The Bay Area Urban Areas Security Initiative

Bay Area Targeted Violence Prevention

The Bay Area UASI provides training and resources that support prevention practitioners reducing acts of targeted violence and mitigating radicalization and domestic violent extremism. Our projects and programs take a public health informed approach, and proactively support privacy protections, civil rights, civil liberties, and First Amendment protected rights.

Prevention Resource Finder | Homeland Security
This Prevention Resource Finder provides stakeholders with information on the resources needed to help prepare for and prevent targeted violence and terrorism across our country. Resources on the website include community support resources; grant funding opportunities; information-sharing platforms; evidence-based research; and training opportunities for communities to reduce the risk of targeted violence, including hate-based targeted violence.

California Prevention Practitioners Network (CPPN) (PDF) is a statewide workgroup that meets as needed and is inspired by the McCain Institute's National Prevention Practitioner's Network.

Prevention & Intervention Practice Guides for Bystanders and Violence Prevention Practitioners

ScreenHate.org ScreenHate.org – this website helps teens and young adults screen for hateful activity online and seek help when needed.
Threat Assessment and Management Guide for Schools, Houses of Faith, Community Based Organizations, Government, Law Enforcement, Mental Health Professionals, and Juvenile Probation (PDF) This helpful guide is for Communities Assessing & Managing Threats and Other Troubling Behavior (funded by the FY21 Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Grant Program).
Interventions to Prevented Targeted Violence and Terrorism (PDF)
Legal Considerations for Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (PDF)
The Targeted Violence Threat Landscape (PDF)
Assessment and Management (PDF)
Read Ahead: Prevention Through Education (PDF)

Training Materials

**Instructor Guides and Student Workbooks for our Targeted Violence: Community Awareness, Behavioral Analysis, and Prevention Strategies Training**

Threat Landscape

To be able to address targeted violence and terrorism in a focused and proportionate manner, practitioners must first understand the specific nature of the challenge, particularly the dominant ideas, movements and narratives that comprise the domestic threat landscape. The below resources help to build this awareness of the evolving, and complex threats we face.

InfoGraphic: Behavioral Approach to Violence Prevention from the U.S. Office of Intelligence and Analysis (PDF)

2021 Mobilization Indicators Booklet (PDF) - This resource is provided to inform the public about both threats of violence and contextual behaviors that suggest an individual is mobilizing to violence. The indicators of violent extremist mobilization described in this booklet are observable behaviors that could help to determine whether individuals are preparing to engage in violent extremist activities.

2021 National Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin A summary of the Terrorism Threat to the U.S. Homeland.

2021 Public Awareness Bulletin (PDF) Mitigating the Threat of School Violence as the U.S. “Returns to Normal” from the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond

2019 United States Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center Report on Mass Attacks in Public Spaces (PDF).

FAQ Sheet: What are Risk Factors and Indicators? (PDF) Effective violence prevention mitigates risk factors with protective actions. Certain indicators can alert a bystander to the need for immediate intervention.

Risk and Protective Factors (PDF) This primer introduces the concept of a strategic prevention framework that can mitigate risk factors and strengthen protective factors that will have cascading positive impacts.

2021 U.S. Secret Service Report on Averting Targeted School Violence (PDF) This Analysis on Plots Against Schools provides a roadmap to preventing targeted school violence.

Incel and Misogynist Violent Extremism (PDF) This primer provides the background and awareness of the relatively new phenomenon of Incel violence.

The Institute for Strategic Dialog (ISD) The reports published by ISD provide insights on extremism, hate, and disinformation.

Early, Upstream Intervention and Prevention

Fact Sheet - Overview of Community Engagement in Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (PDF) This fact sheet lists actions that everyone can take to prevent targeted violence and terrorism.

Media Literacy & Critical Thinking Online (PDF) This document contains tools and resources to help build digital literacy that will reduce the risk of radicalizing to violence.

