On Friday, April 11, 2025, the State College Police made an arrest that thwarted a credible threat for the shooting and bombing of State College Area High School planned for Monday, April 21, the day following the anniversary of the Columbine shooting.

From April 14 until April 21, the State High administration implemented new safety measures that included metal detectors at entrances and increased presence of security personnel. However, as of Tuesday, April 22, these safety measures have been removed. This means the school has returned to its previous, minimal protocol of checking student IDs at entrance.

We, the students of State High, along with many parents and staff, are dismayed at the return to the old norm for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to:

• Prior to the threat, student IDs were checked lazily & hastily
• It is not difficult to forge a student ID
• The possession of a valid student ID does not prevent someone from bringing concealed firearms or other weapons into the school
• The police investigation into the full scope of the threat has not been concluded
• One thwarted threat does not prevent other threats from occurring
• Anyone uninvolved with the original threat but now inspired to take their own action has little preventing them from enacting a disaster now that security is minimal once more

The short-lived nature of the metal detectors and other safety measures proves that the efforts to keep our school safe are strictly reactionary. We demand that proactive measures be taken.

A security update sent by Superintendent Curtis Johnson states that the School Board plans to purchase three portable metal detectors in order to "increase our flexibility throughout the district should we need to utilize metal detectors in the future." This statement comes with the assumption that the district will always be aware if there is a "need" for metal detectors, which is simply impossible and untrue. Why are we waiting for an active threat to our school community to take the cautions necessary to keep our school safe?

We recognize that there are varying opinions on the effectiveness of metal detectors, yet certainly it can be agreed upon that anything is more effective than simply checking student IDs.

We demand that metal detectors be re-implemented until at least the end of this school year while the district takes time to implement its other planned safety precautions.

The lack of evidence of an active threat to our school community does not mean there will never again be a threat. Please take the precautions necessary to keep our school community safe, for now and forever.