When schools are threatened, untold learning time is lost

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The prosecutor calls it "bomb week," his shorthand for eight school threats — many written in school bathrooms or on notes — over a few days in May that set off evacuations and investigations, parental panic, and the rumor mill of students linked by cellphones and social media in his Ohio county.

[...] violent or disruptive threats are increasing nationwide, according to police, school employees, security consultants and others, blamed sometimes on local students and sometimes on outsiders seeking to cause disruptions or a big emergency response.

Massachusetts had the most in that tally at 135 bomb threats, followed by Ohio with 96.

Because administrators and police can't simply ignore threats , they grapple with the fallout while trying to deter copycats.

The bill, supported by associations representing school boards, superintendents and school business managers, also would let districts and law enforcement agencies seek restitution from a student's parents for the costs of responding to their threat.

There's no catch-all response for schools, he said, but he suggests they consider whether it would be better to evaluate the legitimacy of a threat before automatically or habitually evacuating.

Besides the disruption, security experts note that neatly filing out of a building and gathering masses of people in one place potentially puts them in further jeopardy if someone wants to target them.