Date of Award

Fall 10-5-2022

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

EdD Education Leadership, Management and Policy

Department

Education Leadership, Management and Policy

Advisor

Manuel Gonzalez, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Steven Gerding, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Samuel Francera, Ed.D.

Keywords

Active Shooter, Policy, Prepared, Higher Education, Analyzing, Accessibility, Campus Violence

Abstract

The research in this dissertation was conducted to measure the accessibility, presentation, and format of active shooter protocol for college faculty and staff at institutions of higher education in the state of New Jersey. The study further explores the need for availability of active shooter policy given the unfortunate growing problem of active shooters taking place at institutions of higher education across the country. Since the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, the New Jersey Ccampus Ssecurity Ttask Fforce [AS1] made recommendations to then Governor Corzine’s administration. Institutions of higher education have since embraced active shooter protocol from various source materials including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security. With a modern culture that currently relies heavily on the internet for information the research focuses on the accessibility of active shooter policy on various institution’s websites.

An aActive shooter protocol was developed in conjunction with mental health professionals, law enforcement officials, and higher education administrators. Current research shows that institutions that did or did not have an active shooter protocol in place for the campus community still experienced an active shooter event. Several of those institutions reviewed their policies and made determinations if major changes were needed. Current research shows that there has been a shift in the thought process of how to handle an active shooter event on campus. A traditional policy was that of lockdown in your current location and wait for instructions from law enforcement. A shift to a run, hide, and fight policy has been embraced throughout institutions of higher education.

Past research has shown that active shooters are more likely to come from the campus community. In order to reduce liability and increase safety, administrators at institutions of higher education can increase the availability of their active shooter protocol to their campus community. This research explores the online accessibility and source material of such protocols across varying institutions in New Jersey.

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