Threats and Crisis
THREAT ASSESSMENTS
CRISIS MANAGEMENT
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Practical Information for
Crisis Planning
A GUIDE FOR SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES
BY
THE OFFICE OF SAFE & DRUG-FREE
SCHOOLS
IN THE
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
DATED
JANUARY 2007
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Definitions
 Crisis: an unstable or crucial time or state of affairs
in which a decisive change is impending, especially
one with the distinct possibility of a highly
undesirable outcome (Webster’s Ninth Collegiate
Dictionary, 1987).”
 Threat: 1: an expression of intention to inflict evil,
injury, or damage; 2: one that threatens; 3: an
indication of something impending <the sky held a
threat of rain> (Miriam-Webster, 2010).
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
What is a Crisis?
 Natural Factors
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Death (natural causes)
Medical emergencies
Severe weather
Floods
Earthquakes
Fires
Tornadoes
Influenza pandemic
Other infectious disease
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Learning
 Human Factors
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School shootings (threat)
School shootings (actual)
Nation act of terrorism
Local act of terrorism
Suicide/ Homicide
Violent death of a student
Violent death of a teacher
Crisis Team
 Definition: a group of individuals who were
designated to work together to prevent or intervene
for a crisis.
 Consists of:
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A building administrator.
Other building leaders (e.g., lead teacher, counselor, etc.).
Communicator within the building.
Communicator to outside of the building.
Caregiver to students and other faculty/ staff
Outside staff or personnel who need to be involved.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Steps to Developing a Plan
 Identify the leader(s)
 Obtain input from the constituency
 Perform a needs assessment
 Determine communication patterns
 Practice communication patterns
 Use outside resources and agencies in your planning
 Decide upon and promote a common set of terms
 Tailor the plans to the community
 Plan for what to do with special populations
 Promote and distribute the plan
 Train and practice the plan
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Phases of Crisis Management
 Mitigation/ Prevention
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Reduce the damage if
crisis is in progress
Keep the crisis from
happening.
 Preparedness
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Plans for each possible
type of crisis
Focus on worst-case
scenario.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
 Response
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What is going to be done
during or before a crisis?
Who is going to do it?
 Recovery
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What is going to be done
when the crisis is over?
Who is going to do it?
Cycle of Crisis Management:
Steps are Always in Progress
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Mitigation & Prevention
 How safe (access and egress) are the facilities?
 How secure are the facilities?
 What policies and procedures work for or against helping?
 Are the individuals who know what to do?
 Do the individuals expect to participate in a crisis plan?
 Are there individuals who work better or worse together?
 Know faculty and staff skills (e.g., first aid, CPR, etc.)
 Know available local resources and how to contact them.
 Do the children know what to do and are trained?
 How are you going to communicate in a crisis?
 Have a crisis team and plan in place.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Preparedness
 Have a crisis team and plan in place.
 Conduct a needs assessment on the stakeholders.
 Create relationship with internal and external help.
 Research what others have done in the past or other places.
 Tailor the plan for school’s needs and special crisis.
 Know what role each person will play.
 Have a “second in command” or backup person.
 How will communication take place (internal & external)?
 Have a crisis preparedness kit.
 Develop materials to distribute to share the plan.
 Practice the plan.
 Do the students need to stay or go?
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Learning
Preparedness
Stay or go?
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Learning
Response
 Know you cannot plan for everything.
 Make sure everyone is protected FIRST
 Stay with the plan unless it really isn’t feasible.
 Make a decision. Respond.
 Get outside help (if needed).
 Lock down or evacuate as appropriate.
 Triage injuries.
 Keep yourself, your staff, & your materials organized.
 Trust your leaders.
 Communicate. Communicate. Communicate.
 Be flexible and adapt the plan if need be.
 Document everything (when appropriate).
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Recovery
 Provide a caring and supportive environment.
 Focus is on getting back to normal.
 Plan for recover BEFORE the crisis.
 Re-assemble the crisis team after the crisis.
 Get back to work so that everyone begins to feel normal.
 Make sure that the facility is safe and secure.
 Assess how everyone is doing. Intervene if appropriate.
 Provide stress management help.
 Communicate. Communicate. Communicate.
