ACTIVE SHOOTER TRAINING
K-12 Schools
OUR MISSION
To assist in protecting all students, staff and facility through our consulting services, to uphold the highest standards of service and commitment to our clients, and to provide leadership, guidance and support to all private and public sector agencies and partners.
OUR VISION
Prevention before Reaction, to stay ahead of a threat through leadership, versatility, and collaboration.
Our promise is to give all faculty and staff with the tools necessary to survive during crisis and help to PREVENT the next active shooter through enhanced detection techniques.
Our program is based on the concentric circle of preventative measures, utilizing force multipliers such as Instructional Staff to School Resource Officers to Facility Support Personnel.
"It takes a community to protect a community"
K-12 Active Shooter Training Program
PHASE 1 - Prevention
"Writing on the wall"
Pre-Attack Behaviors of an Active Shooter
We all have heard the term "Writing was on the wall" or someone saying "something seemed off" about a person. These are cues people are reacting to but they are not able to recognize or articulate what they are seeing. In the weeks and months before an attack, many active shooters engage in behaviors that may signal impending violence. While some of these behaviors are attempted to be concealed, majority of them are observable and — if recognized and reported — may lead to a disruption prior to an attack.
By articulating the concrete, observable pre-attack behaviors of many active shooters, this makes the warning signs more visible and easily identifiable. This information is intended to be used not only by law enforcement officials, mental health care practitioners, and threat assessment professionals, but also by parents, friends, teachers, employers and anyone that may face the potential of a person moving towards violence.
Participants will also review indicators of violent extremist propaganda and behavior cues. By recognizing these observable behaviors could help determine whether individuals or groups are preparing to engage in violent extremist activities, such as conducting an attack or joining/participating in violent extremist organizations.
Section breakdown:
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Psychology of a Killer
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Six steps to the Pathway of Violence: Psychological Analysis (Predatory Violence)
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Pre-Attack Behavior Indicators
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Behavior Indicator Timeline
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Six steps to the Pathway of Violence: Detection Vulnerability
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Violent Extremism - Behavior Indicators and Timelines
PHASE 2 - Response
Surviving an
Active Shooter
When facing extreme violence, a passive lock-down-only response may not always keep us safe. In fact, it’s no longer the preferred response of federal and state agencies. People need options to respond based on their circumstances. Proactive options-based strategies help them feel empowered to make the best decision rather than hopelessly endure a difficult situation.
Active shooter response training provides faculty and staff with effective response options in the event of an active shooter situation. No single response fits all active shooter situations. However, making sure each individual knows his or her options for response and is prepared to react decisively can save valuable time and help minimize the loss of life.
PART 1
We will be discussing relevant information that starts with the history, statistics and case study of an active shooter. During this section we will discuss about the mindset for situational awareness and assessing the environmental baseline and the decision process during these events.
We will be discussing what options are available, such as - Run and Escape, Hide and Secure, and Fight and Eliminate the Threat. More importantly, which option to choose during this stressful incident.
PART 2
During this section we will be discussing in depth on available options and challenges of 1st floor rooms and multi story rooms, large area space such as Gyms, Cafeteria's, and Auditoriums and individuals with disabilities or special needs.
We will discuss options on securing your environment and what items are available to help secure your area. We will also discuss your options if the active assailant is entering your room and what items can you use as weapons to attack the assailant.
PHASE 3 - Helping the Injured
Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC)
The current guidance for surviving an active shooter or mass casualty – Response to an Active Killer is direct and concise but incomplete. Victims with gunshot wounds and other traumatic injuries may lose blood rapidly, and their lives are dependent on immediate action from those around them. Incorporating basic bleeding control information into active shooter or mass casualty guidance can empower bystanders and save lives.
No one should die from uncontrolled bleeding. Simple techniques to slow blood loss have been used for decades, and extensive military research in Iraq and Afghanistan has demonstrated their effectiveness in treating injuries from gun violence and other mass casualty incidents. Without intervention, severe-but-controllable hemorrhage can cause death in as little as five minutes, and many victims may be beyond rescue by the time trained medical teams arrive on scene.
As the United States builds resilience in the face of increasing violence, lessons must be taken from experiences on the battlefield. Following shootings and mass casualty incidents, rapid intervention by faculty, staff, and other non-medically trained personnel is critical to patient survival. Techniques to stabilize traumatic bleeding are not complicated to learn, and initiatives to promote bleeding control can be easily incorporated into your organizations preparedness efforts.
TARGETED VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAM
The information gathered from active shooter studies underscores the importance of establishing a threat assessment process in schools to enhance proactive targeted violence prevention efforts. The goal of a threat assessment is to identify students of concern, assess their risk for engaging in violence or other harmful activities, and identify intervention strategies to manage that risk. This guide provides actionable steps that schools can take to develop a comprehensive targeted violence prevention plan and create processes and procedures for conducting threat assessments in their school districts.
When establishing threat assessment capabilities within K-12 schools, keep in mind that there is no profile of a student attacker. There have been male and female attackers, high-achieving students with good grades as well as poor performers. These acts of violence were committed by students who were loners and socially isolated, and those who were well-liked and popular. Rather than focusing solely on a student’s personality traits or school performance, we can learn much more about a student’s risk for violence by working through the threat assessment process, which is designed to gather the most relevant information about the student’s communications and behaviors, the negative or stressful events the student has experienced, and the resources the student possesses to overcome those setbacks and challenges.
AT TACT Consulting our team of experts will work with your school district on creating the most comprehensive and proactive Targeted Violence Prevention Program that can be immediately instituted into your school district.