A Parents and Caregivers Guide to Online Radicalization (PDF) Developed by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL), this guide provides parents and caregivers with information and resources on how to spot and prevent on-line radicalization.

Practical Guide for Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Practitioners (PDF) This guide, developed by the McCain Institute and the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), contains an overview of the practical elements of delivering prevention and intervention initiatives that prevent targeted violence. The National Threat Evaluation and Reporting (NTER) offers a Behavioral Threat Assessment Train-the-Trainer Program. For more information email: NTER.MTP@hq.dhs.gov.

Anti-Defamation League (ADL) The ADL’s training and education department provides training to K-12 and universities that prevent hate and violence.

First Aid Kit for your Mid (PDF) Developed by Listos California, this resource encourages all of us to take healthy steps now to prevent or reduce harm to our mental health.

Resources for Schools

Enhancing School Safety Using a Threat Assessment Model: An Operational Guide for Preventing Targeted School Violence The U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center created this operational guide that provides actionable steps schools can take to prevent targeted violence at schools. A condensed overview can also be found on the School Safety page in the Hometown Security section on CISA.gov.

California Association of School Counselors This website was designed in partnership with the California Association of School Counselors to address community wide health, mental health and economic trauma. Information and links to resources were collected to assist educators, school-based mental health service providers, caregivers and PreK-12th grade students.

Briefing Document on Building Peer-to-Peer Engagements Encouraging peer-to-peer conflict resolution helps communities build resilience against terrorism and, in turn, provides critical protective factors for youth.

Mitigating Social Isolation in Youth (PDF) Information for parents and educators of school-aged children on how to mitigate social isolation.

SchoolSafety.gov Created by the federal government to provide schools and districts with actionable recommendations to create a safe and supportive learning environment where students can thrive and grow.

StopBullying.gov Provides information from various government agencies on how to prevent and respond to bullying.

MentalHealth.gov - Topics for Educators Educators are often the first to notice mental health problems. Here are some ways to help students and their families.

Youth.gov: Suicide Prevention Resources

Preventing and Responding to Active Shooter Threats and Incidents

Active Shooter Prevention: Active shooter incidents are often unpredictable and evolve quickly. Being prepared can play an integral role in mitigating the impacts of an incident. DHS aims to enhance preparedness through a "whole community" approach by providing tools to help you prepare for and respond to an active shooter incident. To supplement the linked training, you can find additional active shooter resources and webinars on our Active Shooter Preparedness webpage.

Responding to an Active Shooter: Active shooter and targeted violence incidents are rare; however, the consequences can be devastating. During this course, we will discuss how you can effectively respond if you are ever faced with an active shooter incident. To register for this independent study course, please submit a one-time request for a FEMA Student Identification Number.

Emergency Action Planning: The Active Shooter Emergency Action Plan webinar describes the fundamental concepts of developing an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) for an active shooter scenario. This instructive video guides viewers through important considerations of EAP development utilizing the first-hand perspectives of active shooter survivors, first responder personnel, and other subject matter experts who share their unique insight. To contact the active shooter preparedness team for additional resources and guidance in your emergency planning, email ASworkshop@hq.dhs.gov.

Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) Public Health and Health Care Partners Training: The Nationwide SAR Initiative (NSI) is a multifaceted approach designed to increase the effectiveness of frontline partners in identifying, reporting, evaluating, and sharing pre-incident terrorism indicators to prevent acts of terrorism. This training overviews what kinds of suspicious behaviors are associated with pre-incident terrorism activities and how and where to report suspicious activity. For more information, contact nsiinformation@ncirc.gov.

Response to Suspicious Behaviors and Items for Bombing Prevention: DHS seeks to enhance our country’s ability to prevent, protect against, respond to, and mitigate the use of explosives. This course provides participants with a foundational knowledge of potentially suspicious behaviors and activities related to terrorist or criminal activities and highlights what to do when encountering an unattended or suspicious item. For more information, please contact studentservices@cdpemail.dhs.gov.

