NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. -- Multiple schools in Western New York went to remote learning for parts of this week because of threats made on social media.
Just Friday alone, Batavia City Schools cancelled all classes because of social media threats and the Olean City School District went to remote learning because of a social media threat.
Social media threats have happened at schools across Western New York since the pandemic started from Lockport to Niagara Falls to Salamanca. Sometimes the threats are credible, sometimes they aren't. Police investigate and figure out who made the threat and take action.
Hamburg Superintendent Michael Cornell says there's no one answer, there's no one cause, but the isolation caused by COVID is an issue.
"The mental health crisis among our young people has been exacerbated significantly. It is particularly acute because of what we experienced in the COVID era. So what we've done in school is we've really focused on the relationship that school can have with kids, that students can have with each other, that students have with school-based adults, and really emphasizing the pro-social activities that kids can engage in within the context of school. Things like sports, plays, music, student government, clubs," says Michael Cornell, President of the Erie-Niagara School Superintendents Association.
Cornell went on to say if kids become disconnected from school, they can become disconnected from their friends and sometimes their families. He says that can make the mental and emotional challenges they face worse - and sometimes a symptom of that is attention-seeking behavior can be making threats online or turning those threats into violence.
Bryan DalPorto is the Director of Safety and Security at the Niagara Falls City School District. He says school districts work closely with law enforcement to figure out who posted the threats and encourages people not to let the social media rumor mill get out of control because it makes it tougher for everyone involved.
"A lot of times, the threats really are threats from places that aren't even in our area. I think the last one we had came from somewhere in Texas. Not that it can't be a credible threat. It certainly can. However, people are working on it and when you feed into that social media rumor mill, it just makes the problem worse," says Brian DalPorto.
People who post social media threat online can end up facing felony charges.
