CREATING YOUR BIT: INFLUENCING CHANGE ON YOUR CAMPUS The Community College Conference On Legal...

CREATING YOUR BIT:INFLUENCING CHANGE ON

YOUR CAMPUS

The Community College Conference On Legal Issues

January 30, 2012

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Presented by

Saundra K. Schuster, J.D. Partner, National Center for

Higher Education Risk Management

[email protected]

© NCHERM, 2012 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.ncherm.org/


Nearly 80% of school (k-12 & college) violence perpetrators raised serious concerns about the potential for violence amongst friends, family, peers, or other community members prior to their acts

Nearly 80% of campus shooters/violent actors shared their plans, or parts of their plans, with others prior to their shootings.

Source, Marisa Randazzo, Ph.D.

Campus Violence – There Are Clues

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Is an active shooter red in the face? Are they about to “go postal”? Are they sweating? Are they angry and out-of-control? Wearing a trenchcoat or hoodie? Can’t you see one coming?

Not when your mental image is skewed by media-driven stereotypes.

But, Do We Know What to Look For?What Is an Active Shooter?

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© NCHERM, 2012 ALL RIGHTS RESERVEDWhat does an “active shooter” really

look like?

But, Do We Know What to Look For?

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Cognitive v. Primal Aggression

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A cognitive aggressor plans, executes methodically, and is emotionally disengaged.

Someone who is willing to give their life for their cause shows a profound disconnection from their own well-being… and yours.

Their body loses animation. Their face shows no affect. Beware the “thousand-yard” stare.

-- Source: John D. Byrnes, The Center for Aggression Management


Esquire Kazmierczak Profile7

“He stands for the briefest of moments looking at the class, then he raises the shotgun… He stands in place, not panicking, not rushing…

There was no change of expression, not even excitement. It was like if you’re repainting a room at home, painting the walls, and you realize you missed a few spots, it was that mechanical.”

Source: Esquire Magazine, July 16th 2008


IV-4 :“Incidents of aberrant, dangerous, or

threateningbehavior must be documented and

reported Immediately to a college’s threat

assessment group, and must be acted upon in a

prompt and effective manner to protect the safety of

the campus community.”

The Virginia Tech Governor’s Panel Report

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The post-Virginia Tech era shows a dramatic shift to proactive prevention as the majority of campuses move to implement or update behavioral intervention team practices.

As these teams evolve and become more sophisticated, we must ask what best practices are evolving and what future transformations are in store?

A Focus on Proaction9


Team Development Philosophical Considerations Team Membership

Team Leadership Mission Development Practical Meeting Applications

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Starting Your Team


Key Question:Do we understand the

difference between Threat Assessment and Behavioral

Intervention?

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Philosophical Considerations


1. Who is/are the decision makers on your campus?

2. Are we willing to commit as much to prevention as we do to reaction?

3. Do you want to – and can you - support, assess and/or treat?

4. What is your philosophy on mandated assessment?

5. What entities already exist (BIT/CIRT/EAP)?

6. What level of campus buy-in exists?

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1. Will your team exist for students, faculty, and/or staff?

2. What mechanisms exist to learn about any type incident?

3. What about accountability and assessment?

4. What tools will we use to insure we are consistent and objective?

5. What are your capabilities for follow-up?

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CORE GROUPChair/Case ManagerStudent ConductMental Health ProfessionalLaw Enforcement/Security“The Regulars”

INNER CIRCLE Disability Services Faculty? Other Student Service

Areas

OUTER CIRCLE Health Services Greek Affairs Registrar Academic Affairs Media Relations HR/Union/Faculty

Senate

Make adjustments to fit your culture

Sustainability matters

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Team Membership


This should be the person on campus who has the ability to: Remove/restrict students from

campus Mandate actions (i.e., assessment)

It must be someone who has the confidence of the community

Chair vs. Case Manager

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Team Leadership


Who is this on your campus?

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Team Leadership


Develop a vision and mission that is consistent with your institutional mission and philosophy.

