Following two statewide conferences on the problem of violence and crime in California schools in 1974, the State Department of Justice appointed an ad hoc Committee on the Prevention and Management of Conflict and Crime in the Schools. This committee, composed of a varied group of distinguished leaders in the criminal justice and educational systems, was charged with the task of recommending approaches for reducing crime and violence in the schools. This final report brings together the committee's findings and recommendations. Key recommendations involve interagency cooperation, model school crisis response plans, a look at school practices and climate, recommendations for a review of the juvenile justice system, and the establishment of a system of reporting the extent of violence and crime on local school campuses. School violence and disruption is viewed as a complex problem rooted in a rapidly changing society; urban factors of population concentration, poverty, and ethnic impaction; inadequate schooling; and the deterioration of the family as a unit. The issues and discussion of each of the subcommittees are summarized. (Author summary modified)