NASPA National Conference
March 14, 2011
Dr. Kate Mueller
Dean, Student Services
Orange Coast College, Costa Mesa, CA
This workshop illustrates one college's model of a
Behavioral Assessment Team (BAT), addressing
disconcerting behavior on campus. Session
includes:
 logistics of a BAT
 its purpose
 how to develop and train a team
 how to implement a BAT
 case studies
At one point a few years back, I realized there was
an increasing number of student conduct cases in
which I was calling upon the Director of our
Student Health Center for consultation. As
situations emerged in which threats were possible
or clear, we both realized a consistent protocol was
essential.
Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending upon
your perspective, we had the opportunity to testdrive our protocol shortly after writing it. We are
happy to report it was successful, providing us
with a tool then, and now, for handling potential
and actual threatening situations.
Participants will understand …
 What student behaviors warrant the activation of a
Behavioral Assessment Team
 What a Behavioral Assessment Team is, including
size and membership
 The purpose of a Behavioral Assessment Team
 How to build a Behavioral Assessment Team
 When to involve on-campus and off-campus
partners
 How to educate the campus about your Behavioral
Assessment Team (its role and when to contact
them)
While we cannot foresee every incident or stop
every incident, we can certainly prevent some of
the incidents, or mitigate the damage, by being
proactive …
While we cannot foresee every incident or stop
every incident, we can certainly prevent some of
the incidents, or mitigate the damage, by being
proactive …
Prevention
Preparedness
Response
Recovery
“… identify actions or strategies to
prevent potential crisis events from
occurring or at least mitigate the impact
of such events if they do occur …
Campuses must constantly monitor their
environment for potential situations or
events that could threaten the campus
community.”
NASPA’s In Search of Safer Communities (2008), page 8.
“Recognizing that not all crisis events
can be prevented, campuses must also
prepare for likely crisis events …
campuses [need to] develop plans and
train personnel to respond to a variety of
potential crisis events.”
NASPA’s In Search of Safer Communities (2008), page 8.
Response “consists of actions taken and
decisions made during the actual crisis
event. It may happen during the course
of a few hours or perhaps a few days.”
NASPA’s In Search of Safer Communities (2008), page 8.
Recovery “may last for weeks, months,
or even years. It consists of actions and
decisions made in the aftermath of the
crisis that are focused on returning the
campus community to a sense of
normalcy.”
NASPA’s In Search of Safer Communities (2008), page 8.
“Threat assessment teams ‘are the
single best tool we have’ to identify
people who may pose a risk and to
intervene if necessary.”
Inside Higher Education
Article: “Assessing the Threat” by Scott Jaschik (02.15.10)
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/02/15/threat
Alternative names:
Behavioral Intervention Team
Threat Assessment Team
Orange Coast College Threat
Assessment Process
Core team:
Dean , Student Services (Dean of Students)
Associate Dean, Student Health Services
Director, Campus Safety
Orange Coast College Threat Assessment Process
1. Notification of threat/issue received
2. If conduct is the issue, the dean of students addresses issue
3. If alleged threat represents a danger to self or others, and/or
involves mental or physical health issues, the director of health
services consults.
4. The dean of students and director of health services meet with
student to assess alleged threat/issue.
5. If the threat/issue is deemed valid, the student is informed that
he/she is suspended until clearance is obtained from a mental
health professional regarding safety of self and others.
6. If the student is already in the mental health system, obtain a
consent form to release information and communicate with the
student’s mental health provider and family or significant
other.
7. If the student does not have a mental health provider, he/she
may use the counselors at the student health center or be
referred to community providers. In an emergency, the county
centralized assessment team can assess the student.
Published in NASPA’s Winter 2008 Leadership Exchange
Orange Coast College Behavioral/Threat Assessment
Process
1. Notification of threat/issue received by the Dean
of Student Services (sometimes Campus Safety or
Health Center contacted first).
If an employee, the Director of Personnel is the
fourth team member.
Training is important, as is being on the same page.
2. Dean of Student Services addresses the student
conduct issue.
“Context is the issue” (Gavin De Becker, page 108)
3. If alleged threat is assessed to be an actual or
clear potential danger to self or others,
and/or involves mental or physical health
issues, Dean of Student Services consults with
other team members: Director of Health
Services, Director of Campus Safety
4. Dean of Student Services, Director of Health
Services, and Campus Safety Officer meet
with student to assess alleged threat/issue.
(Email, text, phone call instead if cannot get in
the same room together.)
These calls take priority.
5. If assessed that there is indeed a threat, the
student is informed that he/she is restricted
from campus until clearance is obtained from
a mental health professional regarding safety
of self and others. In our college, we can also
suspend for up to ten days (non-appealable).

