Threat Assessment and Reporting

Identify and address safety concerns to reduce the threat of violence.

Identifying, reporting, and addressing safety concerns can help reduce the threat of targeted violence and enhance student safety. Schools can consider establishing a centralized reporting system that is continually monitored and allows for anonymous reporting to help students and other members of the school community provide information on concerns for wellness or safety. Creating a school environment that engages and empowers students to report concerns can also help enhance safety and security.

Schools may also consider the use of well-trained and multidisciplinary school threat assessment teams. These teams should include certified mental health professionals and the approach should include providing the supports and interventions students need when they need them.

Featured Resources

These resources are a starting point for learning more about threat assessment and reporting. Use these resources to help implement a threat assessment and reporting system.

Additionally, SchoolSafety.gov regularly publishes issue briefs that provide a high-level overview of a specific school safety topic as well as a sampling of aligned strategies, resources, programs, and tools. Download and explore threat assessment and reporting-related issue briefs below.

Guidance

School Threat Assessment Toolkit

Department of Justice, 2024

This toolkit is designed to aid schools in employing behavioral threat assessment and management as part of a comprehensive violence prevention strategy. The toolkit offers guidance on training, implementation, and assessment of school threat assessment teams. It aims to ensure fidelity to student rights while providing practical tools like documents, forms, videos, and additional resources to support schools’ efforts.

Guidance

Improving School Safety Through Bystander Reporting: A Toolkit for Strengthening K-12 Reporting Programs

Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and Department of Homeland Security, 2023

This toolkit offers simple strategies and guidance K-12 schools and school districts can use to implement and enhance safety reporting programs and encourage bystander reporting among students and other members of the school community.

Guidance

Averting Targeted School Violence: A U.S. Secret Service Analysis of Plots Against Schools

Department of Homeland Security, March 2021

The following study examines 67 disrupted plots against K-12 schools and highlights the importance of proactive reporting and intervention.

Guidance

Enhancing School Safety Using a Threat Assessment Model

Department of Homeland Security, July 2018

This guide provides actionable steps that schools can take to develop comprehensive targeted violence prevention plans and create processes and procedures for conducting threat assessments.

Filter Resources

All Threat Assessment and Reporting Resources

Access additional resources below to learn more about threat assessment and reporting and related best practices. Use the filters to sort resources based on preparedness action.

Report

Protecting America’s Schools: A U.S. Secret Service Analysis of Targeted School Violence

Department of Homeland Security, November 2019

This report identifies 41 incidents of attacks against K-12 schools in the United States from 2008 to 2017. Researchers with the USSS National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) examined the background and behaviors of the attackers and identified a series of 10 key findings and significant commonalities.

Report

Early Warning, Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools

Department of Justice

This report provides school communities with a summary of the research on violence prevention and intervention and crisis response in schools.

Webpage

Say Something Anonymous Reporting System

Third Party

The Say Something Anonymous Reporting System allows the public to submit secure and anonymous safety concerns to help identify and intervene upon at-risk individuals prior to an incident.