Intruder Response Awareness/Response for Church Personnel
Greeters, Ushers, Parking & First Line Reception Personnel

Description
This course will educate your church security, ushers, greeters and parking attendants on recognizing behavioral pre-cursors to suspicious behavior. Knowing the body language is many times a PRIOR indicator to behavioral intentions or acts, an overview of suspicious behavior or pre-cursors to watch for is reviewed. This course also discusses the behavioral indicators of armed individuals whether they are lawfully armed or unlawfully armed. Summarized this section will instill a mindset of “SEE Something . . . SAY Something” for those that attend.

A discussion and practical training block on “the art of the handshake” and the “technique” of the handshake will be discussed and demonstrated. Discussion and demonstration on distance and closing strategies for those approaching and evaluating armed individuals in a welcoming and hospitable manner so that the church mission is not compromised and even enhanced will be discussed and demonstrated as well.

Additionally this course provides strategies to DE-escalating conflict from a verbal point of view and covers what phrases and language to avoid to prevent conflict in a verbal nature from escalating. Included with this course is an overview of lockdown procedures for both “THREAT INSIDE” and “THREAT OUTSIDE” lockdown of a church facility as well as protocols for response for what to do when “lockdown fails”. Practical exercises of all of the above can be included and customized based on timeline availability as well.

Who should attend?

• Church ushers
• Church greeters
• Security/Safety personnel
• Parking control personnel
• First Line Reception Personnel
• Other staff in frequent contact with congregation and visitors

Topics Covered:

• History & demographics of church violence & church shootings
• Biblical authority for church safety & security
• Church lockdown protocols & principles
• Educating ushers, greeters & other first line reception personnel
• Recognizing traits of suspicious behavior
• Recognizing traits of armed individuals
• Approaching suspicious or armed individuals
• Verbal conflict management & de-escalation