On Tuesday, December 7, Rogers International Baccalaureate school here in Stamford went into a shelter-in-place for an extended period of time due to the finding of a “suspicious package.” After further investigation, the package, brought in by a student, was deemed safe and there were no actual threats found. However, students and staff still felt on edge throughout the whole process as it was hard to tell what was actually going on while police were investigating.

This recent threat came in light of many different violent school threats in both our city and several other surrounding areas. On December 1, Norwalk High School was placed on lockdown due to a bomb threat. Just two days later they again went into lockdown after it was reported that a student had a gun. This happened again December 8. The youth who was in charge of these threats was found and will be charged. 

Similarly, in Hamden, a 13-year-old boy was arrested after being accused of sending threats to Hamden High School and Hamden Middle School. Hamden High School was closed from Friday, December 3 to Tuesday, December 7 in hindsight of these threats. Metal detectors were put into place when students returned back to school as a precautionary measure. In New Haven, 11 schools went into lockdown on December 6 due to various different threats as well.

While all of these threats have been a hoax and no evidence was actually found of there being any danger, the suddenly high number of lockdowns and threats have raised concern in students, staff, and parents all over the state. 

On November 30, three students were killed after a shooter entered Oxford High School in Oakland County, Michigan. The shooting made national news quickly and continued the growing concern over gun violence, specifically in schools, that has been present in our country for so long. With these threats being so close in time to the Oxford High shooting, it is reasonable as to why it is so concerning.

This violence and threats are nothing new to schools around the country. Stoneman Douglas High School, Sandy Hook Elementary School, and Sante Fe High School are just a few of the most recent victims of school shootings. With most schools being fully or part-time remote due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, news of any school shootings died down, but it seems to have gone back up now that a majority of schools are back in full swing.

“I think that it’s absurd that people think it’s funny to joke about these things. Especially since Sandy Hook happened so close to us and school shootings are tied in our community and our country as a whole, it’s upsetting and nerve wracking, the number of threats that have happened recently,” said senior Jessica Scanlon. “I do trust though that the staff in our schools are prepared in case something unfortunate does happen.” Similarly, senior Thomas Demarkey says, “More often than not the threat is some student or random teenager behind a screen. I trust that our administration, security, and police force will do the right thing if a situation like this occurs at our school.”

With the number of threats that have been going on, schools are aware and keeping an eye out for any suspicious activity. Hopefully, these threats will stop soon and we all can continue enjoying being in school full time again.