Threats against schools require vigilance and care

As schoolchildren across Long Island count the days until summer vacation, their last weeks of class have been anything but peaceful. 

Dozens of threats have rattled school districts in the wake of the shooting in Uvalde, Texas that killed 19 children and two teachers last month.

A Greenport High School freshman was arrested and charged with making a terroristic threat after he allegedly threatened to "shoot up the school," police said Monday. That followed a host of similar threats, from Westbury to Commack to Riverhead.

Many came via social media, with posts suggesting a "mass shooting," a threat to "shoot everyone in that school," and an effort to "remake Texas." One even came in a Riverhead Middle School classroom, from which a student was escorted to the principal's office and later placed in police custody.

Thankfully, none of the threats have been acted upon. But no matter what words were used, or where they were said or written, this disturbing behavior has frightened classmates, parents and teachers, disrupted classrooms, and cast a pall over a time meant to prepare for tests, mark achievements, and celebrate accomplishments.

School districts and police departments are taking steps necessary to keep students safe, making arrests and investigating the circumstances that led to such outbursts.

It's also important that school leaders, elected officials, parents and classmates make it clear that these threats are not a joke, and have consequences. Whether students who make them are actually aiming to harm others, or are seeking attention, or inexplicably trying to be funny, they require urgent assistance to meet their mental health, social-emotional or other needs. Most of all, families and friends must pay attention to those who seem vulnerable to copycatting these behaviors.

Punitive actions, including the arrests that have occurred, send a message about what not to do. Unfortunately, the most worrisome of these students may not get it. Schools must ensure they have staff and resources to find and help troubled students before they act. These personnel should have the skills needed to identify those perhaps seeking meaning in their lives and at risk of being influenced by horrific events.

Parents and peers should pay extra attention to those who've found a community online, particularly through gaming. This is an area we know too little about. Research must be done as to the impact gaming and, more significantly, the degenerative culture of some of the social networks ancillary to the games, can have on vulnerable teens. The world of gaming includes little moderation, and few standards and checks on activity and conversation. Careful study, with good data and analysis, is needed.

With a new level of attention to students, their communities and their needs, we can be prepared for even safer schools this fall.