 Conduct daily debriefings until no longer needed.
 Take as much time as you need.
 Evaluate how it went; make changes as needed.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Chapter 18
Group Counseling with Children
Crisis Intervention
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Responsibilities
 Evaluate severity of crisis in client’s perception.
 Appraise the client’s thinking, feelings, and behaviors.
 Determine the danger and length of time in the crisis mode.
 Look for contributing factors.
 Evaluate resources.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
INTERVENTION PHASES
 Introductory phase
 Fact phase
 Feeling phase
 Symptoms phase
 Teaching phase
 Summary phase
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Introductory Phase
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Ask members to introduce themselves and
tell why they are in the group.
Help members clarify their goals regarding
what they would like to accomplish in the
meeting.
Discuss confidentiality – what group
members talk about stays in the group. Get
a commitment from all members to
maintain confidentiality.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Introductory Phase
Discuss basic rules:
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Take a bathroom break first because no one can
leave the room after the group begins.
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Encourage group members to stay the entire time.
The group generally runs 2 hours; the time depends
on the ages of the children.
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Elect or appoint a co-leader or a peer leader to keep
the gate (that is, not let people in or out).
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Remind the group that no group member holds
rank over any other group member and that
everyone’s participation is valued equally.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Intervention Phases
Fact Phase
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Focus on discussing what happened.
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Encourage everyone to participate.
Feeling Phase
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Ask, “What happened then?”
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Ask, “What are you experiencing now?”
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Intervention Phases
Clients’ Symptoms
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Ask, “How is this affecting you?” (Is the member
having trouble sleeping, studying, or is the
member worrying too much?).
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Ask, “How is this affecting your grades, your
studies, your health?”
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Intervention Phases
Teaching Phase
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Explore the common responses to this
incident.
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Brainstorm about how people have been
responding to the incident.
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Discuss how each response is helpful or not
helpful to people.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Intervention Phases
Summary Phase
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Raise questions and provide answers.
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Summarize what has been learned and
shared.
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Develop action plans for individuals and/or
the group, if needed.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Intervention Phases
Summary Stage
 Provide support for group members to ensure their
physical, emotional, and psychological safety. An
action plan should be made to protect any group
member needing protection.
 Conduct a follow-up meeting in 3 to 5 days to see how
well the group members are coping.
 Arrange individual counseling sessions for group
members who need further assistance.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Preventing School Violence
U.S. SECRET SERVICE
(VOSSEKUIL, FEIN, REDDY, BORUM, &
MOZELSESKI (2002)
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Create a Safe School Culture
 Genuine feelings of respect.
 School should be a “shame-free” zone.
 Students in pain are aware of who they can go to in
order to receive help.
 Each student should have at least one adult they feel
“connected” to.
 Students are encouraged to let the adults know when
other students are in pain.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Steps to Creating Safe School Climate
 Assessment of current school climate
 Emphasis on listening in schools.
 Adopt a strong, but caring, stance against the code of
silence.
 Involve all members of school community in
planning, creating, and sustaining a school culture of
safety and respect.
 Develop trusting relationships between each student
and at least on adult.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Threat Assessment
U.S. SECRET SERVICE
(FEIN, VOSSEKUIL, POLLACK, BORUM,
MODZELESKI, & REDDY (2002)
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Threats… by the numbers
 Out of 60 million children in 119,00+ schools:
 15% of children in a physical fight
 1.6 million thefts and 1.2 million nonfatal crimes (1998).
 60 school-associated violent deaths (1998)
 37 “targeted” attacks in 25 years (planned to be done at the
school with deadly weapon).
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Safe School Initiative Findings
Overall Findings: Targeted Violence
 Rarely were sudden or impulsive.
 Usually someone else already knew it would happen.
 Targets not threatened directly prior to attack.
 No useful “profile.”
 Attackers usually have done something else before hand
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indicating a need for help.
Attacker had difficulty dealing with loss.
Many attackers had considered or attempted suicide.
Many attackers felt bullied or attacked by others first.
Had access to weapons ahead of time.
Many times other students are involved.
Many times the attack was not stopped by law enforcement.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
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Safe School Initiative Findings
Specific to Attacker: Targeted Violence
Characteristics of the Attacker:
 All of the examined incidents were done by boys or young men.
