Choice Schools Associates
Choice Schools Associates is pleased to announce a partnership with Safer Schools Together (SST) and the International Center for Digital Threat Assessment®. Through this partnership, we are proud to bring you on-demand trainings that will equip you with the latest skills and knowledge to address safety concerns.
Access Valid Until 2027
Navigate the modern safety landscape in the early identification and assessment of individuals on the pathway to violence to address worrisome online behavior and trends amongst our youth. Support your team with current best practices to create safer, more connected environments through these vital trainings.
Parent Module – Social Media Awareness, Digital Citizenship, and Cyberbullying
Teenagers are at the peak of their digital media usage – family rules and tech plans for monitoring a tween or teen’s digital life are vital.
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Staff Training
Comprehensive trainings for educational institutions, law enforcement, and community partners to develop and implement proactive strategies for violence intervention and prevention.
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Staff Training
Communicating Through Crisis
The Communicating Through Crisis module and resource guide examines effective critical incident response strategies for school administrators. As a school administrator, you are often at the center of a critical incident and are responsible for managing the crisis and communicating with staff, students, parents, and others about the situation. The form and scope of a critical incident can vary, but there are some key strategies you can use to effectively communicate with different audiences. By understanding these strategies, you can ensure that you are sharing the appropriate information in the most effective way.
Key Topics Include:
- Examples of communication through various scenarios
- Important content to include in key messages such as direction, status, actions, and compassion
- Cautions in communication
- Post-incident communication example
Digital Warning Signs of Suicidal Ideation, Non-Suicidal Self-Injurious Behavior & Mental Health Concerns
Digital leakage frequently appears through social media posts expressing hopelessness, emotional exhaustion, or perceived isolation. Imagery, captions, and/or memes that reference self-harm, wanting to disappear, or struggles with overwhelming distress are also common warning signs. In some instances, youth may also engage with communities or content that normalize, validate, and/or visually depict self-harming behaviors, which may reinforce harmful coping behaviors.
A growing concern in digital environments is the role of contagion, where repeated exposure to self-harm or suicide-related content may influence our youth, particularly High-Risk and Vulnerable Youth (HRVY). This may occur through shared narratives of pain, memorialization posts following a death by suicide, or peer discussions that normalize self-harm as a coping strategy. Social media algorithms and group chats can spread similar content rapidly, amplifying these dynamics, which may lead to clusters of similar expressions within connected peer networks.
Threat Assessment and Special Education Considerations
This workshop will discuss the special consideration necessary to ensure your threat assessment processes do not violate special education protocols and procedures. How IDEA, 504, and ADA Title II “Direct Threat Standard” intersect with threat assessment and the considerations needed to ensure districts are complying with federal law will be presented. Best practice guidance regarding parent permission versus notification, information sharing, discipline, and change in programming and/or placement decisions will be discussed. In addition, knowledge gained in serving as an expert witness in court cases involving threat assessment, targeted violence and suicidal ideation will be highlighted.
Understanding Sextortion in Today's Digital Landscape
The US National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) has recorded a nearly 400% increase in sextortion reports since 2018. This notable increase highlights the need to address the complexities of sextortion.
This session will discuss the intricacies of sextortion, how it can happen, best practice for supporting targets/ victims, and essential insights on how to protect yourself and today’s youth in the digital age.
Steps to Enroll:
For those interested in the on-demand Digital Threat Assessment® modules, please click the button below, where you will be invited to join an ICDTA® group. The password required to enter the group is icdta*1016. From there, you may create an ICDTA® account (or use an existing one) to access the module.
Once you have enrolled, you will have access to all modules.
Note: If you already have an existing ICDTA® account, you will be asked to log in. Upon logging in, you will not be enrolled in the module but simply logged into your account. As such, you will not see the course in your account. Instead, please follow these steps:
- Log in to your ICDTA® account while keeping this tab open.
- Return to this page and click the Enroll Now button. Join the ICDTA® group and access both modules!
Stay Ahead of Threats with ICDTA®'s Behavioral Data Bulletin
Get the latest updates on digital and behavioral threats to keep your community safe.