DAYTON, Ohio — Nearly four years ago, the Oregon District mass shooting shook the city of Dayton, and changed the lives of countless members of the community. 

Since then, many have been working behind the scenes to study the case and to help identify and mitigate violent extremism. 

One local professor’s work has received special recognition from the FBI. 

What You Need To Know

  • University of Dayton Professor worked with FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force.

  • Asked to come on board after the Oregon District mass shooting.

  • Focus on mitigating violent extremism.

Right now, University of Dayton Professor Scott Hall is hard at work prepping for summer classes.

“I’m two weeks in, so there’s a lot of staying on top of things I need to do,” Hall said.

He’s teaching a course on counseling theories and techniques, but over the past four years, he’s had some extra work on his plate.

“I knew that what happened in the Oregon District was going to spill out to a wider range of folks and I knew that I would probably play a role,” said Hall.

Right after the Oregon District shooting, Hall was asked to work with the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force through the Cincinnati field office. 

He was recently recognized with the FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award.

“It was an honor. I’ve been working with these folks for years. I was given the award as a surprise,” he said.

Hall spent his career working in mental health and it started with his service in the United States Army in Psychological Operations.

“I’ve worked with a lot of different issues, but not at this level. Not when you’re looking through a lens of violent extremism. It’s a whole different way of thinking about human behavior,” Hall said.

Mental health experts working in counseling, like Hall, are on the front lines when it comes to spotting indicators.

“There’s moments of leakage where there’s word about what they think, what they’re planning, they put it out there in different ways,” he said.

During his work with the FBI, Hall taught local counselors how to spot different risk factors.

“We want the folks that are in their world, whether it be parents or schools, to reach out and connect with folks who are feeling isolated or lonely or feeling marginalized. So we can close that gap and lower that risk in a way that what we would say is a successful case of off-ramping,” said Hall.

For now, he continues his work with the FBI and his students.

“We were kind of one of the first relationships they were trying to build with the mental health advisers so I thought, this stuff tells perfectly,” he said.

Over the past four years, Hall also received training at the Behavioral Analysis Unit and helped with the FBI’s Citizens Academy. 

That program gives religious leaders, businesses and community leaders a look inside the FBI.