Creepy Clown threats strike schools nationwide
A wave of “Creepy Clown” threats targeting schools across the nation has intensified in recent weeks, creating fear and anxiety in school communities. The threats have included shooting students and teachers. Creepy Clown threats sweep schools nationwide The clown threat makers have been unmasked rather quickly in a number of cases. In Ohio, three sixth […]
Online group “Evacuation Squad” with ties to Russia and Iran claims responsibility for worldwide wave of school bomb threats
An online group named “Evacuation Squad” is claiming responsibility for a wave of worldwide school bomb threats, according to the digital media website Mashable and news outlets in the United Kingdom and Australia. Mashable says that Evacuation Squad is made up of six international members and listed a Russian email address on its social media […]
Swatting, school bomb and shooting threats: Are FBI federal charges coming soon?
Schools across the nation experienced an uptick in school bomb and shooting threats in recent weeks. Many of these threats are believed to have been made by local individuals such as students or former students. But there are also increasing indicators that a number of these threats are “swatting” incidents — hoax threats intended to trigger […]
Study finds rapid escalation of violent school threats
[Originally published: 2/9/15; Updated: March, 2016] A nationwide epidemic of violent school threats is breeding fear, anxiety and frustration for educators, children and parents. While the vast majority of these threats are anonymous and turn out to be hoaxes, they have to be investigated and taken seriously. Hundreds of schools are losing classroom teaching time, […]
Five lessons from the NFL for school superintendents, boards and principals
Domestic violence and child abuse cases involving National Football League (NFL) players have dominated the headlines this week. How the NFL and individual teams have managed, or in some aspects mismanaged, the cases have been even a bigger focus of news coverage. The NFL experience provides five important teachable moments for superintendents, school boards and principals […]
School shooting ‘swatting’ hoaxes trigger massive police responses, parent anxiety
False reports of school shootings, bomb threats and other threats made to schools are triggering massive police responses and heightened parental anxiety across the nation. Hoax calls known as “swatting” involve a caller makes a false report to police to draw an overwhelming response including by police SWAT team, thus the term “swatting.” Recent incidents of such […]
Do investigative news reports that test school security cross the line?
Investigative news reporters have been testing school security with hidden cameras since the attack at Columbine High School nearly 15 years ago. But now the reporters are the ones under scrutiny. In a story yesterday entitled, “Undercover TV Reports on School Security Raise Ethical Questions,” the New York Times took an in-depth look at whether […]
Schools face new wave of violent threats sent by social media and other electronic means, study says
More than one-third of violent threats to schools since the beginning of this school year were delivered by social media, email, text messaging, and other electronic forms, according to a new study by our national school safety consulting firm. “The cost of these threats in taxpayer dollars for police response, lost instruction time, and anxiety […]
Lockdown communications with parents during school emergencies
Few things scare a mother more than a lockdown or safety crisis at her child’s school. Fear makes calm, sensible people frantic and fierce. This is a tough time for schools. Their first priority is protecting children. A lockdown is serious business. School staffers are tied up assessing the threat, talking to police, making sure […]
When social media turns into trouble: School threats, rumors, fights and more
They’re talking about your school on social media: gossip on Facebook, school fights on YouTube, threats on Twitter. Every child with a cell phone, every driver who sees a bus accident, every parent who disagrees with a teacher…they’re all texting and tweeting and posting pictures, videos and comments. Do you know what they’re saying? Information […]