 Most happened during the school day.
 Almost all were current students at the school.
 Most did the attack alone; although a few had help in the
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planning.
Most used a gun as their weapon.
Nearly 2/3 had never been in trouble before.
41% were doing well in school.
2/3 came from intact families.
 No significant number of previous hx of dx.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Safe School Initiative Findings
Specific to the Victim(s): Targeted Violence
Characteristics of the Intended Victim(s):
 For half victim was faculty or staff; for half victim
was student.
 In half there was more than one targeted victim.
 Most had some type of grievance held against them
by the attacker.
 Only about ½ of the actual targeted victims were the
ones who ended up hurt or killed. The other ½ were
unintended victims.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
6 Principles of Threat Assessment
 Targeted violence is the end result of an understandable, and
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oftentimes discernible, process of thinking and behavior.
Targeted violence stems from an interaction among the
individual, the situation, the setting, and the target.
An investigative, skeptical, inquisitive mindset is critical to
successful threat assessment.
Effective threat assessment is based upon facts, rather than on
characteristics or "traits."
An “integrated systems approach” should guide threat
assessment inquiries and investigations.
The central question in a threat assessment inquiry or
investigation is whether a student poses a threat, not whether the
student has made a threat.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Building a Threat Assessment Team
 A senior school administrator should chair the team.
 Regular members of the team ideally should include:
 1) a respected member of the school faculty or administration;
 2) an investigator, such as a school resource officer or other
police officer assigned to the school;
 3) a mental health professional
 4) other professionals
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teachers, coaches, and others, who may be able to
contribute to the threat assessment process.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
What Might You Look For?
 A student submits a story for an English assignment about a
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character that shoots other students in his school.
Two students in a video class make a movie about kids who bring
bombs to school.
A dean receives an e-mail stating, "I’m going to kill everyone in
this asylum.”
A seventh-grader, who is feared by his classmates, cocks a finger
at another boy on the playground and says "you’re gonna die.”
•A school bus driver tells the principal of a school that a group of
students has been overheard whispering about bringing a gun to
school.
A ninth-grader reports that he has been threatened by another
student and warned not to tell anybody about the threat.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
What do you do with that information?
 Establishing low barriers for reporting information.
 Advising students and adults of the kinds of information
that should be brought forward: threats; weapon-seeking
and weapon-using behavior; homicidal and suicidal
behaviors; behaviors suggesting that a young person is
contemplating, or planning, an attack.
 Ensuring that a thoughtful process is put in place in the
school or school district to assess information that is
brought forward.
 Recognizing that what is reported may often be different
than what actually was said or occurred.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
What do you do with that information?
 A policy that it is everyone’s responsibility to help
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develop and maintain a respectful, safe school
environment.
Reinforcing positive behaviors by teachers, students, and
staff in the school.
Building linkages to individuals, groups, and
organizations that can offer support and assistance to
students and to the school.
Have one point of contact for information to go to.
Give feedback on information received when possible.
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What other information do you need?
 What specific information came to the team’s attention?
 Identifying information about the child.
 Background information about the child.
 Current life information about the child.
 Information about “attack-related” behaviors.
 Motivation for attack.
 Who is the target for attack?
 Review of all educational records.
 Collateral school interviews.
 Parent interviews.
 Interview student in question.
 Potential victim interview.
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Specific Questions in Threat Assessment
 What are the student’s motive(s) and goals?
 Have there been any communications suggesting
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ideas or intent to attack?
Has the subject shown inappropriate interest in
weapons, violence, or school attacks?
Has the student engaged in attack-related behaviors?
Does the student have the capacity to carry out an act
of targeted violence?
Is the student experiencing hopelessness,
desperation, and/or despair?
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
Specific Questions in Threat Assessment
 Does the student have a trusting relationship with at
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least one responsible adult?
Does the student see violence as an acceptable – or
desirable – or the only- way to solve problems?
Is the student’s conversation and “story” consistent
with his or her actions?
Are other people concerned about the student’s
potential for violence?
What circumstances might affect the likelihood of an
attack.?
Copyright 2007 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning