Understanding K12 Threat Assessments and IC 10-21-1-15

In 2019, House Enrolled Act 1004 (P.L. 197-2019) was passed. The statute reads:

(c) Before July 1, 2021, each school corporation, charter school, or accredited nonpublic school shall certify to the department of homeland security that the school corporation, charter school, or accredited nonpublic school has conducted a threat assessment for each school building used by the school corporation, charter school, or accredited nonpublic school before applying for a grant under this chapter.

This statute is vague. There really is no definition here of what a threat assessment is, or what should be required of a threat assessment. The goal of this article is to help you better understand what is required for your school to be able to apply for homeland security grants.

What is a Threat Assessment?

Nationally, the typical definition of a “threat assessment” is that it is behavioral and is usually conducted on people (in a school setting, this would typically be students). 

In this legislation, it says to conduct a threat assessment for each school building, which means that the statute is wanting schools to focus on their buildings, not on the people or students in those buildings. The guidance of the DOE confirms this and indicated that the legislation is referring to assessing your buildings. 

The statute language, “threat assessment of each school building”, is consistent with a vulnerability assessment, so this article will walk through what that should look like.

Typically in the past, most security assessments have been treated as a one-and-done model, which never really offered the ability to create a long term process for continually managing the vulnerability and the risk within the environment. Through the DOE guidelines, they make some recommendations:

• Create assessment team

• Utilize an “all hazards approach”

  • Not just an active shooter plan

  • Also need to assess the plans for cyber attacks, natural disasters, or terrorist attacks

• Select an assessment tool to continuously assess the vulnerabilities of the school

• Make the assessment part of the school safety plan

• Create a prioritized action plan for implementation

• Results from the assessments should drive and prioritize funding requests

So, what is a vulnerability (threat) assessment? The goal is to assess risk, and then remove as much risk as possible. 

With a vulnerability (threat) assessment, most of the focus should be on the physical aspects of buildings.

• Locks - Are they functioning? Are locks used? Who has keys? 

• Doors - Are they able to be closed in case of emergency? Can they shut off corridors to make the building “smaller” or less accessible?

• Cameras - Are they functioning? Do they cover everything? Are there blind spots?

A lot of 3rd parties offer these threat assessments, but they might not be exactly what you are looking for. Often times:

• They are expensive. Typically range from $1,500 to $5,000 per building, not even per district.

• They are typically one-and-done. This means they send out their team, assess your building(s), send a report, and that’s it. There’s no continuous assessment.

• These are typically not collaborative. 

In order to provide Indiana schools with an option that works for this statute, and helps assess their building(s) continuously, SafeHiring Solutions is now offering a solution for this vulnerability (threat) assessment. 

This assessment will be collaborative with virtual or onsite options. SafeHiring Solutions will partner with your security team, because your team knows your school inside and out. With a collaboration between SafeHiring Solutions and your security team, there will be an open dialogue between the two while assessing the building(s).

The assessment becomes a living, breathing document/process. It can be continuously reviewed and continuously monitored to make sure the assessment is ongoing to keep your vulnerabilities at a minimum.

The SafeHiring Solutions’ security team has vetted hundreds of security products and companies post Parkland, so this team will be able to work with your security team to recommend best practices while keeping the pricing as low as possible. This team will make sure these practices will move the needle for your school to provide the best safety and security possible at an affordable price.

So what exactly would a 360 assessment include? It will look at a lot of aspects in your school district, including:

Policies 

It is important to make sure your policies are up-to-date and in compliance with any laws or regulations. Looking at things like:

• Safety Plans

• Background Screening (visitors, volunteers, vendors)

• Technology

• Student Drop Off/Pickup (parents and buses)

Safety and Security Climate Survey

This is to see how your people in the school view your security. It is a random, anonymous sampling of stakeholders and their survey responses. This can be used as a benchmark of where to start for your assessment, and then a year later you can do it again to see if your changes are working. Types of people who would be surveyed can include:

• Admins

• Principles

• Teachers

• Classified

• Nurses

• School Resource Officers

• Public Facing Employees

Physical 

• Buildings

• Policy vs. Practice

• Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED)

• Extensive assessments of locks, cameras, door propping, access, badges, access control, classroom doors, etc

• Have we created more risk with COVID policies?

Technology

• Security Technology

  • Visitor Management

  • Volunteer Management

  • Alert Systems (see DOE guidance)

  • Access Control

  • Student Check In/Check Out

• Do systems integrate and share data?

Cyber 

• Proliferation of K12 cyber/ransomware attacks

• Securing virtual environments

• Penetration Testing

• Cyber testing developed for K12, not-for-profits, and small organizations

Threat/Behavioral

• Threat/Crisis Team Intervention Tool

• Several validated K12 models

• Can be implemented into assessment tool

• Connect red flags

• Goal: Help students by intervening early, so the red flags don’t become a crisis

With all of these things being assessed, it will make your school a safer place for not only your students, but also your staff. We know this legislation, like all legislation, can be confusing and daunting, so we are here to help.

If you have any questions about what this means for your district, or if you would like more information on the SafeHiring Solutions 360 assessment, you can:

Contact us here, email us at sales@safehiringsolutions.com, or give us a call at 866.434.0002.