Mental Health Clearance (sanction 4.5 of the Coast
Community College District Student Code of Conduct
(policy #030-10)

“Section 4.5: Mental Health Clearance. Mental Health
Clearance may be required before a student is readmitted to a
particular class or allowed to come onto District Property. The
College Disciplinary Administrator must receive a letter from a
licensed mental health professional stating that in his/her
professional judgment the student will no longer continue the
behavior which gave rise to the College Disciplinary
Administrator taking disciplinary action against him/her or
that the student's continued presence on campus is not a threat
to himself/herself or others. The mental health professional
must be licensed by the State of California and the College
District Administer must verify that the mental health
professional is credentialed to render a professional opinion.
The student shall bear the cost and expense of obtaining mental
health clearance.”
6. If the student is already in the mental health
system / under a doctor’s care, obtain consent
to release information and communicate with
the student’s mental health provider, and
family or significant other as appropriate. (It
is helpful to have a form developed and
ready for these incidents.)
7. If the student does not have a mental health
provider, he/she may use the counselors at
the student health center or be referred to
community providers. If statements or
behavior is serious, the local police are called.
In turn, the County of Orange centralized
assessment team is called to assess the
student. Assessment might include a 5150 of
the student (72 hour observation).
Think for a moment …
Who will the “us” be, or who is the “us”, on your
campus?
Who should you have on your threat assessment
team?
Characteristics …






Problem solving skills
Calm in a crisis
Communicator
Student-centered, conscious of safety
Can roll with things!
Adaptable / flexible / able to prioritize









Counseling Center
Student Judicial Affairs
Disability Services
Campus Counsel
College or University Police
Campus Violence Prevention Program
Dean of Students
Student Health Center Director
Employee Assistance Program
College Student Mental Health: Effective Services and Strategies Across Campus, p. 27
Think of a minimum of 3 people who should
serve on a Behavioral Assessment Team on your
campus.





