A new law will require threat assessment teams for all New Jersey school districts this fall

A law signed by Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday will require all New Jersey school districts to assemble threat assessment teams before September, with the goal of evaluating and intervening with students who may pose a risk to school security.

The legislation — which was introduced in the state assembly a day after the May school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 children and two teachers dead — calls for each district to create a task force of staff members to “prevent targeted violence in the school and [ensure] a safe and secure school environment.”

» READ MORE: How to talk to children about the mass shooting in Texas

Each team will include a teacher, an administrator, a school resource officer, a school safety specialist, and a school psychologist, counselor, or other employee with expertise in student counseling. The New Jersey Department of Education will consult with state law enforcement and the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness to develop guidelines for each school district, charter, and renaissance school.

“It is my hope that these threat assessment teams will help students and school employees feel safe and out of harm’s way when they are at school, and for students who are considered to be a threat to receive the much-needed help they need at such a crucial time in their lives,” Murphy said in a statement.

New Jersey now joins more than a dozen other states — including Pennsylvania — that have implemented laws in the last several years requiring threat assessment teams aimed at mitigating security risks in schools.

» READ MORE: How should schools respond to threats of violence? Experts give tips on quelling anxiety and assessing risk.

Pennsylvania schools were mandated to create task forces at the beginning of the 2021 school year, following a model largely based on Secret Service research and recommendations.

Advocates say threat assessment teams are a prevention-based strategy that can result in more students receiving counseling in schools and fewer students getting suspensions.

Critics have said the threat assessment processes — particularly ones that rely on anonymous reporting — can perpetuate bias and have undue consequences for Black and brown students and those with disabilities.

The New Jersey law states that each threat assessment task force will receive training “at a minimum … on adverse childhood experiences, childhood trauma, cultural competency, and implicit bias” to ensure the assessments “do not have a disparate impact on students based on their race, ethnicity, homelessness status, religious belief, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status.”

“I really, truly believe that if we focus on students that are in crisis before they cause harm to themselves or others, we can be the most impactful,” said State Assembly Education Committee Chair Pamela Lampitt, who represents parts of Burlington and Camden Counties. “The new law will help us determine the right people around the table to have a conversation on how to diffuse school threats when they arise.”