Include your Inner Circle in mission development, and your outer core in mission enhancement.

This can be done while the team is in the early functioning stages.

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Team Vision & Mission


How often should we meet?

Where?What about multiple

campus sites?How will we be trained?

What will these meetings look like?

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Meeting Considerations


How will we manage the data and records?

What about meeting minutes and notes?

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Meeting Considerations


2nd generation behavioral intervention teams use formalized protocols of explicit engagement techniques and strategies;

A policy tells you what you’ll do. A protocol shows you how

Short but thorough Clear within a year Answers “Why We Did What We Did”

when the Governor’s Panel starts asking tough questions.

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2nd Generation BIT Best Practices


2nd generation behavioral intervention teams see their role as nominally to address threat, and primarily to support and provide resources to students;

Threat assessment v. behavioral intervention

Tool of student success Aid in retention Non-threatening to the community

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams utilize mandated psychological assessment’

Define who will assess, when and for how long

Define what tools will be used Define who pays for the assessment Define what must be communicated to

team Define what will happen if student fails to

comply Define how assessment results will be used

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams utilize voluntary/involuntary medical/psychological withdrawal policies; are you aware of the change in ADA law?

Do everything you can to encourage voluntary withdrawal

Must consider campus conduct action Direct threat determination under Section 504 Applies to withdrawal from housing and/or the

institution Clear conditions for return

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams are undergirded by sophisticated threat assessment capacity, beyond law enforcement and psychological assessment tools;

Limitations of each discipline’s approach Example of the NaBITA Threat Assessment

Tool

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams use risk rubrics to classify threats;

This enables us to treat all similar situated students similarly

A risk rubric allows for a consistent, objective evaluation

A risk rubric enables a common language across the community

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams foster a comprehensive reporting culture within the institution;

Your duty and your responsibility BIT sets a standard of care…it is expected to

know what members of the community know, but can’t act on information it does not have

When in doubt, err on the side of reporting Amnesty, Anonymous &Web-based reporting BIT “Appeals”

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams are technologically advanced; supported by comprehensive databases that allow the team to have a longitudinal view of a student's behavior patterns and trends;

Comprehensive Maxient database www.maxient.com

Record retention policies & practices FERPA

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http://www.maxient.com/


2nd generation behavioral intervention teams train and educate the community on what to report and how;

We must create a common language for what is concerning

If you build it, they will come What if the concern is minor Impediments to training Internal AND External Training/Orientation

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams focus not only on student-based risks, but on faculty and staff as well;

Separate Teams? Requires HR on team; bifurcated

recordkeeping Collective Bargaining Agreements? Faculty/Staff handbook Adjustments What about EAP?

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams intentionally integrate with campus and community resources such as crisis management plans, emergency response procedures, CISDT protocols, and existing campus risk management programs addressing sex offenders, Prior Felony Assaults, criminal background checks and admissions screenings.

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2nd generation behavioral intervention teams utilize their databases to integrate a function for “minding the gaps”

Is a period of quietude cause of relief or cause for alarm?

We need to check in to see if the student is tethered to our support structures and coping, or quietly planning and trying to evade our detection

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Fully implement all twelve 2nd gen BIT best practices

Empower a culture of reporting Conduct Bystander Intervention Training Ensure Adequate Mental Health Services Get a database (Maxient.com) Train Faculty & Staff Offer Suicide Gatekeeper Training (QPR,

CC)

Action Items Based on This Training


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www.ncherm.org/CUBIT.html

www.nabita.orgwww.atap.org

www.maxient.com

Resources

http://www.ncherm.org/CUBIT.html

http://www.ncherm.org/CUBIT.html

http://www.nabita.org/

http://www.atap.org/

http://www.maxient.com/


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Thank you!

Questions?

Saunie Schuster, Esq.

CREATING YOUR BIT: INFLUENCING CHANGE ON YOUR CAMPUS The Community College Conference On Legal...

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