Beaufort County presenters outline new school threat‑assessment regulation, answer board concerns

Andrea Murray, presenting for Student Services, walked the Beaufort County School District academic committee through a new administrative regulation, SS‑62, that lays out a school‑based behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM) process.

Murray said SS‑62 defines when and how the district will conduct threat screenings and full protocol assessments, restricts disclosure of personally identifiable information to school officials who need it to protect safety, and adds a nondiscrimination clause. "It outlines the procedure, how it is conducted," Murray said, and listed interviews, educational‑record reviews, and consultation with school‑based mental‑health professionals as core investigative steps.

Under the regulation, an initial core team of at least two members (an administrator and a school‑based mental‑health professional) completes a threat screener; if concerns remain or possible intent to harm is present, a full protocol assessment follows. Murray described the full protocol team as "at least 3 members," which may include administrators, school counselors/social workers/psychologists, behavioral specialists, school nurses and the school resource officer, and said the team must document decisions and either close the case or implement a management plan with interventions, supervision and monitoring.

The regulation requires mandatory annual threat‑assessment training for principals, assistant principals, counselors, social workers, school psychologists, behavior specialists, SROs and other team members. "It is an all‑day training, minimum of 6½ hours," Murray said, noting sessions have been held in June, August, September, October and January and will continue as needed.

Board members pressed staff for operational clarity. When asked what the term "stable" means in practice, Murray replied stability is context dependent and gave examples — keeping two team members with a student, involving the SRO or school nurse, and using role‑play in training to practice de‑escalation. On whether students are removed from school during assessments, Murray said timing varies with threat level and supports; "our goal is to get them assessed" promptly and return them to school once appropriate supports are arranged. She added that parents must be contacted and involved in the process, noting South Carolina procedures differ from Florida's Baker Act in requiring parent involvement.

Murray said she is a Department of Education‑trained, certified trainer. Board members raised concerns about potential staff liability when schools perform assessments rather than immediately turning students over to medical professionals; staff distinguished threat‑assessment steps for students from procedures for adult staff and noted that emergent safety concerns still involve 911 and law enforcement as appropriate.

The presentation ended with no committee vote on SS‑62 recorded in the transcript; staff thanked the committee and turned the floor back to the Director of Secondary for other agenda items. The committee asked for continued clarity in materials and emphasized training and role‑play to ensure staff understand operational expectations.