The short answer
Active-shooter or active-violence response training prepares people to recognize danger, communicate, make rapid protective decisions, and take actions appropriate to their environment until law enforcement arrives. It is not firearms instruction for employees, a prediction tool, or a guarantee that harm can be prevented.
What to know
Effective training connects general response concepts to the organization’s actual emergency action plan. Topics may include warning signs and reporting pathways, emergency notifications, escape and shelter decisions, assisting people with access or functional needs, interacting with responding officers, accountability after evacuation, reunification, and what to expect after an incident. Scenario-based practice can expose unclear roles or physical obstacles, but exercises should be age-appropriate, trauma-informed, controlled, and explained in advance.
CISA provides no-cost preparedness resources and emphasizes a whole-community approach for businesses, schools, houses of worship, government, and other organizations. Arrow currently advertises AVIRT—Active Violence Immediate Response Training—which combines active-violence response and emergency bleeding control. HSI changed the program name from AVERT to AVIRT in August 2025; its current program specification lists a two- to three-hour course, a 15:1 student-to-instructor ratio, and a two-year certification period. Before booking through Arrow, confirm the instructor’s current HSI authorization, delivery format, scenario safeguards, exact duration, class size, certificate, and site customization. Training works best when followed by plan updates, appropriate exercises, and an after-action review.