JPRC

School-Based Behavioral Threat Assessment: A Review and Practical Considerations

School Safety

School-Based Behavioral Threat Assessment: A Review and Practical Considerations

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As schools work to keep students safe, many are moving beyond punitive and physical-hardening measures toward approaches that emphasize prevention and support. School-based behavioral threat assessment (BTA) offers one such alternative: a formal, ongoing, multidisciplinary process for identifying, assessing, and managing students who may pose a risk of targeted violence, with an emphasis on intervening early and connecting students to supports rather than relying solely on discipline.

This WestEd brief examines the leading BTA models, including the Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines and the U.S. Secret Service’s National Threat Assessment Center framework, and reviews what the current evidence shows about their effectiveness. Three points stand out:

  1. Early identification and intervention can help prevent targeted violence.
  2. Multidisciplinary teams improve assessment accuracy and decision-making.
  3. Evidence-based, student-centered implementation promotes both safety and student well-being.

The brief offers district leaders, state agencies, threat assessment teams, community partners, school boards, and parents a grounded introduction to how BTA works and what it takes to implement it responsibly.

The Impact of School Police Reform on Student Safety and School Experiences: Final Summary Report

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A first of its kind study by WestEd’s Justice and Prevention Research Center (JPRC) examined outcomes in 60 California schools across 6 districts that removed police between 2019 and 2021, comparing them to 120 matched schools that retained officers through the 2021–22 school year.

Schools that removed police saw meaningful improvements in student-staff relationships and student engagement, while showing no increases in violence, bullying, substance use, delinquency, or suspension rates. Notably, schools that retained police but had high student-to-counselor ratios (averaging 488:1, nearly double the recommended 250:1) reported higher rates of student-reported violence — an effect that did not appear in schools that had removed officers.

Successful districts in both groups shared common elements: clear protocols for when police involvement is appropriate, restorative justice practices, community partnerships, and investment in school climate. Districts that removed police stressed the importance of having safety teams, crisis support lines, and incident response protocols in place beforehand, while districts retaining officers highlighted the value of positive student-officer relationships alongside better mental health integration.

The study’s core takeaway is that police presence alone does not determine school safety — comprehensive support systems and strong implementation do, regardless of which approach a district takes.

Recommendations to Improve State School Safety Centers

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Our team developed a framework that identifies a series of best practices based on our National Institute of Justice–funded comprehensive evaluation of state school safety centers (SSSCs). The guide offers insights to enhance the focus of SSSCs, their structure, and the support services they provide.

What Do We Know About State School Safety Centers?

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This article in the Fall 2024 issue of Translational Criminology provides a brisk overview of the National Institute of Justice-funded evaluation of State School Safety Centers (SSSCs). That study focused on describing the structure, services, and stakeholder views of SSSCs. The research found that most SSSCs provided technical assistance, training, and resource development. While many educators are aware of and use SSSCs, the evaluation underscored a need for improvements in staffing, resources, and outreach. The study identifies promising practices and emphasizes ongoing research to ascertain the efficacy of SSSCs in enhancing school safety.

Policing Schools in the USA: An Evidence Summary and Future Research Agenda

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Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice has published an article by Trevor Fronius, Trent Baskerville and Anthony Petrosino entitled, “Policing schools in the USA: An evidence summary and future research agenda.” The article discusses some of the recent trends and highlights evidence from several systematic reviews of evidence on the effects of school policing, including a large-scale effort for the Campbell Collaboration. A more recent evaluation published since the reviews were done is also discussed. Finally, the article highlights a report to Congress by the National Institute of Justice and concludes with policy implications and a future agenda for research. This paper is part of a special issue in honor of JPRC Adviser, David Weisburd.

Providing Technical Assistance to Enhance School Capacity to Prevent Youth Violence

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The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) funded K–12 educational communities across the country to support their efforts to address youth violence by identifying needs and implementing evidence-based prevention and intervention efforts. In collaboration with our partner and lead organization, Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), the JPRC (and teammates from WestEd’s Resilient and Health Schools and Communities) will provide direct technical assistance to a selected number of these grantees. Our team will support grantees in their planning and implementation of specific programs and strategies to prevent youth violence. We will lead several broader tasks, including providing webinars and other group learning opportunities, and creating tools and other resources for the field.