From the Desk of Joey Melvin

Executive Director, Delaware School Safety Center

Focused Edition:

Beyond Traditional Extremism: Understanding Emerging Online Threats to Our Students

Joey Melvin

As school safety professionals, we often emphasize the importance of recognizing concerning behaviors, identifying potential threats, and intervening before violence occurs. However, as the environments in which our students interact continue to evolve, so too must our understanding of the threats they may encounter.

One emerging concern deserving greater awareness among educators, school administrators, and school safety professionals is Nihilistic Violent Extremism (NVE).

While the term may be unfamiliar to many, the behaviors associated with certain NVE-motivated individuals and violent online networks have prompted increasing attention from law enforcement.

In this newsletter, I’ve included several resources designed to help you build foundational awareness of NVE, its characteristics, and its implications for school safety. I encourage you to explore these materials, share them with your teams, and consider how this knowledge can enhance your existing safety practices.

NVE Resources

If you’ve never encountered it before, the NVE Dictionary is a practitioner-friendly guide that helps educators and safety teams understand the kinds of language, symbols, and online behaviors that can appear in harmful digital spaces. Rather than labeling or diagnosing, it provides plain‑language explanations and emphasizes context, making it easier to recognize when something may warrant attention. It’s a resource designed to support informed, responsible decision‑making in schools and youth‑serving environments.

Click the image below to download.

You are part of a powerful team effort to protect our communities. In today’s evolving threat environment, safety is everyone’s responsibility. The Community Awareness Program 2.0 (CAP 2.0) empowers you to recognize suspicious behaviors, spot signs of radicalization to violence, and report concerns.



This award-winning training is:

• Interactive and self-paced
• Delivered via eLearning
• Built with real-world scenarios
• Guided by federal best practices
• Grounded in a behavior-based approach

School Safety News

Everything is just a copy of a copy of a copy

Recent attacks across the globe are unoriginal… Use this to your advantage. You have the playbook and know all the signs.

Allizandra Herberhold, LMSW



Recently there has been a string of attacks across the world and they are all carbon copies of previous attacks. This is good for threat assessors because it provides us with a roadmap of everything to lookout for… Some red flags that are easy to catch… Advise parents, teachers and school staff to be aware of these specific items of clothing, accessories and posts.

2 Teen Girls Arrested for Allegedly Plotting Calif. High School Shooting on Social Media

Two teenage girls in California have been arrested after allegedly plotting a school shooting online.

An investigation began on Tuesday, Oct. 6, when the FBI told the City of Corona Police Department that it had identified social media communications about a possible threat to Corona High School in Riverside County. Police subsequently arrested a 15-year-old female student at the school, per a City of Corona Police Department press release.

During the investigation, which involved “numerous” search warrants for electronic devices and searches of residences, police identified and arrested another suspect, a 15-year-old female student at the nearby Norco High School.

FBI probes 16-year-old Bend shooter’s online radicalization, apparent Nazi obsession

Updated: Oct. 21, 2026, 4:49 p.m.|Published: Oct. 21, 2026, 2:51 p.m.

The 16-year-old who shot and killed three students and a teacher at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend last Thursday may have been radicalized online by extremist groups and developed an “obsession with Nazism,” law-enforcement sources familiar with the investigation said.

The FBI and state and local police are investigating the teen’s possible interactions with violent extremism groups, including the predatory faction known as 764, on the online platform Discord, two law enforcement sources told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Training Opportunities

Resources

Does your school have a Behavioral Threat Assessment Team?



Promoting safe and supportive learning environments is essential, and Behavioral Threat Assessment (BTA) training helps schools strengthen their ability to identify, assess, and respond to concerning behaviors before they escalate. This training equips staff with practical tools to understand risk factors better, recognize warning behaviors, and implement effective interventions that protect students and school communities. If your school is interested in enhancing its preparedness and prevention efforts, please contact the Delaware School Safety Center for more information.

The Delaware School Safety Center fully funds the SAFE DE anonymous reporting and student support platform for all Delaware schools. SAFE DE gives students a secure, confidential way to share concerns and access support, helping schools identify issues early and intervene before they escalate.

Anonymous reporting remains one of the most effective tools for preventing violence and protecting students. By ensuring staff and students know how to access and use SAFE DE, schools strengthen their overall safety posture and provide students with a trusted pathway to speak up when something feels wrong.

Contact the Delaware School Safety Center for more information and implementation instructions.