Objective: This study focused on purpose as a key mechanism of posttraumatic growth for university student survivors of sexual assault. Participants: An online survey was completed by 278 participants of various ethnic, racial and gender backgrounds, recruited through email, social media, department subject pools, and Amazon Mechanical Turk.…

This article reports on the role, activities, and lessons learned of a state mental health authority--the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services--in responding to the mental health needs of families and community members following the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Following the introduction, we provide a brief…

In the early morning hours of June 12, 2016, a lone gunman entered the Pulse night club in downtown Orlando, FL and committed a mass shooting which killed 49 people and injured 53. In the aftermath of the tragedy, the city of Orlando opened a temporary Family Assistance Center (FAC). The center was established to provide a one stop venue where a…

Scholarly research has shown the importance of moments of crisis, in particular the direct aftermath of urban crises, as opportunities to learn about urban vulnerabilities. However, if it is widely assumed that learning is important, in particular for resilience-building, we still know very little about how such learning occurs in a moment of…

On February 27 and 28, 2013, The Symposium of Hope: Recovery and Resilience after the Sandy Hook Tragedy, was held in Danbury, Connecticut. The event was hosted by the United Way of Western Connecticut and Western Connecticut State University. Frank J. Zenere, school psychologist and crisis team member in the Division of Student Services of the…

States that a review of the literature on school violence yields two general issues that can guide administrators and faculty in promoting students' well-being: first, recognizing that most students have at least some experience with violence, and may need help dealing with its negative effects; and second, implementing violence prevention and…

In this article, the author stresses the dangers facing school leaders on the job. The school shooting at Campbell County Comprehensive High School in Jacksboro, Tennessee, on November 8, 2005, which left one assistant principal dead and the principal and another assistant principal seriously wounded, is an extreme example of dangers school…

This article summarizes the U.S. Secret Service Safe School Initiative: An Interim Report on the Prevention of Targeted Violence in Schools. Targeted violence is a term developed by the Secret Service to refer to any incident of violence where a known attacker selects a particular target prior to the act of violence. Because of the Secret Services…

The possibility of an armed intruder, serious bomb threat, or suicide cluster may seem remote, but even without a major crisis, schools are subjected to a number of other potentially disruptive events. Each year three million crimes are committed on school grounds, and on any given day an estimated 100,000 students carry a gun to school. Being…

The community school is no longer a haven of security; violence has become a serious threat to education. The first steps in school crime prevention management are to acknowledge the problem's existence and to report a crime when it occurs. This document, written by a criminologist, contains five sections that address personal crisis management…

Violence pervades schools across the nation, disrupting school functioning and preventing students and teachers from learning and teaching. The most effective crisis management and response strategies are designed by a school team that includes administrators, faculty and staff, students, parents, bus drivers and other support staff, as well as…

Schools must work together with agencies, groups, and individuals to eliminate the forces leading children to violence. Chapter 1, "School Safety: Working Together to Keep Schools Safe," stresses the importance of community collaboration in violence prevention. Effective prevention requires sharing information about students, consistent…

A disturbing escalation in campus emergencies compels school districts to draft effective crisis-management action plans. Effective plans can be devised that relieve burdens on principals and other school personnel, by diminishing chaos and panic, disseminating accurate information, attending to emotional strain on staff and students, and…