Enhancing School Safety Using a Threat Assessment Model
As part of the Government's efforts, the U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) created an operational guide that provides actionable steps that schools can take to develop comprehensive targeted violence prevention plans for conducting threat assessments in schools.
Targeted Violence Prevention Program
The goal of a threat assessment is to identify students of concern, assess their risk for engaging in violence or other harmful activities, and identify intervention strategies to manage that risk. This process begins with establishing a comprehensive targeted violence prevention plan that requires schools to:
Step 1: Establish a Multidisciplinary Threat Assessment Team
Establish a multidisciplinary threat assessment team of school personnel including faculty, staff, administrators, coaches, and available school resource officers who will direct, manage, and document the threat assessment process.
Step 2: Define Behaviors
Define behaviors, including those that are prohibited and should trigger immediate intervention (e.g., threats, violent acts, and weapons on campus) and other concerning behaviors that require a threat assessment.
Step 3: Establish and Provide Training on a Central Reporting System
Establish and provide training on a central reporting system such as an online form on the school website, email address, phone number, smartphone application, or other mechanisms. Ensure that it provides anonymity to those reporting concerns and is monitored by personnel who will follow-up on all reports.
Step 4: Determine the Threshold for Law Enforcement Intervention
Determine the threshold for law enforcement intervention, especially if there is a safety risk.
Step 5: Establish Threat Assessment Procedures
Establish threat assessment procedures that include practices for maintaining documentation, identifying sources of information, reviewing records, and conducting interviews. Procedures should include the following investigative themes to guide the assessment process:
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Motive: What motivated the student to engage in the behavior of concern? What is the student trying to solve?
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Communications: Have there been concerning, unusual, threatening, or violent communications? Are there communications about thoughts of suicide, hopelessness, or information relevant to the other investigative themes?
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Inappropriate Interests: Does the student have inappropriate interests in weapons, school attacks or attackers, mass attacks, other violence? Is there a fixation on an issue or a person?
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Weapons Access: Is there access to weapons? Is there evidence of manufactured explosives or incendiary devices?
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Stressors: Have there been any recent setbacks, losses, or challenges? How is the student coping with stressors?
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Emotional and Developmental Issues: Is the student dealing with mental health issues or developmental disabilities? Is the student’s behavior a product of those issues? What resources does the student need?
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Desperation or Despair: Has the student felt hopeless, desperate, or like they are out of options?
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Violence as an Option: Does the student think that violence is a way to solve a problem? Have they in the past?
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Concerned Others: Has the student’s behavior elicited concern? Was the concern related to safety?
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Capacity: Is the student organized enough to plan and execute an attack? Does the student have the resources?
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Planning: Has the student initiated an attack plan, researched tactics, selected targets, or practiced with a weapon?
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Consistency: Are the student’s statements consistent with his or her actions or what others observe? If not, why?
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Protective Factors: Are there positive and prosocial influences in the student’s life? Does the student have a positive and trusting relationship with an adult at school? Does the student feel emotionally connected to other students?
"There is no Profile of
a student attacker. "
SRO TRAINING PROGRAM
This SRO training program enhances our K-12 training program and our customized Targeted Violence Prevention Program (TVPP). The SRO serves as the main point of contact for communication for all students, staff and faculty members in the school district for all suspicious behavior that has been established through either the k-12 or TVPP programs.
The role for the advance training program for School Resource Officer's will be to conduct behavioral threat assessment, investigations, and interviewing on concerning warning signs of individual(s) exhibiting potential violent behaviors and assisting the school district in providing guidance and review of ongoing cases.
With our training program the SRO's will be certified in the proficiency in assessing:
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Deceptive Behavioral Analysis - Pre-Attack Behaviors/Pathway to Violence - Resolution Conversation/Deescalation - School Special Events - Mobilization of Behavior Threat Detection - Recognizing and Assessing High Threat Area(s).
With this new cutting edge training program that was created by the leading minds in science and psychology and instituted and field tested by the Federal Government in multiple agencies and now tactically deployed globally.
The bottom line: More officers. Better trained.
Rep. Barbara Comstock sums up the issue: “As I have talked with local law enforcement and Mo Canady, Executive Director of the National Association of School Resource Officers, it is apparent that school resource officers are an important part of the solution to stopping school violence that can be expanded in our schools as well as schools around the Commonwealth and the country. Many schools still do not have the benefit of SRO's. These important officers not only protect our schools, but are also the eyes and ears for local law enforcement to make sure that those who want to harm our children are stopped before they are able to perpetrate a crime.”
Facility Support Personnel
From custodial to maintenance to outside ground crews, who else knows better the inner workings and the "behind the scene" of a facility or school district. The Facility Support Personnel are invaluable to the day to day operations to your school... and now more than ever they have become indispensable as they are the final piece of the community in "It takes a community to protect a community".
The FSP while performing their regular daily duties are also the "eyes and ears" to the SRO's as they can be anywhere and everywhere at any time.
FACILITY SUPPORT PERSONNEL (FSP) TRAINING: The best and most proactive prevention technique is a well-trained staff that can recognize and react appropriately to a potential or actual threat. Training will highlight the importance of suspicious activity such as things to look for, and what to do in the event of an incident or attack. FSP should be highly encouraged— if not rewarded—to report situations which may be suspicious, hazardous or potentially dangerous. School Districts make prevention inherently challenging because of their size, layout, and amenities, and a trained alert staff while conducting their regular duties will be better prepared to detect and report suspicious activity.
During the FSP training the following topics will be covered at the awareness level:
Suspicious activities to include: Concerning behaviors, potential surveillance activities, pre-planning activities, suspicious packages and suspicious writings, text or drawings.