Resources in Response to the Michigan State University Shooting
The recent shooting at the Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, has evoked a range of emotions and concerns of safety across the United States. This shooting occurred on the eve of the 5th year anniversary of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting and occurred not far from Oxnard High School where a shooting took place in 2021. The close proximity of these other shootings has created additional questions about safety and additional loss and trauma reminders for those communities who have experienced previous mass violence. In response to this event, the National Child Traumatic Stress Network has developed resources to help children, families, and communities navigate what they are seeing and hearing, acknowledge their feelings, and find ways to cope together. These resources include:
- College Students: Coping After the Recent Shooting
- Coping After Mass Violence
- Parent Guidelines for Helping Youth After Mass Violence
- Talking to Children about Mass Violence
- Talking to Children: When Scary Things Happen (En Espanol)
- Psychological Impact of Mass Violence
- Helping Teens with Traumatic Grief: Tips for Caregivers (En Español)
- Helping School-Age Children with Traumatic Grief: Tips for Caregivers (En Español)
- Helping Young Children with Traumatic Grief: Tips for Caregivers (En Español)
- After a Crisis: Helping Young Children Heal (En Español)
- Age-Related Reactions to a Traumatic Event (En Español)
- Once I Was Very Very Scared – children’s book for young children
- Tips for Families on Addressing the Anniversary
- Creating School Active Shooter/Intruder Drills
- I Don’t Know How to Address Worries About My Child’s Safety at School (webinar)
- Pause-Reset-Nourish (PRN) to Promote Wellbeing (En Español) (for responders)
Psychological First Aid
The NCTSN also has resources for responders on Psychological First Aid (PFA; En Español). PFA is an early intervention to support children, adolescents, adults, and families impacted by these types of events. PFA Mobile and the PFA Wallet Card (En Español) provide a quick reminder of the core actions. The PFA online training course is also available on the NCTSN Learning Center. PFA Handouts include:
Additional PFA resources for schools include:
- Psychological First Aid for Schools (PFA-S) – Field operations guide
- Providing PFA-S: For Health-Related Professionals – handout
- Providing PFA-S: For Principals and Administrators – handout
- Providing PFA-S: For School Support Staff – handout
- Providing PFA-S: For Teachers – handout
From the National Mass Violence and Victimization Resource Center & Partners
- Transcend (mobile app to assist with recovery after mass violence)
- Rebuild your Community: Resources for Community Leaders
- Media Guidelines for Homicide Family Survivors
- Timeline of Activities to Promote Mental Health Recovery
- Self-Help: Resources for Survivors
- E-learning Courses: Trainings for Clinicians
- Resources for Victim Assistance Professionals
- Emergency Management Virtual Toolkit for Institutions for Higher Education
Disaster Helpline
SAMHSA has a Disaster Distress Helpline – call or text 1-800-985-5990 (for Spanish, press “2”) to be connected to a trained counselor 24/7/365.
Additional Resources
For those that are needing technical assistance or additional resources, please don’t hesitate to contact Dr. Melissa Brymer at mbrymer@mednet.ucla.edu.