Threat Assessment
Threat assessment is a way to determine whether a serious threat of violence is real, and the likelihood of whether or not the threat will be carried out. Preventing school violence is crucial in today's society and is a top priority for schools in light of heinous acts of violence in the schools within the past two decades. As mental health providers in the schools, we must take each and every threat seriously, and a team of trained staff should be involved in the decision making and assessment processes. Also, it is just as important to learn the warning signs and risk factors of school violence to help prevent a potentially threatening and harmful situation from being carried out.
Warning signs of school violence include:
The more risk factors a student is exposed to, the more likely we are to see violent behaviors in the school and at home. Risk factors of school violence include:
o Mental illness
o Substance abuse
o Academic failure
o History of aggression
o Attitudes and beliefs
o Child abuse/neglect
o Marital conflict
o Spousal Abuse
o Anti-social parents
o Poor monitoring
o Ineffective parenting
o Parent substance abuse and/or psychopathology
§ Less resources, less individual attention, less connectedness, feel anonymous, fall 'under the radar'
o Gang involvement
o Peer rejection
o Bullying
o Access to weapons
o Prejudice/Racism
o Cultural norms
Threat assessment includes both identification and intervention strategies to help those individuals who may pose a threat to school safety. An effective threat assessment should be included as part of a comprehensive school safety program, to create and foster a positive school climate, support individual student needs, establish crisis support and plans, and for community collaboration. Threat assessment should also be integrated and established district-wide outlining clear policies and procedures. This includes:
An inter-discplinary threat assessment team should have awareness of facts around school violence and fundamental principles around threat assessment, be people from the school who are fair, discrete, trustworthy, and respect confidentiality, as well as have the ability to relate to both adults and children. These should include:
There are three different levels of threat: low, medium, and high levels. Low levels of threat are indicated by:
Warning signs of school violence include:
- History of discipline problems
- Low school interest and low academic performance
- Expression of violence in drawings and artwork
- Feelings of rejection and isolation
- Difficulty controlling and managing anger and aggression
- Substance abuse
- Access to weapons, especially firearms
- Affiliation with gangs
- Serious threats
- Extreme intolerance and/or prejudice of others
The more risk factors a student is exposed to, the more likely we are to see violent behaviors in the school and at home. Risk factors of school violence include:
- Individual Factors
o Mental illness
o Substance abuse
o Academic failure
o History of aggression
o Attitudes and beliefs
- Family Factors
o Child abuse/neglect
o Marital conflict
o Spousal Abuse
o Anti-social parents
o Poor monitoring
o Ineffective parenting
o Parent substance abuse and/or psychopathology
- School/Peer Factors
§ Less resources, less individual attention, less connectedness, feel anonymous, fall 'under the radar'
o Gang involvement
o Peer rejection
o Bullying
- Society & Community Factors
o Access to weapons
o Prejudice/Racism
o Cultural norms
Threat assessment includes both identification and intervention strategies to help those individuals who may pose a threat to school safety. An effective threat assessment should be included as part of a comprehensive school safety program, to create and foster a positive school climate, support individual student needs, establish crisis support and plans, and for community collaboration. Threat assessment should also be integrated and established district-wide outlining clear policies and procedures. This includes:
- Clarification of roles for both educators and law enforcement
- Identify who should be a part of the threat assessment team
- Training requirements for teams
- Protocols for evaluation
- Protocols for interviewing of the potential offender
- Procedures for notifying parents and staff
- Determining levels of intervention
- Providing follow-up services and observations
- Dealing with the public and media
An inter-discplinary threat assessment team should have awareness of facts around school violence and fundamental principles around threat assessment, be people from the school who are fair, discrete, trustworthy, and respect confidentiality, as well as have the ability to relate to both adults and children. These should include:
- Trained school-based personnel, who are established and respected members within the school
- Mental health provider(s)
- Lead investigator (typically an SRO)
There are three different levels of threat: low, medium, and high levels. Low levels of threat are indicated by:
- Vague, indirect, not particularly well-thought out plans/threats with minimal detail
- Those that can be carried out, though may not seem realistic
- More direct and concrete than low level threats
- Wording suggests the offender has put some thought into it
- General indication of time and place
- Not very detailed and no real preparation
- Direct, specific, and plausible plan
- Imminent danger is imposed
- Concrete steps have been taken (i.e. acquired a weapon)
Resources
Threat Assessment Overview:
Threat Assessment at School - A Primer for Educators:
Threat Assessment - An Essential Component of a Comprehensive Safe School Program
Threat Assessment: Predicting and Preventing School Violence
Creating a Safe School Building:
Sample Danger Assessment and Intervention Plan:
Feel free to download your own copies of these documents below:
samplethreatassessment.pdf | |
File Size: | 310 kb |
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threat_assessment_at_school.pdf | |
File Size: | 78 kb |
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nassp_threat.pdf | |
File Size: | 362 kb |
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threat_assessment.pdf | |
File Size: | 95 kb |
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creating_a_safe_school_building.pdf | |
File Size: | 77 kb |
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sample_danger_assessment_and_intervention_plan_daip.doc | |
File Size: | 86 kb |
File Type: | doc |