Protective Measures Awareness: The Protective Measures Awareness (PMA) course introduces how to identify and mitigate facility security gaps. This course provides foundational knowledge about risk management and the three rings of security: physical, technical, and intelligence protective measures. To register for this virtual instructor-led training, please submit a one-time request for a FEMA Student Identification Number.

For additional courses, please contact your State Emergency Management Training Office for information on deliveries that may be available in your area. If you are not able to find a point of contact for this, please email emiactionoffice@fema.dhs.gov.

Community Awareness Briefings: The Community Awareness Briefing (CAB) is a two-hour presentation that provides a foundation for communities across the country to learn about prevention efforts and radicalization to violence. The briefing provides communities with information and tools that are available to assist them with understanding the issues and learning more about how they can prevent targeted violence and terrorism within their communities. To request a CAB, please reach out to CABBriefingRequests@hq.dhs.gov.

Personnel Support: DHS Center for Prevention Partnerships and Programs (CP3) has field staff stationed across the country who work at the state and local levels to help communities prevent targeted violence and terrorism. They deliver training, engage in capacity-building efforts, and establish and strengthen networks of prevention stakeholders. Field staff also keep CP3 informed of local efforts and innovative approaches to engage communities in prevention activities and share opportunities and promising practices with their stakeholders. For more information email CP3Field@hq.dhs.gov.

Information Sharing: DHS’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I & A) is responsible for sharing threat information with our state, local, and private sector partners to help ensure they have the necessary intelligence and information to keep communities safe, secure, and resilient. In support of these efforts, DHS has deployed over 130 intelligence officers across the country to assist with sharing threat information with our partners, particularly those that have historically been targeted for violence. Approved partners can access threat information via the Homeland Security Information Network (HSIN), which is the Department's official system for sharing unclassified information. For more information about HSIN, please contact HSIN@hq.dhs.gov.

Infrastructure Protection: Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) operates the Protective Security Advisor (PSA) Program. PSAs proactively engage with federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, and campus partners and the private sector to protect critical infrastructure. These subject matter experts are trained to identify vulnerabilities and mitigate risk and are available to advise and assist organizations that have historically been targeted for violence. To contact your local PSA, please email central@cisa.dhs.gov.

Stakeholder Listening Sessions: The DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) engages with diverse communities whose civil rights or civil liberties may be affected by DHS policies, procedures, and/or practices, and aims to ensure civil rights and civil liberties protections for all persons. Through our engagement efforts, CRCL seeks to deepen channels of communication between communities and state, local, and federal officials across agencies in order to facilitate resolution of problems. To learn about CRCL and connect to our office, contact CommunityEngagement@hq.dhs.gov.

Grants

The Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP): This grant provides funding to support facility hardening and other physical and cyber security enhancements for nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of a terrorist attack, including nonprofits that support the LGBTQ+ community.Eligible nonprofit organizations are those organizations described under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under section 501(a) of such Code. The Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 budget includes $305 million to help at-risk nonprofit organizations prepare for and respond to terrorist attacks and targeted violence.

Organizations must work through Cal OES to apply for this funding.

The Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Grant Program (TVTP): This grant provides funds to nonprofits to implement programs that will prevent targeted violence and terrorism in their communities including early prevention efforts like increasing understanding and civic engagement. The annual application opens in late winter/early spring with applications due at the beginning of May. The Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 budget includes $20 million for local, tribal, and territorial governments, non-profit organizations, and institutions of higher education to establish or enhance capabilities to prevent targeted violence and terrorism, including domestic violent extremism. To learn more about the Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Grant Program, please contact TerrorismPrevention@hq.dhs.gov.

School Safety Grants
California Grants Portal
U.S. DOJ Bureau of Justice Assistance Stop School Violence Grant
Department of Homeland Security Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3)

 

CONTACT: corinne.bartshire@sfgov.org