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Austin-area school districts see rise in threats. Officials say each one will be investigated.

A police officer stands talking at a podium with people in suits standing behind him.
Michael Minasi
/
KUT News
Austin ISD Police Chief Wayne Sneed speaks during a press conference with other school districts about the increase in shooter threats at local schools. The message to students: The consequences for making a threat — even if fake — can be severe.

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Lockhart ISD Superintendent Mark Estrada was at a high school football game last Friday when he was interrupted by a disturbing message.

"It’s a screenshot of a student who didn’t make a specific threat but one that was alarming enough to send shockwaves across the bleachers," he said.

Police ultimately arrested the student, Estrada told Texas legislators during a hearing on school safety this week.

Lockhart ISD is one of many school districts in Texas and across the country seeing an uptick in threats this school year.

Another local district, Hays CISD, said two Johnson High students were arrested Wednesday for allegedly making verbal threats against the school.

"The two students were not an immediate danger to themselves or the campus. Nonetheless, we always will take these threats seriously,” Principal Rob Hensarling said in a message to families. “Both students have been arrested and charged with felony criminal offenses.”

Just last week, the Hays County Sheriff’s Office arrested three middle school students in the district for making threats on social media.

A 'contagion effect' on school threats

Kathy Martinez-Prather, director of the Texas School Safety Center at Texas State University, said districts often see a rise in threats after a high-profile shooting like the Sept. 4 shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia that left two teachers and two students dead. She said the center had alerted Texas districts that they may see more threats after that deadly shooting.

“Experience has shown us that there is this contagion effect that impacts communities when we have a highly publicized event that occurs,” she said.

Central Texas districts teamed up for a news conference Friday to address the proliferation of school threats they have been dealing with in recent weeks. Among them were Austin, Bastrop, Del Valle, Eanes, Hutto, Lake Travis, Lockhart, Manor, Pflugerville and Round Rock ISDs.

"Since the start of the school year, school districts all across Central Texas have seen an uptick in threats to our schools," Austin ISD Superintendent Matias Segura said. "Whether they're real or rumors, it's important to know every single threat is investigated and we take the safety and security of our students seriously."

Segura said districts need families' assistance to help their children understand the gravity of making any threat toward a school, even fake ones. "And what they may think is a joke can have real consequences," he said.

Austin ISD Police Chief Wayne Sneed also asked parents to help their kids understand how to use social media responsibly. "We all know children have unique ways of expressing their frustrations and how they joke. This can get them in a lot of trouble," he said.

Hays CISD, for its part, is going to be putting up posters in English and Spanish at middle school and high school campuses in an effort to help students understand the consequences of making a threat.

Travis County District Attorney José Garza, who joined local school district leaders at the news conference, said gun violence or threats of gun violence against or at schools will not be tolerated. "If you make a threat against a school, you will be found, you will be arrested and you will be held accountable," he said. "The consequences for people who make threats, including juveniles who make threats, can be severe."

Garza said his office received more than 10 cases related to school threats in the last week and has about 30 pending overall.

"The cases that are pending in our office, certainly some of them relate to threats, others do not. So, there's a wide range of conduct that is being investigated that is arriving in our office and that will be prosecuted," he said. "We'll be looking at every case individually."

Garza also addressed concerns that some of the students accused of making threats may be too young to understand the consequences of their actions. "I think we've done a fair job over the last several years, over the last several months, in particular, balancing our need for safety and thinking about the interest of the young people involved in these cases."

Every threat is investigated

Martinez-Prather said, whether a threat turns out to be serious or a hoax, each one needs to be investigated.

“We want to make sure that while there’s this uptick, that schools don’t become complacent with these threats especially if they find that many are not credible,” she said. “Everything needs to be investigated thoroughly because you just never know.”

Chief Sneed said law enforcement investigates every threat Austin ISD receives, whether it's received during the school day or overnight. "One particular case I can remember started at midnight and it did not end until 7 a.m. by the time they tracked down all the leads and figured it out," he said. "So, we're knocking on doors in the early morning hours, waking up families."

Sneed noted that last week alone, the district received 30 threats. During the entire 2023-2024 school year, there were 300 threats.

Segura said dealing with the influx of threats taxes the resources of Austin ISD and other, smaller school districts.

"One thing that often isn't talked about is the amount of overtime that's expended. We are desperately trying to maintain all of our budgets. Many of us are running deficit budgets at this moment," he said. "And so, this additional cost is something that isn't budgeted for, but we have to ensure our officers are paid to do this very important work."

Students help identify threats

Superintendent Segura said students have been playing an important role in identifying threats within Austin ISD.

"By and large, at this point, we're getting this information from other students doing exactly what we want them to do: you see something, share it," he said. "Please share it immediately with an administrator, with a teacher, with an adult."

Del Valle ISD also praised a student this week who told officials at their high school that another student was bringing a weapon to campus. Administrators said the gun was confiscated before the student entered the building.

Martinez-Prather said students should continue to be encouraged to report any threats.

"That’s something that we really want to continue to empower communities, parents, students, staff," she said, "to continue to understand how to identify concerning behaviors and report those things immediately to authority so those things can be investigated thoroughly."

Amanda Toohey, a licensed mental health professional with Austin ISD, added its vital for families to have open conversations and help their children understand the weight of threats they may hear or see online.

"It's critical that we empower our students to always take threats seriously and to understand that reporting concerns is an act of responsibility and care for their entire community," she said.

Becky Fogel is the education reporter at KUT. Got a tip? Email her at rfogel@kut.org. Follow her on Twitter @beckyfogel.
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