district websites and a state repository of all spending by Virginia state government entities, including public schools and districts.

Results
This data collection process yields a longitudinal dataset of school districts’ spending on school safety, security, and surveillance. It paints a picture of how much money schools spend on these initiatives, what kind of products and services they purchase, and what industry vendors are receiving public money.

Scientific or scholarly significance of the study or work
Spending on school safety and security has massive implications for both research and practice, but little existing research has been able to systematically collect data on the nature of this spending. The methods demonstrated here offer a proof of concept for how these data can be collected and used by researchers on school safety, the economics of education, and others. As we collectively work to make schools safer places, these methods show promise especially for examining the extent to which neoliberal approaches to improving school safety actually move the needle on outcomes of interest.

Authors

• Benjamin W. Fisher, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Samantha L. Viano, George Mason University

• Sai Kumar Koneti, George Mason University