Building Capacity for Threat Prevention, Assessment, and Response in Texas Border Schools

The University of Missouri will build capacity in four border districts serving 30 schools (15,000+ students) across Texas by creating school-based threat assessment teams; implementing proactive threat identification technology targeting the vulnerable digital anonymity of the school-provided computer; supporting implementation of complementary evidence-supported programs collectively responding to potential threats of violence, self-harm and harm to others; and using a student mental health screening and support system. First, the team will install software on district-owned computers to identify and report behavioral risks to students, including threats of violence, with training and monitoring support ensuring success and sustainability. Second, the University of Missouri will support partner schools to use the Columbia Protocol and Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines and construct structured safety and crisis intervention plans. Third, they will support schools in using the Early Identification System for screening student mental health concerns biannually and using the Intervention Hub to provide evidence-based schoolwide and individual student supports. The project includes SlateXP as a partner to implement its LearnSafe software to enable behavioral threat identification, response and training to schools in each district, customize notifications to prioritize urgent threats, and digital behavior monitoring to support school-based threat and mental health activities.