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Social media threats pose problem for school districts

This week, both Spring Independent School District and Spring Branch Independent School District have had to deal with threats put out on social media about violence on campus. The districts have done what they know how to do, and that is to boost police presence.

Threats on social media is a new and evolving problem for districts. 

"It's very hard for us to ascertain a rumor versus an actual threat. The schools are getting better at determining what kind of threat there is," says Spring Branch ISD Police Chief Chuck Brawner.

Districts want kids to go to school, but they want people to be safe too. In the meantime, districts are responding the only way they know how, beefing up police presence and not penalizing students who stay home. Nobody wants to be accused of ignoring a threat only to have the threat carried out.

In the case of the Memorial High School threat, it came through a reference posted on the Memorial Confessions page on Facebook that allows Memorial students to post anonymously.

Someone asked if anyone had seen the test about a shooting in the school library. The district is tracking down where it originally came from. Brawner says they are behind, but catching up.

"I think in the near future we're going to come together and try to refine our responses. Every time we respond we learn things," says Chief Brawner.