The primary goal of the threat assessment and management process is to support and enhance the health, safety, and well-being of the school community by determining whether a person of concern poses a threat of violence – whether toward others, themselves, or both. In cases where the team’s assessment is that the person of concern does pose a threat of violence, the goal of the threat assessment and management process at that point is to implement a strategy to reduce the threat that is posed.

Threat assessment and management is not an adversarial or punitive process and is most effective when it is not treated as such or equated with disciplinary action or an adversarial approach. Many persons of concern are seeking to be heard and understood in their grievances. While the behavior they engage in to try to address a grievance may be inappropriate or threatening (and needs to be addressed), their grievances may be legitimate or may help a team to identify environmental or systemic issues (such as bullying and harassment) that are fueling those grievances. While not all behaviors are in response to a specific grievance, threat assessment identifies the concerns and underlying factors that are causing or contributing to the troubling situation, ways to address those factors and concerns, intervene if necessary, and improve the overall safety of people and the situation.