Safer Schools – Prevention and Deterrence

Abstract

In recent years, incidents involving active aggressors, active shooters, rampage killing, and single-instance mass genocide have been occurring and making the news headlines with more apparent frequency. These occurrences placed a spotlight on the fact that a number of nations, governments, municipalities, local authorities, religious, and academic institutions are largely (if not wholly) unprepared to prevent, handle, and manage these types of horrifying incidents. Common targets for criticism or blame have often involved gun control, regulation, societal oppression, a culture of violence in television, movies, and video games. Much of the attention has given to the responses that occur during and after an event, while less thought and consideration have gone into the factors that occur prior to an event that subsequently result in extreme violence. While this project began as an effort to leverage technology as a means for handling and managing school shootings as they happen, more current and studies on the matter are establishing that there is a clear need for human and technological solutions around prevention and deterrence of, not only, school shootings, but also violence, aggressive and antisocial behavior, while maintaining a need to more proactively address mental health issues and other reported or unreported factors leading to extreme violence.