October 2024
Latest News
Federal Government Announces Actions on Improving School-Based Active Shooter Drills
The federal government announced forthcoming actions to develop and publish information for K-12 schools and institutions of higher education regarding school-based active shooter drills. The information will include a summary of existing research and resources on active shooter drills; how to conduct effective and age- and developmentally-appropriate drills; how best to communicate about drills and prevent students and educators from experiencing trauma or psychological distress associated with these drills; and how best to serve people with disabilities and language-related needs when designing and implementing school-based active shooter drills.
FCC and ED Release Cybersecurity Resource Guide
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the U.S. Department of Education (ED), with input from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), released a resource guide to help schools and libraries evaluate their cybersecurity risks and identify the most impactful cybersecurity solutions. The guide can also help schools and libraries as they complete applications for the FCC’s Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program and serve broadly as a resource for schools and libraries as they take steps to better protect their networks.
ED Shares Resources for Communities Following Natural Disasters
ED has curated resources, including those developed by other federal agencies and organizations, to assist schools in dealing with impacts of natural disasters. These resources can help educational institutions restore the teaching and learning environment as well as support whole community recovery efforts. Schools can also access a range of emergency planning resources, including those specific to recovery, on SchoolSafety.gov.
DHS Releases 2025 Homeland Threat Assessment
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the 2025 Homeland Threat Assessment (HTA), describing a threat environment that is expected to “remain high” over the coming year. The HTA provides information on threats to public safety and security in order to assist federal, state, and local partners in preparing for, preventing, and responding to an ever-evolving threat environment. It covers topic areas and threats related to public safety, border and immigration, critical infrastructure, and economic security. The announcement of the HTA also included information on DHS’s efforts and resources to combat threats.
SAMHSA Provides Youth Substance Use Prevention Resources for Educators and Families
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is observing Youth Substance Use Prevention Month in October. Prevention strengthens protective factors and reduces risk factors in individuals, families, schools, and communities, and helps to mitigate substance use and mental health challenges, especially among youth and young adults. SAMHSA offers a range of resources to support substance use prevention, including the “Talk. They Hear You.”® campaign.
Justice Department Launches New Curriculum on Bullying and Youth Hate Crimes
The Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs’ Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention released the Youth Hate Crimes and Identity-Based Bullying Prevention Curriculum. The curriculum is designed to empower middle and high school students with tools to combat bias, prejudice and hate, and enhance their digital and media literacy skills. It includes evidence-based interventions to address risk factors for violence and enhance protective factors that promote positive youth development.
ED Announces COVID-19 Test Distribution
ED, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is offering COVID-19 tests to interested local educational agencies (LEAs). LEAs, including public school districts and public charter school districts, may request over-the-counter rapid antigen COVID-19 self-tests free of charge for their students, families, staff, and school communities. Schools can use the tests to stock school nurses’ offices, send test kits home with students or parents, or distribute within their communities.
Cybersecurity Awareness Month Shares Tips to Stay Safe Online
Cybersecurity Awareness Month aims to highlight some of the emerging challenges that exist in the world of cybersecurity today and provide straightforward, actionable guidance that anyone can follow to reduce cyber risk. The theme of Cybersecurity Awareness Month is Secure Our World, which emphasizes four simple steps that anyone can take to stay safe online: use strong passwords and a password manager; turn on multifactor authentication, recognize and report phishing, and update software.
DHS Awards $18 Million to Help Prevent Targeted Violence and Terrorism
DHS awarded 35 grants, totaling $18 million, under the Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (TVTP) Grant Program for Fiscal Year 2024. The TVTP Grant Program provides funding to eligible applicants to develop sustainable, multidisciplinary targeted violence and terrorism prevention capabilities in local communities; to pilot innovative prevention approaches; and to identify prevention best practices that can be replicated in communities across the country. The awards included 20 grantees focused wholly or in part on targeted violence prevention in youth settings.
SchoolSafety.gov Offers Resources and Guidance to Prevent Bullying
October is National Bullying Prevention Month, a month-long observance to educate and raise awareness about bullying and cyberbullying prevention. Everyone in the school community can play a role in addressing and preventing bullying. Learn about school-based bullying prevention strategies in SchoolSafety.gov’s latest issue brief, and access additional resources through SchoolSafety.gov and StopBullying.gov.
