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Security & Safety will be a major topic of discussion in the majority of the schools now, but every attempt should be made to maintain that concern & awareness at a high point over the stretched term. For too many organizations & industries, security & safety just becomes a high priority after a severe incident. For instance, security consultants like me often do not get called in until after a chief incident has occurred.

Every school emergency council must carefully consider how emergencies & crises can be promptly & effectively communicated to every key audience, including each and every student, staff & emergency responders. As different to high schools, for instance, it is much more of a challenge to converse within a spread out, large, Commuter College such as West Virginia Tech, but it could be accomplished.

Students & staff must be trained on how to identify the early warning signs of potential violent behavior & should be made to understand & appreciate the importance of raising the issue to the organization. Just stating that there is a responsibility to report in a policy & handbook would not motivate people to conquer their natural resistance to be a “snitch” or “squealer”. At West Virginia Tech, for instance, it appears that some students & at least one professor were alert that the future attacker was writing disturbing work that indicated to them a potential for brutality. Just telling him to, “go get psychoanalysis,” may not be enough.

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