2026
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:
- Early identification and intervention can help prevent targeted violence.
- Multidisciplinary teams improve assessment accuracy and decision-making.
- 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.