Upcoming Events and Opportunities
Grants and Funding Opportunities
Visit the SchoolSafety.gov Grants Finder Tool for additional school safety-related funding opportunities.
Events, Webinars, and Conferences
Cybersecurity Awareness Month Fireside Chat (October 21) – This webinar, hosted by ED, will cover basic cybersecurity considerations for school communities; data breaches, including detection, prevention, notifications, and communications; and considerations for evaluating the cybersecurity protections offered by vendors.
Protecting School Systems: Understanding Cybersecurity Threats to K-12 (October 23) – This webinar, hosted by CISA, will discuss the current cyber threat landscape and corresponding information and resources to help K-12 schools and school districts address systemic cybersecurity risks and strengthen their cyber posture.
National Student Privacy and Data Security Fall Webinar Series (November 6, 13, 20) – This webinar series, hosted by ED’s Student Privacy Policy Office and its Privacy Technical Assistance Center, will include the following sessions:
Enhancing School Safety Using Behavioral Threat Assessment (November 20, January 15, March 19) – These virtual training events, hosted by the U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC), will highlight key findings and implications from NTAC’s research on school violence prevention. This training will also provide guidance on how schools may develop or improve existing violence prevention programs utilizing a behavioral threat assessment model.
Preventing Mass Attacks in Our Communities (December 18, February 19, April 16) – These virtual training events, hosted by NTAC, will cover findings from NTAC’s research on mass attacks perpetrated in public and semi-public spaces, including businesses, houses of worship, schools, and more. This training will also provide guidance on how communities may develop or improve existing violence prevention programs utilizing a behavioral threat assessment model.
Visit the SchoolSafety.gov Events Page for additional school safety-related webinars, conferences, and more.
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School Safety Resources
Cybersecurity Resources
A Parent's Guide for Understanding K-12 School Data Breaches
This publication provides information to help parents of K-12 students understand what it means when a school has a data breach. It also provides tools and best practices to help parents and guardians navigate the process of protecting children’s data in the event of a breach.
Secure Our World
This program educates individuals and organizations on actionable steps to stay more safe and secure online. It includes information and resources such as videos, toolkits, tip sheets, and posters.
Bullying Prevention Resources
How to Talk about Bullying
This resource offers tips for parents, caregivers, and students on how to talk about bullying.
Emergency Planning Resources
Creating, Practicing, and Implementing Plans for Family Reunification Before, During, and After an Emergency
This webpage provides resources to help schools create a family reunification annex as part of a school emergency operations plan to detail actions that can help ensure students are reunited with their families following an emergency.
Recovery Planning for Schools and Institutions of Higher Education in the Immediate Aftermath of a Significant or Federally Declared Natural Disaster
This fact sheet outlines information and resources to support schools and institutions of higher education in their recovery planning efforts in the immediate aftermath of a community-wide disaster.
Additional School Safety Resources
Preventing Spread of Infections in K-12 Schools
This guidance is designed to maximize school attendance and its benefits for all students, while also preventing the spread of infectious diseases. It consolidates and simplifies previous recommendations intended specifically for K-12 school settings.
School and Campus Health
This webpage provides information and resources to assist efforts to promote mental health and substance use prevention in schools and on campuses and to provide safe learning environments.
School Threat Assessment Toolkit
This toolkit is designed to aid schools in employing behavioral threat assessment and management as part of a comprehensive violence prevention strategy. The toolkit offers guidance on training, implementation and assessment of school threat assessment teams. It aims to ensure fidelity to student rights while providing practical tools like documents, forms, videos and additional resources to support schools’ efforts.
Strategies for De-escalating Student Behavior in the Classroom
This practice brief provides practical, research-based strategies educators can use to de-escalate challenging student behavior in the classroom.
Visit SchoolSafety.gov for additional resources to support school safety and security efforts.
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If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for future newsletters, please contact us at SchoolSafety@mail.cisa.dhs.gov.
SchoolSafety.gov Disclaimer
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Department of Education (ED), U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) do not endorse any individual, enterprise, product, or service. DHS, ED, DOJ, and HHS do not mandate or prescribe practices, models, or other activities described in this communication. DHS, ED, DOJ, and HHS do not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of any information outside of those respective Departments, and the opinions expressed in any of these materials do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of DHS, ED, DOJ, and HHS.
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