Columbia school officials put additional student safety plans in place at Columbia High School after being made aware of a possible threat by one of its students to “shoot up” the school last Wednesday. 

“While there is no evidence of this threat at this time, student safety is our top priority,” a late Tuesday night email from Columbia School Superintendent Chris Grode and CHS Principal Brian Reeves states.

School officials said they were made aware of this possible threat after school last Tuesday. The Columbia Police Department investigated the incident in coordination with school administration. 

“We are grateful to the students and parents that shared this information with us, which allowed us to act quickly in the name of student safety,” the letter states. 

Columbia Police Chief Jason Donjon said the situation originated from social media postings by a juvenile student that others interpreted as alarming in nature. 

“Right now, it doesn’t look like anything credible,” Donjon said. “Things can get taken different ways.” 

Still, Donjon said information on this incident would be forwarded to the Monroe County state’s attorney for review and consideration of possible charges. 

Hoping to allay some fears among the community after this initial email, Grode provided more information in a follow-up email to all parents in the district last Wednesday. 

“The administration was informed by students of an alleged threat to (CHS), but upon investigation it was found that no threat was made,” this email states. “We have worked with the police during the investigations and they also found no evidence of threats being made. The parents of the student who allegedly made these threats have been contacted regarding the behavior. The situation has been addressed and at no time were any allegations not treated with the utmost seriousness.”

Late last week, Grode responded to concerns from parents and others in the community about how the threat was addressed.

“With every situation, it engages dialogue back and forth about what happened, how it was communicated, and things of that nature,” he said. “And with every situation like this, we take time afterward to debrief both with law enforcement and internally to make sure that we improve in how we handle the next situation.”

Grode added that warning messages like the first email sent late last Tuesday evening would, in future situations, be sent out to the entire district rather than just the concerned school.