WestEd provides flexible school safety services tailored to each district’s needs, including physical security audits, school safety evaluation to assess current practices and identify opportunities for continuous improvement, emergency operations planning, and behavioral threat assessment support—available individually or as a service bundle.
How We Help
We partner with education leaders to strengthen safety systems, enhance emergency preparedness, and create safer environments for students and staff while ensuring compliance with state and federal school safety mandates. Through a collaborative needs assessment, we ensure that our support aligns with each district’s local priorities and capacity.
Our school safety services are research based, trauma informed, and tailored to each community’s context. We help identify and address safety gaps by conducting physical security audits and school safety evaluations, guiding emergency operations planning, and facilitating behavioral threat assessment processes. We also provide ongoing support to strengthen internal capacity and ensure long-term sustainability of effective safety practices.
Service Delivery
We conduct physical security audits in person to provide a thorough assessment of the school environment. We deliver other services—such as school safety evaluation, emergency operations planning, and behavioral threat assessment—virtually or onsite. This hybrid approach ensures accessibility, convenience, and quality without compromising the effectiveness of our support.
Who Will Benefit
- teachers and school staff
- school and district Leaders (administrators, coordinators, directors)
- local education agencies
- state education agencies
- school and district personnel (superintendents, school safety directors, school resource officers, principals, and other school administrators)
Ready to discuss how we can support in building safer, more prepared learning environments?
Connect with a WestEd expert.
"*" indicates required fields
“WestEd has done a great job working with school districts to ensure the proper implementation of the Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management program. They have been approachable, knowledgeable, and a true partner as we look to expand our BTAM work across the state.”
— James Babcock, Psy.D.
Threat Assessment/Mental Health Coordinator, Maine Department of Education
Featured Experts
André Spence
Trevor Fronius
Ashley Boal
Connecting Research With Practice
Our school safety services are grounded in evidence-based frameworks and current research in trauma-informed practices, emergency preparedness, and behavioral threat assessment. We draw from leading models such as the Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines (CSTAG) and research from the National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC), along with federal guidance from the U.S. Department of Education and FEMA. These foundations ensure that our strategies are effective, compliant, and adaptable to local contexts. By translating research into practical application, we support schools in implementing sustainable safety solutions that promote secure, supportive learning environments.
More Related to This Service
Insights & Impact
Resources
Browse our high-quality publications and resources designed to inform and engage professionals in a variety of fields including K–12 education, early childhood, and health and justice.
