Next week is National School Bus Safety Week. The National Association for Pupil Transportation provides a variety of school bus safety resources on their website. Additionally, the Illinois School and Campus Safety Resource Center's School Bus Safety page includes resources from the National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Operation Lifesaver, the REMS TA Center, and the Illinois State Board of Education.

The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is conducting a study on behavioral threat assessment, which is being funded by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. UIC is wanting to improve the capacity of Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management Teams in preventing targeted violence in Illinois and are seeking interested individuals who are currently serving on behavioral threat assessment teams in K-12 and higher education settings. Those interested in participating should contact [email protected].

This is the last chance to register for the Preparing for the Unimaginable: An In-Depth Look at Wellness, Trauma Recovery, and Resilience class on October 20th, from 8:30 am - 12:30 pm via Zoom. This class is for both K-12 schools and institutions of higher education, as well as law enforcement and other school and campus safety stakeholders. For more information and to register, click here.

The Illinois School and Campus Safety Program is pleased to announce the courses "Understanding and Planning for School Bombing Incidents" and "Incident Response to Terrorist Bombings" are being held in Edwardsville, IL on November 10, 2022. These New Mexico Tech courses provide technical operations and awareness training for law enforcement, firefighters, EMS, school administration, and other personnel who have a significant responsibility for responding to Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) incidents involving explosives and incendiary materials. For more information and to register, click here.

There's still time to register for the Advanced Digital Threat Assessment class on October 26th from 9:30 am-4:00 pm via Zoom. Building upon the Digital Threat Assessment class by Safer Schools Together, Advanced Digital Threat Assessment advances participants' understanding of finding and curating relevant digital information consistent with real-life digital threat assessment data gathering scenarios. Significant engagement and hands-on practice will take place as participants are assembled into investigative teams and given a true-to-life mock scenario. For more information and to register, click here.

The Illinois School and Campus Safety Program is pleased to announce the class Railroad Safety for First Responders, Educators, and School Bus Drivers will be held on October 28th, from 9:00 am - noon via Zoom. The class covers the challenges that frontline responders and school staff are faced with when responding to an incident on or near railroad property. This 3-hour class will prepare all involved (bus drivers, school administrators, law enforcement, first responders, etc.) and will provide responding individuals the correct tools to safely navigate the unfamiliar environment of the railroad. For more information and to register, click here.

The Illinois School and Campus Safety Program is pleased to announce the class Campus Threat Assessment and Management will be held December 6-7, 2022, in Decatur, IL. This two-day workshop for institutions of higher education featuring Gene Deisinger, Ph.D will help participants to better understand the dynamics of targeted violence and to develop and enhance strategies for early identification, assessment, and intervention with concerning situations. For more information and to register, click here.