How Schools can Prevent and Quickly Respond to Active Shooters

Show Guest: Alon Stivi

We live in a 911 society where we expect help to always be a phone call away. This approach has repeatedly failed and does not work during critical incidents. We need to think about the recurring threat of mass violence differently if we expect different results. Understanding the root causes of the problem and asking why these shootings keep occurring is important but is not enough.

There are some effective solutions available today to prevent mass violence. They can be categorized into two types. The first type is about hardening the school campus and second is about engaging people as active participants in their own security.

Alon Stivi, developer of the Mass Violence Prevention & Active Shooter Survival Course, states that expecting law enforcement to respond immediately is unrealistic and relying solely on outside assistance is ineffective. In our interview, he shares solutions that are both self-evident and successful because we must be prepared to protect ourselves until help arrives and become empowered to know what to do and how to respond in a crisis situation.