When U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan stepped down last week after seven years on the job, he didn't talk about test scores or teacher quality. Rather, fighting back tears, he used the opportunity to talk about what he called the "greatest frustration" of his tenure — Washington not passing gun control legislation.

"If I can leave you one number: 16,000. That in my first six years as Secretary of Education that's the number of young people who are killed across our country. 16,000. It's an average of seven a day. It's a devastating rate of loss," Duncan said.

Gun violence is a reality for many children in D.C. and the effects — including anger, withdrawal and stress — spill over into the classroom. One arts program in the city helps children process this mix of emotions.

This story was updated on Jan. 4.

Living in proximity to gun violence

Jeremiah is a toothy, 9-year-old with a buzz cut. He just made his school basketball team, he looks after his baby sister, and he loves drawing. Jeremiah and his buddy Tae are rummaging through red, blue and green sketch pens in front of them. They’re getting ready to draw pictures based on their experiences with guns and violence. These children are two of almost 150 children in the Life Pieces to Masterpieces afterschool program. It’s a nonprofit that works with young boys who live in some of the poorest and most dangerous neighborhoods in D.C.

 [For more of this story, written by Kavitha Cardoza, go to:  http://wamu.org/news/15/12/22/...ears_of_gun_violence