Students who make violent threats just don’t “snap'” one day, say local and state officials. Often there are clues that something is amiss.

“There are usually warning signs” when a student is on a violent pathway, Assistant Superintendent Meg Parkhurst told the Saco School Committee on Nov. 30.

Parkhurst was updating the Saco board on a program called CSTAG, which stands for Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines. It is a training offered by the Maine School Safety Center of the Department of Education and designed for school personnel so they can intervene and mitigate a potential threat.

On the same evening, Biddeford School Department’s Director of Instruction and Innovation Mandy Cyr updated the Biddeford School Board on the same program, and a presentation for the Dayton board is scheduled for next week.

“Anytime we have a threat we always have to look at it and understand what level of a threat it is,” said Cyr. “This is a violence prevention strategy.”

There is an advantage to having the three school districts taking the same training, she said.

Some Biddeford School Department personnel took the training last fall, all teams did so this year, she said.

According to the Maine School Safety Center, behavior assessment teams may include school administrators, school mental health professionals, school resources officers and special education coordinators.

The Maine School Safety Center noted that research by program creator Dewey G. Cornell shows that 99 percent of threats made by students assessed are not carried out, that there is a decrease in the use of school suspensions, that students report less bullying and more willingness to seek help from adults, after threat assessments are conducted. Students and staff report a more positive school climate, among other attributes, according to the school safety center report.

Parkhurst said Saco school personnel began the first level of the program earlier this month and would begin the second level by the end of the year.

“The threat assessment is purely a safety situation to make sure any threat is not carried out,” Parkhurst said, and can help the student get the help they need.

“So, if I am a teacher and it comes to my attention there is something perceived as a threat then bring it forward,” said Saco School Committee member Beth Johnston.

Parkhurst said the teacher should refer the matter to a guidance counselor or let an administrator know, so they can assess the threat.

The training is paid for by the state.

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