Threats of violence in schools: The Dallas independent school district's response

School violence has become a primary concern for parents, students, school personnel, and the public. As a result. educators are starching for methods to prevent violent acts perpetrated by youth. Dallas Public Schools develo ped procedures for assessing the potential for violence among children who express intent to harm others. The Dallas Violence Risk Assessment (DVRA) w as developed to evaluate students who have made verbal or written threats o f violence and to assist school staff in determining appropriate interventi on strategies. This article describes the development of the DVRA, and pres ents case studies utilizing the DVRA procedures. Challenges and implication s of the use of the DVRA are also discussed. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons. In c.