Since the passing of Texas Senate Bill 11 (TEC; 37.115) in 2019, Texas joined one of the few states where it is now required by law for schools to have a Safe and Supportive School Program (SSSP) team that oversees a variety of student needs such as Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, Behavioral Threat Assessments, School Climate, and Emergency Planning and Implementation.

Winters ISD understands how important it is to respond to safety concerns early with the goal to prevent escalation. Concerning behavior indicators may be expressed in a variety of ways, including social media activity, verbal or written statements and student outcries or behaviors.

The goal of our Student Behavioral Threat Assessment & Management is to implement formal processes to recognize, report, and assess reported concerns so that effective management strategies can be implemented to help de-escalate concerning behaviors.

The SSSP team is responsible for collecting and analyzing harmful, threatening, and violent behavior; assessing threat and risk levels; and determining appropriate interventions. The Texas Education Code lists the following as "harmful, threatening, or violent" behaviors:

• Verbal threats

• Threats of self-harm

• Bullying

• Cyberbullying

• Fighting

• Use of or possession of a weapon

• Sexual assault

• Sexual harassment

• Dating violence

• Stalking

• Assault

When an individual or situation is brought to their attention, the SSSP team reviews the reported or observed behavior, investigates to determine whether it poses a threat based on facts, and decides what resources the individual might benefit from. Resources are identified for the person of concern and any targets or victims

Threat Assessment IS:

• A fact-based, investigative approach to determine how likely a person is to carry out a threat of violence. (Safe School Initiative Study, 2002)

• A means to identify, assess, and manage individuals who are at risk for violence against themselves or others.

• A way to identify someone who has the potential for violence in many form - self-harm, assault, risk taking behaviors, suicide, substance abuse, and other aggressive or dangerous behaviors.

Threat Assessment IS NOT:

• A simple checklist of warning signs or red flags used to remove a student from school.

• A means to label a student as a troublemaker and enact consequences.

• A means to find "the next school shooter".

Reference - Texas State - Texas School Safety Center

Our program’s framework promotes active involvement from our staff, students, parents and the community because safety and security impacts everyone. We encourage active involvement by asking all stakeholders to report any threats or concerns they see and hear through our Safety reporting tool.

The primary purpose of the Safety Reporting tool is to prevent targeted violence by analyzing the facts and behaviors in a given situation. 

Resources

• Threat Assessment and Safe and Supportive School Program and Team: TEC 37.115

• A Parents Guide to School Safety Toolkit 

• Talking to Children about Violence - Tips for Families and Educators 

For more information on the Safe and Supportive Schools Program and Threat Assessment please contact the campus principal.