In order to prevent school shootings, Minnesota lawmakers direct funds and policy towards school lockdown drills and security infrastructure. The Violence Project’s co-founders Jillian Peterson and James Densley believe this approach is inadequate in actually preventing school shootings.

Rather than lockdown drills, Peterson argues for putting more money into mental health support in schools. She believes that threats “can be seen as kind of a plea for help. We really approach it as a point of intervention, a point of saying, ‘Why are you doing this, and what do you need.’”

Read the full article from the Associated Press here.

Reprinted by US News and World Report, and the Washington Times.