The day after the deadly shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School the rallying cry heard across the country was no-more school shootings! It was clearly evident that school shootings are increasing and reactive measures are not going to change this. Images from Parkland, Sandy Hook, and Columbine made it ever so clear that whereas the atrocities caught our attention, schools are still soft targets. There are no manuals from the United States Department of Education to turn to for guidance to secure schools. No guidance on how to train administration and staff, as they truly are the first responders in such an event. Rather than wait for the heads of the federal and state education departments to step up and take-action, the time has come for all school leaders and administrators to take the step to protect their school communities. This book will help school leaders and administrators proactively take action to protect their school communities and yet still maintain a warm and nurturing learning environment.

Susan T. Vickers served as a social studies teacher for fifteen years, twelve years as a building administrator, and currently serves as a school superintendent in the Catskill region of New York State. She truly believes in not putting anything off to tomorrow that can be accomplished today.



Kevin L. Smith, MD, Board Certified, General and Forensic Psychiatry

Foreword

Acknowledgement

Introduction

Chapter 1: How Did We Get Here

Chapter 2: Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Chapter 3: Threat Assessments in Schools

Chapter 4: Threat Assessment in Action

Chapter 5: DRA Team Protocols

Chapter 6: Dangerousness Risk Assessment

Chapter 7: Why This Age Group

Chapter 8: Risk Factors and Dynamic Mental Health

Chapter 9: Learning From Real Life Experiences

Chapter 10: Lessons From Active Shooter Drills and Training

Chapter 11: Scenarios and Examples

Chapter 12: What To Do When Confronted By a Potential Perpetrator

Chapter 13: Trauma and Trauma Systems Treatment

Bibliography