Platteville and Galena Schools Close Because of Threat of Violence

The Galena and Platteville school districts have canceled classes today in relation to potential safety concerns. Galena district officials were alerted to a “possible threat to school safety” that specifically mentioned Galena High School. The cancellation was communicated to families in an email this morning, and a message from Superintendent Tim Vincent was also posted to the district’s Facebook page. In the message, Vincent notes that while the threat might stem from a nationally trending challenge on social media platform TikTok referring to a threat of school violence today, the district “cannot simply discount” the specific threat. A screenshot of the threat, included in the message, mentions “GHS” and asserts that the poster will “shoot up the school” today. Vincent said he was notified of the post by a parent around 11 p.m. Thursday. The district notified families around 5 a.m. today that all classes would be canceled. The message notes that the Galena Police Department is “conducting a thorough investigation” of the threat. Meanwhile, in Platteville, the school district reports that district officials and the Platteville Police Department were “notified of concern around a potential threat of violence occurring at the school” today. In a post on the Platteville School District website, In the early morning hours of December 17, 2021, the Platteville Police Department and the Platteville School District were notified of concern around a potential threat of violence occurring at the school this morning. On the Platteville Schools website, it was announced, “out of an abundance of caution, the decision was made to cancel school.  The incident is currently under investigation.  The safety of our students, staff, and community is always at the forefront of decision making.” The announcement notes that the incident is under investigation.