How do I report potential school threats: Middle Tennessee schools directors address it
More than a dozen Tennessee school superintendents recently issued a joint statement about the "responsible reporting of potential school threats" after a slew of incidents were reported across the state.
The lockdowns and evacuations triggered by school threats have led to the arrests of dozens of students, The Tennessean previously reported. Threats have triggered school expulsion policies and more recently, discussions about how and where people should report what they know.
More: Tennessee school threat laws come into sharp focus as student arrests mount
"Schools throughout our region have experienced a notable increase in reported threats to school safety. This appears to be part of a trend of similar, non-credible posts on social media that have been circulating in communities across the country," the statement from the superintendents reads.
"We encourage our students, staff, and families to speak up if they see or hear anything that could represent a possible safety threat."
Issues can be reported through appropriate channels, such as:
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Contacting a school administrator, SRO, teacher, or other school personnel.
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Using school system-specific reporting tools (contact your specific district for details).
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Using Tennessee's statewide reporting app, SafeTN.
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Contacting local law enforcement through a non-emergency phone number.
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Calling 911 in an emergency.
Unfounded school threats, or more specifically hoax threats, have cost taxpayers more than $1 billion in the last two years, according to TDR Technology Solutions CEO Don Beeler.
Some of the costs associated with such threats include the disruption at school and lost class time as well as operational challenges posed by the threat, treating mental heath issues among students and school staff and community resources spent authenticating and responding to the threats.
The Real Cost of School Threats, a draft report published by Beeler's school safety solutions company in July, outlined the cost of school threats in Tennessee schools between 2022-2023 , noting that 138 school threats impacted more than 133,000 students, costing taxpayers more than $6.2 million.
And the number could be much higher, the report noted, because it does not calculate the cost of community first responders impacted by school threats.
More: How false threats to Nashville schools, businesses are investigated
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In Tennessee, lawmakers are trying to pass tougher consequences for people who make school threats, starting with a new state law that took effect in July.
It's now a class E felony to make threats of mass violence on school property or at school-related activities . Anyone convicted of such could face a prison sentence of up to six years and fines of up to $3,000.
In their statement, the superintendents urged their community members and those at school to not share unsubstantiated threats on social media.
"Doing so only causes more confusion and misinformation to spread, which can make it difficult for law enforcement officials to investigate situations in a timely manner," the statement noted.
"Please report, rather than repost, any school safety concerns."
More: Nashville schools adopt new safety policies: What parents should know
Middle Tennessee school superintendents, including Cathy Beck of Cheatham County Schools, Christie Southerland of Dickson County Schools, Danny Weeks of Robertson County Schools and Scott Langford of Sumner County Schools, were noted as co-authors on the statement, along with several other nearby superintendents from the Clarksville-Montgomery County School System, Franklin Special School District, Houston County Schools, Humphreys County Schools, Lebanon Special School District, Metro-Nashville Public Schools, Murfreesboro City Schools, Rutherford County Schools, Stewart County Schools, Williamson County Schools and Wilson County Schools.
Katie Nixon can be reached at knixon@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee school directors: 'report rather than repost' mass threats
