Wood County, Ohio’s multidisciplinary Behavioral Intervention Program (BIP) is undergoing three independent evaluations to help develop local, state, and national capacity to understand best practices and challenges in the behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM) process. Developed in partnership with CP3, the BIP is a proactive approach to identifying concerning behavior, assessing and managing students’ well-being, and protecting civil rights, civil liberties, and privacy before an individual commits an act of violence. The three evaluations will look at capacity-building at the state level, best practices for BTAMs at the state and local levels, and development of materials to help improve safety and security in grade schools. The results of these evaluations will be shared to support state and local development of multidisciplinary BTAM teams in school districts, law enforcement agencies, mental health organizations, and other community organizations across the country. Additionally, this program and the evaluations will help CP3 advance its mission to address primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention across the social ecological model, which explores the range of factors (individual, relationship, community, and societal) that put people at risk for violence.
Evaluation 1: Center for Naval Analyses (CNA) will begin a two-year DHS Science and Technology Directorate-funded external program evaluation of the Wood County BIP, which has been identified as a potential model to be emulated across the state. This evaluation will be critical to build a capacity to support this model at the state level. CP3 approached CNA and worked with them to develop the evaluation.
Evaluation 2: The Center for American Law and Extremism (CALE) at John Jay College will conduct research on the Wood County BIP and its current behavioral threat assessment initiatives to identify best practices for developing local and state BTAM teams around the country. CP3 was approached by CALE regarding assistance with conducting an evaluation.
Evaluation 3: RAND Corporation will conduct research on the Wood County BIP to identify and understand best practices around the formation of BTAM teams, intervention and risk management options, and the decision-making process for selecting appropriate interventions for individuals identified as being at risk or harm to self or others. The goal is to develop materials for the Federal School Safety Clearinghouse to help K-12 schools improve security and safety on their campuses across the country. CP3 was approached by RAND regarding assistance with conducting an evaluation.