Minneapolis shooting: From Columbine to FSU, a 25-year timeline of tragic US school and college shootings

The recent mass shooting at a Minneapolis church where Catholic school students were attending Mass represents the latest incident in a devastating pattern of violence that has plagued American educational institutions for over two decades.

Hundreds of individuals have lost their lives in shootings across various venues including offices, retail establishments, cinemas and other locations throughout the US, yet the impact appears most profound when these tragedies occur within schools and colleges where children and young adults frequently become victims.The casualties in these incidents range from young children still possessing their primary teeth to newly adult students harbouring aspirations for careers and families, alongside teachers and religious leaders who often serve as role models and mentors to their pupils.

Wednesday's attack in Minneapolis, Minnesota, continues a grim chronology of assaults targeting students that commenced with the 1999 Columbine High School massacre in Colorado.Recent incidents heighten concerns over educational safetyThe chronological record reveals a persistent threat to educational environments across the United States. In January 2025, Antioch High School in Tennessee witnessed a 17-year-old student fatally shoot one peer and injure another before taking his own life with a handgun.

This incident preceded another tragedy at the University of New Mexico in July 2025, where an 18-year-old individual was apprehended following a dormitory shooting that killed a 14-year-old boy, wounded a 19-year-old, and necessitated the evacuation of hundreds of students.Florida State University experienced its own devastating incident in April 2025 when the 20-year-old son of a sheriff's deputy discharged his mother's former service weapon on campus, resulting in two fatalities and at least six wounded individuals.

The perpetrator is scheduled for trial in November 2025.2024 marked by multiple educational tragediesThe year 2024 witnessed several significant incidents across American educational institutions. Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, became the scene of tragedy in December 2024 when a 15-year-old female student killed another teenager and a teacher within the nondenominational Christian institution, occurring merely one week before Christmas holidays commenced.

The incident resulted in six additional wounded individuals before the perpetrator died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.Earlier in September 2024, Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, experienced a devastating attack when a 14-year-old student utilised an assault-style rifle to kill two fellow 14-year-old students and two teachers. Students sought refuge in classrooms before ultimately evacuating to the football stadium as law enforcement officers surrounded the campus.

The shooter surrendered and faces murder charges alongside his father, who stands accused of knowingly permitting his son access to the weapon.Perry High School in Iowa confronted tragedy in January 2024 when a 17-year-old opened fire just before classes on the first day following winter break. The incident claimed the life of a sixth-grader and wounded the school principal, who later succumbed to his injuries after attempting to save students.

Four additional individuals sustained injuries, whilst the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation reported the shooter died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.Nashville and Virginia incidents highlight vulnerability of young victimsThe Covenant School in Nashville became the site of a particularly devastating attack in March 2023 when a 28-year-old shooter wielding two assault-style rifles and a pistol killed three students and three adults at the private Christian institution.

Police reported the shooter had previously attended the school before being fatally shot by responding officers.An unprecedented incident occurred at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia, in January 2023, when a first-grade teacher sustained gunshot wounds to her hand and chest inflicted by a six-year-old student who utilised his mother's handgun, according to police search warrants. The child's mother subsequently faced charges of felony child neglect and received a two-year prison sentence.Educational programmes and alternative schools targetedStarts Right Here, a school for at-risk students in Des Moines, Iowa, became the scene of violence in January 2023 when an 18-year-old individual armed with a handgun entered a common area and discharged the weapon at teenagers before fleeing in a vehicle driven by another teenager. The incident resulted in the deaths of a 16-year-old and 18-year-old student, with the school's founder sustaining injuries.

Authorities indicated the shooting stemmed from an ongoing gang dispute.Central Visual Arts and Performing Arts High School in St. Louis witnessed tragedy when a 19-year-old former student forcibly entered the premises, announcing threats before fatally shooting a teacher and a teenage girl. Seven additional individuals sustained wounds before police killed the perpetrator in an exchange of gunfire.Uvalde tragedy stands as one of deadliest incidentsRobb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, experienced one of the most devastating attacks in May 2022 when an 18-year-old shooter killed 19 children and two adults before law enforcement eliminated the attacker.

