KYLE — The Hays County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a new threat made in the Hays Consolidated Independent School District against Chapa and Simon Middle School.
After multiple threats that have been made against the district’s schools, Hays CISD is fast-tracking to have this poster up at the middle and high school campuses. (PHOTO COURTESY OF HAYS CISD)
The following email was sent to all district parents during the afternoon of Thursday, Sept. 19.
Dear Hays CISD Family,
We, like most districts across the region and state, are continuing to see social media threats circulating against our schools. Today, law enforcement is investigating a new threat that has surfaced that specifically names Simon and Chapa Middle Schools. In response, we have asked our law enforcement partners to help with extra patrols today and tomorrow at our middle school campuses.
Already, five Hays CISD students, from ages 11 to 15, have been arrested and charged with various felony offenses related to creating these threats. In all of those cases, the investigations have revealed that the threats did not actually place any of our campuses in danger.
If you are concerned about this unnerving trend on social media for the past two weeks – know that you are not alone. It is taxing to law enforcement and school administration. It is upsetting to students and parents. That, of course, is why it is a serious matter that warrants serious consequences. Know that school leaders and law enforcement continue to be relentless in their duty and desire to investigate and resolve every threat.
One new thing that we are going to try regarding these threats is a bit more education with students about the seriousness of this trend we’re seeing. I have attached a poster concept we will be rolling out, along with some videos and other communication pieces directed toward students. The first is called, “Threat Regret.” As soon as we have it translated to Spanish and printed, we will be hanging the English and Spanish versions around our secondary campuses.
We certainly don’t want to see any actual violence materialize from any of these threats, but we also hate to see so many students, so unnecessarily enter the juvenile justice system. It brings us no joy that they are being charged with felony offenses.
We hope that this trend stops as quickly as it seems to have started this year. If there is a bright spot, it is our students who are reporting these threats to adults as soon as they see them online or hear them. In all but one of our cases these past two weeks, students have been the ones doing the right thing by reporting the incidents. The only exception was in the case where Snapchat caught the post and reported it to the FBI.
Thank you for your continued trust in us.
Sincerely,
Tim Savoy
Chief Communication Officer
