This report presents an analysis of data from New Jersey school districts on incidents of violence and vandalism in the public schools of the state. An incident is defined as an act of malicious intent to injure another individual (violence); willfully destroy property (vandalism); or possess, sell, or distribute controlled dangerous substances. This report is an analysis of county summaries from the 1990-91 school year and of trends over time (1985-91). Six findings are listed, including these: (1) the total of all incidents of violence, vandalism, and substance abuse increased by 10% from 1989-90 to 1990-91; (2) the increase can be accounted for principally by an increase in the number of fights recorded; (3) 7-year trends show a decline in the number of incidents of vandalism and substance abuse and a return to the level of prior years of incidents of violence; and (4) along with the general decline in the number of incidents of vandalism, the cost of vandalism declined significantly. The report also outlines the many department initiatives that impact on the prevention of violence, vandalism, and substance abuse. These initiatives cover substance abuse prevention and intervention, suicide prevention, character and values education, youth employment, urban education and school-based decision making. The report concludes with six recommendations intended to enhance school districts' capacity to prevent and to reduce incidents of violence, vandalism, and substance abuse. The appendixes include legislation, forms and instructions, annotated lists of department publications (34 items), and state board resolutions regarding student behavior. (ABL)