In February, not long after 17 teenagers died in a school shooting in Parkland, Florida, both La Pine and Bend high schools received shooting threats.

However, neither one resulted in violence, and suspects were arrested in both cases, thanks to a threat assessment system implemented at the start of the school year.

Central Oregon educators had decided to use the system, which was pioneered by the Salem-Keizer School District nearly 20 years ago, because they felt their previous program was inefficient. The system, coordinated by High Desert Education District employee Misty Groom, was used by Bend-La Pine, Redmond and Sisters school districts.

It was then put in place at Jefferson, Crook and Harney county school districts this school year.

The Student Threat Assessment System uses multiple local agencies — including law enforcement, county officials and other community partners as needed, like Family Access Network — and school teams to prevent violence and help the troubled students who make threats, Groom said.

“When a student makes a threat, we don’t believe it’s just a school issue or a family issue,” she said. “It really is a community issue, and we need to address it as a community in order for that student to be successful.”

Julianne Repman, Bend-La Pine’s director of communications and safety, said the threat assessment system not only helps keep students safe, but also includes the student making the threat in the solution.

“There are a few incidents last school year where we got a tip that came in, either through 911 or (online tip service) Safe Oregon, and we immediately went to work,” she said. “What’s great about that is it gives us a chance to not only talk about … services for the students, but then really get that continuum of care that they need, while ensuring that the school environment is safe.”

Groom, a former therapist for Deschutes County Behavioral Health, said the system has two levels to combat threats. The first involves a team at each school comprising an administrator, a school resource officer and a school counselor or psychologist. As soon as a threat is reported, the school’s team creates a plan to address the situation. Instead of punishing a student, the team will meet with the student and provide help that includes mentoring or modified school schedules to help the student work through the situation.

“We don’t want to focus just on their risk factor, but we want to build on their prevention network,” Groom said. “Do they need to be connected with a sports team? Do they need connection with music lessons? We provide all those things.”

If the initial team needs more support to help the student, then a multiagency team becomes involved. For Deschutes County schools, this team comprises representatives from Deschutes County Behavioral Health, Deschutes County Juvenile Community Justice, the District Attorney’s Office, the local police department and school district, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, Oregon Youth Authority, and occasionally community groups like Family Access Network. Serious concerns would prompt the group to use the FBI as a resource, Groom said.

According to Groom, local schools switched to the threat assessment system because previously, when a student was referred to Deschutes County Behavioral Health for an assessment there was no follow-through afterward. The new system involves more of the community by helping students get connected to healthy outlets like guitar lessons, she said.

Repman, Bend-La Pine’s safety officer, said assessments in the past could be delayed due to a student or parent refusing to participate. Also, Groom said she had to handle all assessments herself, meaning occasionally some cases had to be postponed because she couldn’t handle them all by herself. Now, the school and multiagency teams can come up with plans immediately after a tip is received.

“In the past, it could take weeks, literally, to get information back on a student, whether or not they might be violent, or are they just aggressive? Do they have a family situation or a behavior that they’re exhibiting that makes them dangerous or not?” Repman said. “I think it’s a lot faster, and it’s giving us the opportunity to have eyes on a student right away, and to start having those conversations instead of having to wait for a long time.”

Tips can be given to officials quickly, through Safe Oregon’s online anonymous tip line or by using an app on Bend-La Pine students’ iPads. School resource officers also give their cellphone numbers so students can text tips.

Bend Police Department spokesman Clint Burleigh, who supervises Bend-La Pine’s school resource officers, said the threat assessment system has “absolutely” helped keep local schools safer and assisted students who made threats.

“We’re trying to close the cracks up; we don’t want the students to fall through,” he said. “Sometimes it’s a minor resource that helps the kids be successful.”

The help can include officers eating lunch with the students in question or playing chess with them during breaks in the school day, Groom said.

According to Repman, the only cost of operating the threat assessment system is Groom’s $76,296 salary, which includes contributions by local school districts. The other organizations donate their time and resources, she said.

The system was created in 1999 by Salem-Keizer School District’s director of safety and risk management services, John Van Dreal. He said he’s led trainings on his system across the country and has been included in FBI and U.S. Department of Education focus groups.

Van Dreal said his system is all based on prevention, not profiling students. He said schools shouldn’t use punitive measures on students who threaten other students or schools — instead, they should try and “increase inclusion and connection for those kids.”

“People think, ‘That can’t be right, we should be punishing them. We should make them feel the consequences of those thoughts,’” he said. “Well, if the consequences are to exclude them and make them feel more angry at the establishment, we don’t want to have those punishments. We just want to build bridges.”

—Reporter: 541-617-7854;jhogan@bendbulletin.com