This incident ranks among the deadliest in the chronology of school violence.Oxford High School near Detroit, Michigan, suffered an attack in November 2021 when a sophomore student killed four individuals and wounded others. Authorities determined his parents failed to secure firearms and ignored their son's mental health needs prior to the shootings. Both parents faced charges and convictions for involuntary manslaughter, whilst the shooter received a life sentence for murder and additional crimes.Texas and Florida schools experience significant casualtiesSanta Fe High School in the Houston area witnessed a May 2018 shooting that claimed 10 lives, predominantly students. A then-17-year-old student faced capital murder charges but was subsequently declared incompetent to stand trial and has remained in a state mental hospital since 2019.Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, endured a February 2018 attack that killed 14 students and three staff members whilst injuring numerous others.

The perpetrator received a sentence of life without parole.Western states and community colleges affectedUmpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, experienced tragedy in October 2015 when an individual killed nine people and wounded nine others before taking his own life. Earlier incidents included Marysville-Pilchuck High School in Washington state, where a 15-year-old utilised text messages to gather several cousins and friends to his cafeteria table in October 2014, fatally shooting four before killing himself.The University of California, Santa Barbara, witnessed violence in May 2014 when a 22-year-old student, reportedly frustrated over sexual rejections, fatally stabbed or shot six students near the campus in Isla Vista, California. Several others sustained injuries before the perpetrator killed himself.Earlier tragedies established pattern of educational violenceSandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, experienced one of the most shocking incidents in December 2012 when a 19-year-old individual killed his mother at their residence before proceeding to the nearby school where he killed 20 first-graders and six educators before taking his own life.Oikos University in East Oakland, California, witnessed an April 2012 attack when a former nursing student fatally shot seven individuals at the small private college. The perpetrator died in prison in 2019.Northern Illinois University in DeKalb faced tragedy in February 2008 when a 27-year-old former student shot and killed five people whilst wounding more than 20 others before killing himself. Virginia Tech in Blacksburg experienced one of the deadliest incidents in April 2007 when a 23-year-old student killed 32 people on campus with more than two dozen others wounded before the gunman killed himself.Historical incidents demonstrate long-standing patternThe West Nickel Mines Amish School near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, became the site of tragedy in October 2006 when a 32-year-old individual entered the schoolhouse, dismissed the boys, bound the girls, and fatally shot five before killing himself whilst wounding five others.Red Lake High School in Minnesota witnessed violence in March 2005 when a 16-year-old student killed his grandfather and companion at their residence before proceeding to the nearby school where he killed five students, one teacher, and one security guard before shooting himself.The chronology commences with Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, where two students killed 12 peers and one teacher in April 1999, injuring many others before taking their own lives. This incident established the foundation for a pattern of educational violence that continues to affect American schools and colleges across multiple decades.Here’s the full list with year and death toll for over past 25 yearsMinneapolis shooting live updates: 2 children killed, 17 injured after shooter opened fire during church school Mass1. Columbine High School, Colorado (1999) – 13 dead2. Red Lake High School, Minnesota (2005) – 9 dead3. West Nickel Mines Amish School, Pennsylvania (2006) – 5 dead4. Virginia Tech, Virginia (2007) – 32 dead5. Northern Illinois University, Illinois (2008) – 5 dead6. Oikos University, California (2012) – 7 dead7. Sandy Hook Elementary School, Connecticut (2012) – 27 dead8. University of California, Santa Barbara, California (2014) – 6 dead9. Marysville-Pilchuck High School, Washington (2014) – 4 dead10. Umpqua Community College, Oregon (2015) – 9 dead11. Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Florida (2018) – 17 dead12. Santa Fe High School, Texas (2018) – 10 dead13. Oxford High School, Michigan (2021) – 4 dead14. Robb Elementary School, Texas (2022) – 21 dead15. Central Visual Arts and Performing Arts High School, Missouri (2022) – 2 dead16. Starts Right Here, Iowa (2023) – 2 dead17. Richneck Elementary School, Virginia (2023) – 0 dead, 1 injured18. The Covenant School, Tennessee (2023) – 6 dead19. Perry High School, Iowa (2024) – 2 dead20. Apalachee High School, Georgia (2024) – 4 dead21. Abundant Life Christian School, Wisconsin (2024) – 2 dead22. Florida State University (FSU), Florida (2025) – 2 dead23. University of New Mexico, New Mexico (2025) – 1 dead24. Antioch High School, Tennessee (2025) – 2 dead25. Minneapolis church shooting, Minnesota (2025) – 2 Dead(With inputs from Associated Press)TOI Education is on WhatsApp now. Follow us here.