HOUSTON — Several school districts in Texas have reported online and social media threats against schools this week.
Houston ISD sent a letter to parents on Thursday saying they're increasing campus patrols districtwide "out of an abundance of caution" to safeguard schools.
HISD said they haven't confirmed any direct threats to schools in the district.
"Houston ISD is aware of a statewide situation involving reports of online and social media posts suggesting several Texas public schools are targets of violence," the letter said. "HISD takes every threat, real or hoax, very seriously. All threats are assigned to a criminal investigator to determine the appropriate response."
We reached out to other Houston-area school districts to ask if they've also received threats.
Fort Bend ISD
The Fort Bend ISD Police Department investigated a threat at Sartartia Middle School on Wednesday. They don't believe it was credible but said additional officers would be on patrol there as a precaution.
Cy-Fair ISD
Cypress-Fairbanks ISD said its police department is thoroughly investigating all threats and "at this time, none have been substantiated." Any student who makes threats will face disciplinary action according to the Student Code of Conduct, CFISD said in a statement.
Klein ISD
Klein ISD said a student was arrested on Thursday for allegedly threatening classmates at Ulrich Intermediate. The district said the Harris County District Attorney has accepted charges of making a terroristic threat and the student will be expelled from Klein ISD.
"It is not a game. There are people who see, who receive these messages, who actually get in fear, and they don't want to come to school and that's not what we want for any student in our school system," Klein ISD Police Chief Marlon Runnels told us.
They said the families of children who were listed in the threatening messages had been alerted by phone.
"Out of an abundance of caution, we will continue to have additional Klein ISD Police officers on campus to maintain a secure environment for our students and staff. Our priority remains providing a safe space where learning can continue without disruption," the district said in a letter to parents.
Klein ISD also sent out the following letter to parents on Sept. 10 about an incident at Doerre Intermediate believed to be a hoax.
"We want to inform you about a recent situation where a student altered a social media post to falsely claim that Doerre Intermediate was part of a list circulating online of potential schools targeted for a shooting.
"The post was intended to create fear within our community and has spread to other schools in our district.
"After a thorough investigation by law enforcement, including the Klein ISD Police Department, it has been confirmed that this list is part of a larger hoax affecting other districts, and there is no credible threat to our schools.
"The student responsible for spreading this false information has been removed from regular classes and referred for placement in our disciplinary alternative school."
Cleveland ISD threat
On Monday, Cleveland ISD said an arrest had been made in connection with a shooting threat to Cleveland Middle School.
The district said the threat was determined to be "unsubstantiated."
They increased the presence of law enforcement as a precaution.
Dayton ISD threat
Harris County Precinct 3 deputies investigated a threat made on social media regarding a school in Dayton ISD, district officials confirmed on social media Sunday night.
Dayton ISD officials said they had been informed about an alleged threat of a potential shooting at Woodrow Wilson Junior High School.
District officials said there was no validity to the threat at this time.
RELATED: Police presence increased at Dayton ISD campus following social media threat of a potential shooting
FBI Houston said they work with law enforcement to help determine if threats are credible. They sent us the following statement.
“The FBI takes potential hoax threats very seriously because it puts innocent people at risk. We work closely with our law enforcement partners to determine their credibility, share information, and take appropriate investigative action. As always, we encourage members of the public to remain vigilant and immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement.”
Other Texas school districts receive threats
A number of North and Central Texas school districts called for added police patrols after a surge of social media posts threatening violence. Some area football games are even being rescheduled as a precaution.
Dallas Independent School District Police Chief Albert Martinez told CBS News that there have even been several social media postings threatening violence at district schools.
"What we're seeing ... a picture of a gun," Martinez said. "And saying they're saying they're going to shoot up the school."
Police patrols were ramped up Wednesday at every Dallas high school.
The district pointed to not only online threats of violence but the Friday's shooting of a 17-year-old DISD senior after a football game at Kincaid Stadium. David Washington was shot and killed during a fight with a large crowd outside of a Love's Convenience store following a football game between Duncanville and South Oak Cliff, WFAA reported.
A rivalry football game between Lincoln and Madison was moved from Thursday to Saturday morning.
The game between Dallas Kimball and Midlothian is being moved to Midlothian.
On Tuesday, Duncanville, Cedar Hill and DeSoto ISD decided to postpone multiple athletic events due to a concerning social media post circulating Monday night. Out of precaution, Duncanville ISD and Dallas ISD have increased police presence on their campuses.
WFAA reported threats at these North Texas districts, as well.
- Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD
- Announced Wednesday that it is investigating threats made on social media.
- Carrollton PD:
- Investigated six school threats. None were found to be credible but one 12-year-old student was charged with threaten/exhibit/use firearm at school.
- Duncanville ISD
- Brought in additional police presence after seeing a concerning increase in threats on social media.
- Ennis ISD
- Investigated a threat a student received on social media. The person responsible for the threat was arrested in Edinburg, Texas.
- Fort Worth ISD
- Announced Wednesday it was investigating social media posts with unconfirmed threats toward numerous campuses. Fort Worth PD said it arrested a Fort Worth ISD student involved with one of the dozen threats the department has investigated.
- Mesquite ISD
- Investigated one threat made on social media, no arrests were made.
- Plano ISD
- Investigated three threats posted on social media. No arrests were made.
- Royse City PD/ISD
- Arrested and charged a 15-year-old with a terroristic threat on Monday after he posted online that he would bring a bomb to a student group meeting after school on Tuesday.
- Waxahachie ISD
- Investigated two different pictures containing threats on social media. No arrests have been made, but the school district has increased police presence at all campuses.
- Wylie PD/ISD
- Investigated a threat received on Friday, and deemed it to not be credible.
- White Settlement PD/ISD
- Investigated two calls of reported gunshots near schools, but did not find any evidence of a shooting.
A number of Central Texas schools have also received threats, according to KVUE, our sister station in Austin.
It's not clear if any of the Texas threats are connected.
The Texas Education Agency is aware of the threats and working with districts to keep schools safe. TEA sent us the following statement on Thursday.
"TEA's Office of School Safety and Security remains in constant contact with districts statewide through Sentinel and continues to collaborate with law enforcement to ensure districts have the most up-to-date information and can take any measure(s) necessary to keep students and staff safe."
Last week, two students and two teachers were shot and killed by a 14-year-old in Apalachee, Georgia.