What We Do
We fill a critical gap in the US response to violent extremism
Violent extremism is rising, yet too many people still have nowhere to turn when warning signs first appear. Violence Prevention Network USA helps close this gap by supporting individuals at risk, guiding the people around them, and equipping professionals to respond early and effectively.
We work in the space between awareness-raising and intervention from law enforcement. Awareness-raising is intended to reach as many people as possible to build resilience against extremist ideologies. Law enforcement steps in once a threat is already clear. Where action is missing is, when someone is turning toward violence and the people closest to them can feel it but don't know what to do. That's where Violence Prevention Network steps in.
We support three groups: the person at risk, the people around them, and the professionals who respond.
How Our Approach Works
People are drawn into extremism in an attempt to fulfill ordinary human needs: to belong, to matter, to make sense of anger or loss. Extremist groups exploit these needs and turn them toward hate and violence. We start by taking those needs seriously and building enough trust for change to become possible.
To understand a person in full, we use a structured framework our practitioners call Social Diagnostics, or GRIDD PRO. It looks past surface behavior at someone's life story, relationships, environment, unmet needs, and especially at their resources and strengths they carry. From there we create a support plan together with the individuals we work with and track indicators of progress until violence becomes unlikely. The method was built and refined over more than 25 years of practice, including work with over 5,000 people convicted of terrorism-related and violent extremist offenses.
Support and Intervention
Most of our direct work takes the form of coaching and consultation.
We work directly with individuals who are involved in extremist beliefs or groups, including people who may not yet be ready to disengage. Our coaches build trust, create space for honest reflection, and help individuals take steps toward a safer and more stable future.
We also support the people around them—parents, teachers, counselors, friends, and others who may be the first to notice concerning changes. We help them better understand the situation, assess possible next steps, and respond in ways that keep communication open.
Training
80%
of cases of hate-fueled violence, someone saw the person's growing commitment to violence and didn't know what to do or where to turn
Violence Prevention Network USA trains people to know what to do. Our workshops and trainings fill the space between general awareness and law enforcement, equipping family members, professionals, and organizations to recognize warning signs, respond early, and prevent extremist and targeted violence.
“VPN’s model engages people in a way that goes beyond active listening. It’s about helping them see the choices they have without telling them what to do and supporting them to recognize alternatives they might not have seen.”
— Professionals Training Participant, March 2026
“Understanding that people may connect to violent extremism out of a deep desire to belong, or because other needs in their life weren’t met, gets us closer to understanding what we must provide to prevent and provide a way out.”
— Professionals Training Participant, Feb 2026
Find your training
Community Support Group
For people holding a hard relationship. A family member, friend, colleague, or neighbor is drifting toward ideologies that justify hostility, hate, or violence toward people who are different. You've stayed in contact, and it's getting heavy.
In monthly sessions with VPN's practitioners, you'll learn dialogue and relationship strategies for staying connected without losing yourself, and how to tell when the situation is too much to hold alone. You'll sit with others carrying similar relationships.
90 minutes · monthly · free
Join the next sessionTrainings for Professionals
For practitioners who encounter radicalization on the job. Social work, human services, law enforcement, security, intelligence, education, corrections and reentry, violence prevention, hate crime and harassment prevention.
You'll study the current state of extremism, including regional groups and online threats, and learn what drives radicalization to violence and what protects against it. You'll leave knowing VPN's methods and services and able to identify and respond to early warning signs.
After the training, you're never on your own: graduates receive free, confidential consultations with VPN's lead practitioners whenever they encounter someone showing concerning behavior.
Option 1: 3-day in-person training ($1,200, most meals included)
Option 2: six 3-hour online sessions ($750)
· scholarships available
Request upcoming datesTrainings for Organizations and Teams
For organizations building prevention capacity across a team. Companies, school districts, government agencies, health systems, faith communities, nonprofits.
Our team brings the training to you and shapes it to your setting: your people, your region, the concerning behaviors your staff actually encounter. Because the team trains together, your organization gains a shared vocabulary and a clear internal path for raising concerns, so no one carries a worrying observation alone.
Half-day workshop to full multi-day curriculum · on site or online · pricing based on scope and group size
Talk to us about hostingVPN Coach Certifications
For experienced professionals ready to take cases. You've worked extensively with populations vulnerable to radicalization, as a social worker, therapist, counselor, clergy member, or in a similar role, and you want prevention to be a central part of your work.
You'll master VPN's methodology and diagnostic tools for working with at-risk and radicalized individuals, including people convicted of terrorism-related offenses, and learn to guide a measurable process of disengagement from violence and distancing from the ideologies that drive it. Graduates may be invited to join VPN's cadre of contracted coaches, working VPN cases with ongoing supervision from our most experienced practitioners.
Three 4-day in-person modules over 4–6 months, plus online sessions between modules · $4,800 · scholarships available
Apply for certificationQuestions?
For upcoming dates, agendas, curricula, and learning outcomes, reach out. [email protected]
Referral Network
Preventing violent extremism requires cooperation across civil society, behavioral health, education, justice systems, law enforcement, and community organizations. Each partner sees a different part of a person's situation, and no single organization can provide every form of support.
We help create clear pathways for consultation, referral, and coordinated care. Professionals and organizations can refer individuals or families to us when specialized coaching, case consultation, or disengagement support may be helpful. In turn, we refer people to trusted professionals and local services when they need support beyond our role, such as mental healthcare, housing assistance, legal services, education, or reentry support.
We believe prevention works best when communities have clear pathways for consultation, referral, and coordinated support. That is why we work to connect professionals, organizations, and institutions across different fields, helping them respond more confidently and more effectively when concerns arise.
Expert Advice and Speaking
Consultation, briefings, panels, workshops, and speaker contributions, closing with a contact prompt for anyone planning an event.
Get in touch →Resources
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