Who handles safety?
Who handles student conduct?
Do you have a health center? Mental health
counseling?
How about a faculty member?
If you have a Crisis Alert / Management Team,
that’s a good place to start in selecting the Team.
Keep in mind …
“… it’s important to react calmly, because when
in alarm we stop evaluating information
mindfully and start doing it physically.”
“Another time people stop perceiving new
information is when they prematurely judge
someone as guilty or not guilty.”
De Becker, page 117
Things to ask …
“When any type of threat includes indirect or
veiled references to things they might do, such as
‘You’ll be sorry,’ or ‘Don’t mess with me,’ it is
best to ask directly, ‘What do you mean by that?’
Ask exactly what the person is threatening to do.
His elaboration will almost always be weaker
than his implied threat.”
De Becker, page 121
Ask about:
Friends
Family
Hobbies
Classes
Who they talk to about their life
Any recent changes in their life
Access to weapons
If they are thinking about harming themselves, or
others
If they mention medical care, get some details
With some students, you won’t get anywhere …
remember the adage “You can’t reason with a crazy
person.”
Don’t assume the student thinks logically; you
might realize they are not thinking logically. In
that case, you cannot teach or reach the student
through logic. “If he were reasonable, he
wouldn’t have pursued this behavior in the first
place. There is no straight talk for crooked
people.”
~ De Becker, p. 131
Know this …
It has been shown “that people don’t just ‘snap.’
There is a process as observable, and often as
predictable, as water coming to a boil.”
Unfortunately, “obvious warnings are frequently
ignored.”
~ De Becker, p. 150
Know this …
“... Incidents of targeted violence in school are so
infrequent”
Cautioned “against any generalizations made
from such a minority of cases”
~ “Evaluating Risk for Targeted Violence in Schools …”, p. 162
What should be said to staff and faculty:
“We do not expect you to handle these
behavioral-sciences issues. We do not expect
you to know about how to manage people that
are alarming or volatile. If you can manage 95
percent of the people you are dealing with, that’s
an accomplishment. The 5 percent that depart
from normal behavior – those that intimidate,
threaten, or frighten – they should be reported to
us.”
De Becker, page 164
We need to educate about our processes, and
encourage people to report potential or actual
problems.
“Many situations that evolved into violence had
been brewing for a long time, and senior
executives had no idea what was going on. Why?
Because nobody wanted to report it to a
supervisor. Why? Because someone might say,
‘Hey, can’t you handle your own people? Don’t
you know how to handle these things?’”
~ De Becker, p. 163
Organizations should educate and
encourage people to:
“Consider safety first.”
“Ask the right questions.”
“Communicate concerns clearly and early.”
~ De Becker, p. 163
While it might not be comfortable, we must face the
possibilities. In order to be proactive, to cultivate
plans for potential realities, sometimes we must allow
our imaginations to take us to some dark and scary
places.
“ … if you cannot imagine it, you cannot predict
it.”
~ De Becker, p. 194
“The ultimate outcome of any disturbing event is
a review, evaluation, and determination of what
can be done to prevent, respond, or educate in
the future. Essentially the model would have a
circular flow that allows for continual
improvement of policy, response systems, and
preparation of the campus at many levels.”
College Student Mental Health: Effective Services and Strategies Across Campus, p. 148
RECAP:
Orange Coast College Threat Assessment Process
1. Notification of threat/issue received
2. If conduct is the issue, the dean of students addresses issue
3. If alleged threat represents a danger to self or others, and/or
involves mental or physical health issues, the director of health
services consults.
4. The dean of students and director of health services meet with
student to assess alleged threat/issue.
5. If the threat/issue is deemed valid, the student is informed that
he/she is suspended until clearance is obtained from a mental
health professional regarding safety of self and others.
6. If the student is already in the mental health system, obtain a
consent form to release information and communicate with the
student’s mental health provider and family or significant
other.
7. If the student does not have a mental health provider, he/she
may use the counselors at the student health center or be
referred to community providers. In an emergency, the county
centralized assessment team can assess the student.
Association for Threat Assessment Professionals (ATAP)
http://www.atapworldwide.org/
National Center for Higher Education Risk Management
(NCHERM)
http://www.ncherm.org/
Center for Aggression Management
http://www.aggressionmanagement.com/Higher_Educati
on/
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0777958.html
provides a list of schools shootings since February 1996
ASJA Presentation, 2008
www.tts.uwosh.edu/dean/asja/ASJA%20Presentation.ppt
National Incident Management System (NIMS)
http://www.fema.gov/emergency/nims/
NASPA/Stetson Student Affairs Law and Policy
Conference
http://www.naspa.org/programs/law/default.cfm
Stetson/NASPA Certificate Program in Student Affairs
Law and Policy
http://www.naspa.org/programs/lawcert/default.cfm
“Evaluating Risk for Targeted Violence in Schools …”
http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac/ntac_threat_postpress.pdf
“A Guide to Managing Threatening Situations and Creating Safe
School Climates”
http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac_ssi.shtml
“An Interim Report on the Prevention of Targeted Violence in
Schools”
http://cecp.air.org/download/ntac_ssi_report.pdf
“Threat Assessment: An Approach to Prevent Targeted
Violence” http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/pubssum/155000.htm
“Assisting Distressed Students” (Santa Barbara
City College)
http://www.sbcc.edu/deptchairs/files/Attachme
ntE1.pdf
Campus Safety Magazine
www.campussafetymagazine.com
Before Conflict: Preventing Aggressive Behavior, John D. Byrnes (2002)
College Student Mental Health: Effective Services and Strategies Across Campus,
Benton and Benton (2006)
Crucial Confrontations, Patterson, Grenny, McMillan and Switzler (2005)
In Search of Safer Communities: Emerging Practices for Student Affairs in Addressing
Campus Violence, Jablonski, McClellan and Zdzriaski (2007)
Just 2 Seconds, Gavin DeBecker (2008)
Millennials Go to College, Howe and Strauss (2007)
The Gift of Fear, Gavin DeBecker (1997)
The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes – and Why, Amanda Ripley
(2008)
www.shotsfireddvd.com
http://www.saddleback.edu
/police/