Free · Certificate included
Active Threat Awareness
Prepare for the unthinkable with run-hide-fight readiness and situational awareness.
What you’ll learn
- Apply run-hide-fight decision-making under pressure
- Improve situational awareness in everyday public spaces
- Recognize warning signs and report concerns the right way
- Respond safely when law enforcement arrives
- Support others and recover after a critical incident
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Create a free account →Course outline
- 1
Why awareness comes first
No one volunteers expecting violence. Yet a calm, prepared mind is the single biggest advantage anyone has in a sudden emergency. This course is about awareness and…
5 min Quiz - 2
Situational awareness, everyday
Situational awareness is just paying attention to your surroundings on purpose.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 3
Warning signs & "see something, say something"
Most violence does not come out of nowhere.
5 min Quiz - 4
The decision framework: Run · Hide · Fight
If an active threat ever unfolds near you, the federal guidance gives a clear order of options: Run, Hide, Fight (ALERRT teaches the same logic as Avoid, Deny, Defend).
6 min Quiz Interactive - 5
When law enforcement arrives
The first officers to arrive have one mission: stop the threat as fast as possible.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 6
Helping others & after the incident
Volunteers care for people — and in a crisis that instinct matters.
4 min Quiz Interactive - 7
Putting it together
Let’s rehearse the whole chain. You’re volunteering at a busy community event. Walk through each decision the way you would in real life — calmly, in order.
4 min Interactive
Sources & further reading
- Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) — Active Shooter Preparedness
- Ready.gov (U.S. Department of Homeland Security) — Active Shooter — Run. Hide. Fight.
- ALERRT Center, Texas State University — Avoid, Deny, Defend / Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events (CRASE)
- U.S. Department of Homeland Security — If You See Something, Say Something®
- Federal Bureau of Investigation — Active Shooter Incidents in the United States Reports
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