Courtesy of Brownwood ISD

Thursday morning, February 14, 2019, several adults outside of BISD began discussing Brownwood High School via text message. These text messages included discussions on school safety. One of the adults, believing she was texting a friend, inadvertently sent a text to a phone being carried by a Brownwood High School student. This adult stated, “Have you heard anything of the school shooter threat at BHS?” The student, understandably, was disturbed by the text which came from a number the student did not recognize. Discussions about this text spread rapidly and rumors began about a threat. There was no threat.

Brownwood ISD takes any threat, even a misinterpreted rumor, seriously and we sent out a notification based on the information we had at that time. We began an investigation along with the Brownwood Police Department and were able to track down the adult texts which led to this scenario. Student and staff safety is of the utmost importance to us.

In the age of immediate texts, sensational headlines, and social media, seemingly innocent words taken out of context are dangerous. Please help us continue to focus on educating our youth by carefully discussing these volatile issues. I personally applaud the student who took the text seriously and alerted school officials. Thank you to the Brownwood Police Department who tracked down the sources and provided heightened visibility during the day while the entire series of events could be established.

Dr. Joe Young
Brownwood ISD Superintendent