Webinar Set On Managing School Violence Risk

A risk management training group will offer a free Web seminar next week on how to protect against and deal with shootings, adult intruders, terrorism and other violence in schools.

The week-long program will be offered by the Fairfax, Va.-based Public Entity Risk Institute, a nonprofit risk management educational organization, from Jan. 8-12

PERI said its symposium–entitled, “Confronting Violence in Our Schools: Planning, Response, and Recovery”–will be moderated by Lauren Eib, risk manager for the Tucson Unified School District in Tucson, Ariz.

The virtual symposium on PERI's Web site–www.riskinstitute.org–will feature specially commissioned issues and ideas papers addressing threat assessments, crime prevention through environmental design, guidelines for handling student threats, the use of force in restraining violent students, and the recovery process.

On Monday, Loren Coleman, author of “The Copycat Effect,” is scheduled to present “The Copycat Effect: School Shootings and Recommendations,” while Eric Shoemaker of the U.S. Department of Defense will speak on “Terrorism in American Schools: The First of All Fears.”

On Jan. 9, “Schools as Soft Targets” will be addressed by Mike Dorn of Jane's and Safe Havens International, a security consultant to schools. “Threat Assessment” will be tackled by Vijay Ramnarain, architectural consultant for the Virginia Department of Education.

On Jan. 10, “The Virginia Model for Student Threat Assessment” will be discussed by Dewey Cornell, a professor at the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia, as well as director of the Virginia Youth Violence Project.

“Defusing Violent Behavior in Students: An Ounce of Prevention” will be addressed by Diane Smallwood, associate professor and director of training at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

“Use of Force and the Violent Student” will be discussed by Gary Klugiewicz, director of training for the PoliceOne Training Network, as well as an advisory board member of the Force Science Research Center.

On Jan. 11, “Introducing the Violent Student Back into School” will be addressed by Sara J. Salmon, executive director for the Center for Safe Schools

“Hope and Healing: Recovery from School Violence” will be addressed by Kathy Kennedy Paine, a school psychologist with the Springfield Public Schools in Oregon

On Jan. 12, “Recovery Process” will be addressed by Betsy Thompson, director of student services at the Jefferson County School District in Colorado. There will also be a “Review of Current Programs” by Holly Colonna, guidance coordinator at the Tucson Unified School District.

In addition to professionals sharing expertise and personal experiences in devising effective prevention and recovery strategies, the program also offers “online, threaded discussions that enhance participation by affording the opportunity to exchange ideas and post questions and comments on the issues presented each day,” according to PERI Executive Director Gerry Hoetmer.

Those interested in enrolling for the session can go to Symposium Center on the PERI Web site and fill out a form.

Nonprofit PERI is a non-membership organization that provides risk management education and training resources for local governments, school districts, small businesses, nonprofits and others.