09/03/2026
Although the Pathway to Violence model developed by Calhoun and Weston has become a cornerstone of threat assessment when it comes to mass shootings, it has not previously been empirically tested in less severe cases, which are the majority of cases that BTAM teams are assessing in educational settings. At the 2026 NC Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management Symposium, Jordan Kerere, M.Ed., and Dewey Cornell, Ph.D., will share their quantitative findings as the result of their research into this topic in their presentation, “Pursuing the Pathway to Violence in School Threat Assessment.”
Drawing on data from 472 CSTAG cases across 52 schools, this session examines the relationship between pathway behaviors and violence risk in K–12 school threat assessment cases. Attendees will learn which pathway behaviors are most strongly associated with attempted physical assaults, how these findings support evidence-based threat assessment practices and how these insights can be applied to strengthen prevention and case management.
We’re excited to have Kerere and Cornell joining us for this year’s symposium and look forward to the expertise and research they’ll bring to the conversation. Find the full agenda for the event at bit.ly/4gyCart.
This project was made possible by funding from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, opportunity number DHS-24-TTP-132-00-01.