School day ends without incident at Lake Travis ISD despite threat

AUSTIN, Texas - Lake Travis ISD's superintendent says the school day has ended without incident after a threatening message was found written on a bathroom wall at Lake Travis High School.

Lake Travis High School administration were made aware on Monday of a threatening message written inside one of the women’s restrooms. The message had a pistol drawn with the message "Caution: I am going to shoot this school up on December 9th".

Superintendent says he believes Lake Travis HS will be safe despite threat

Lake Travis ISD superintendent Paul Norton says there is a plan in place for Thursday, Dec. 9 after a threatening message was found inside a Lake Travis HS restroom.

Superintendent Paul Norton sent a letter to staff, parents and guardians reporting that no such incident occurred. He also reported that student attendance was down approximately 50 percent at both Lake Travis Middle School and Lake Travis High School.

The letter says that even though the district believes the threats to be "unfounded", the LTISD police department and school administration will continue to investigate the matter and "out of an abundance of caution," there will be an increased police presence at both schools tomorrow.

Increased police presence at Lake Travis HS following threat

There will be an increased police presence at Lake Travis High School the rest of the week after the discovery of a note in one of the women's bathrooms that said, "Caution: I am going to shoot this school up on December 9."

READ THE FULL LETTER BELOW:

Dear Lake Travis ISD Staff, Parents and Guardians,

I know today was stressful for students and families across our district. I am pleased to report the school day ended without incident. Student attendance was down approximately 50% at both Lake Travis Middle School and Lake Travis High School, and given the nature of the threats received at these campuses earlier in the week, I understand the decision some of our parents made to keep their children home.

Members of my senior staff, the Lake Travis Police Department, local law enforcement officials and I spent the day at both LTMS and LTHS. We observed our secured entry vestibules where visitors cannot proceed into the main building until they are admitted by a member of the school staff as well as our Raptor safety software that enables staff to screen visitors and respond to emergencies. The team also examined the locations of our school security cameras and their effectiveness. I am confident that these tools—together with our trained staff, safety protocols and other emergency procedures—help to provide a safe learning environment.

While we believe the recent threats to be unfounded, our Lake Travis ISD police department, along with our school administrative teams, will continue to investigate this matter fully. We take these threats very seriously and will apply consequences as appropriate to those involved and at the same time will provide support as needed. In the meantime, out of an abundance of caution, we will continue to provide increased police presence at Lake Travis Middle School and Lake Travis High School tomorrow.

Please encourage your child to immediately report any suspicious activity to an adult. With your help and support, we will continue to do everything possible to protect our children.

Sincerely,
Paul Norton
Superintendent of Schools

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