East Lansing Public Schools Get Threatening Note, Close Wednesday

East Lansing Public Schools closed campuses Wednesday (March 8) due to a threat. The threat came on social media involving a gun, according to superintendent Dori Leyko.

Leyko sent out a note to families, stating:

“Right around 6:00 a.m. this morning, a handful of ELPS administrators and a few ELHS staff members saw an email from an individual in Texas alerting us to a post that was made on Snapchat around midnight last night. The post was of a gun and a message that said, ‘east lansing better be ready, just got this [expletive] delivered today.’ The post was made by an unknown individual who has a username that contains the initials of a local group that may be connected to gang activity. The email was sent by an individual who says she is in Texas and wanted to make us aware of the post.”

Leyko added, “Upon closer review of the screenshot, we noticed the same photo of a gun with a different caption that read, ‘everyone dying at east lansing tomorrow.’ A second email notifying us of this post was sent to ELHS Acting Principal Mrs. Schwarzbek and me at 1:40 a.m. by an ELHS student. We will make a decision and communicate by noon regarding after-school and evening activities that are scheduled to be onsite. The varsity basketball game in St. Johns will be played as scheduled.”

The note concluded, “We will provide additional information through our various district communication channels by noon. We need your support and ask that you rely on communications from our school system. The health, safety and well-being of our students and staff are our highest priority. ELPD is currently investigating these posts. If you have additional information, please reach out to ELPD, me or to a high school administrator.”

The school also took to social media, stating, “This morning, we were made aware of a concerning social media post. While there is no direct threat to any specific school building, the post does direct a threat to ‘East Lansing.'”