Join our Justice & Prevention Research Center (JPRC) experts for a webinar highlighting scholarly and practitioner perspectives on implementing behavioral threat assessment strategies.
Date: Tuesday, February 28
Time: 10:00 a.m. (PT) / 12:00 p.m. (CT) / 1:00 p.m. (ET)
Register Today
Although Behavioral Threat Assessment (BTA) has been recommended as a strategy to prevent violence and improve school safety since the late 1990s, its use has surged in recent years, propelled by unfortunate tragedies in our schools.
This has led to federal funding and legislation across many states to support the implementation of BTA. As with many new education programs and strategies, operational challenges emerge during implementation.
This webinar, presented by the WestEd Justice & Prevention Research Center, will focus on the most pressing operational challenges associated with developing, implementing, and maintaining an evidence-based program within K-12 schools.
Our panel of research, policy, and practice experts will share their firsthand experiences of building K-12 BTA programs, including:
- Potential disparate impacts on students
- Effects on school discipline
- Coordination with law enforcement
- Intersection with community mental health partners
This event is for school professionals who serve on or create multidisciplinary threat assessment teams, including includes those in school administration, school counseling, behavior management, restorative practices, mental health and substance abuse, special education, safety and security, emergency management, and law enforcement. All attendees will benefit from the practical information shared.
Discussion Topics
- New research related to behavioral threat assessment, including its impact on school discipline and potential disparate effects on students of color and students with disabilities
- Practical challenges of operating a behavioral threat assessment program in schools
- Setting up and managing a behavioral threat assessment program in a school district
- Coordination between schools and law enforcement related to behavioral threat assessment
- The intersection of school behavioral threat assessment and clinical mental health settings
Who Should Attend?
- School administrators
- Law enforcement
- Mental health professionals
- School counselors
- Policymakers
- Researchers
Dates & Times
Date: Tuesday, February 28
Time: 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time / 12:00 p.m. Central Time / 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Registration
Registration is free. Click the registration link below to register. We will send an email confirmation, links to pre-session readings, and attendance reminders. Please contact Danny Torres at [email protected] if you have questions or would like more information.
Featured Speakers
Dewey Cornell, Ph.D. holds the Virgil Ward Chair at the University of Virginia’s School of Education and Human Development. He developed the Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines with his research team in 2001 and has published a series of controlled studies demonstrating its effectiveness, including new studies of Florida schools.
Trevor Fronius, Ph.D. is a Senior Researcher with WestEd’s Justice & Prevention Research Center. His school-based research includes behavioral threat assessment, law enforcement in schools, truancy prevention, bullying prevention, and school-based mental health consultation. Dr. Fronius is leading statewide studies in Texas and California on the impact of school police reform.
Mo Canady is the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO) Executive Director and a former Lieutenant with the City of Hoover Police Department. He spent the last twelve years of his career as the supervisor of the School Services Division. He’s testified before the Federal Commission on School Safety and the United States House Committee on Education and the Workforce on SRO National Standards and school safety.
Dr. Sharmila Mehta is the Director of Inpatient Child and Adolescent Psychology and Clinical Programming for Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) / Harvard Medical School. She oversees psychological treatment and training on CHA’s child, adolescent, and neurodevelopmental units. She has conducted psychological and threat assessments for child and adolescent psychiatric inpatients and is a national trainer and consultant to school systems and other youth-serving agencies.
Melanie Stephenson, LCSW is the Threat Assessment Supervisor for Loudoun County, Virginia Public Schools, where she oversees and manages school behavioral threat assessment processes, training, and technical assistance. She has almost twenty years of experience in various settings, including Child Protective Services, emergency mental health, corrections, and private practice.
Joe McKenna, Ph.D. is a Senior Research Associate in WestEd’s Justice and Prevention Research Center. He collaborates with local districts, government entities, community-based organizations, and other partners to conduct research and policy analysis and provide technical assistance. Dr. McKenna is the Principal Investigator on an NIJ-funded evaluation of statewide school safety centers and the lead implementation partner on several Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) STOP grants with state governments and local school districts.
About the JPRC
The JPRC at WestEd highlights the rigorous research and evaluation work that WestEd researchers conduct in school safety, violence and crime prevention, juvenile and criminal justice, and public health. A primary goal of the Center is to become a “trusted” source of evidence on the effects of policies and programs in these areas. In addition to conducting research and evaluation studies, Center staff promote using scientific evidence in making decisions about programs, policies, and practices relevant to justice and prevention. Learn more at jprc.wested.org.