CMS is changing its school threat communication plan
Parents may receive more notifications about threats, the district said in a video sent to parents on Sunday
The following article appeared in the March 10, 2025, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with smart and original local news for Charlotte. We offer free and paid subscription plans. More info here.
CMS rolls out new plan for communicating school threats; fewer crimes and weapons on campuses since 2021, district says
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is making changes in how it communicates about threats against schools, which might result in parents getting more notifications, CMS officials said Sunday in a 6-minute video sent to families.
The video didn’t specify exactly what the district’s guidelines will be in communicating threats, but CMS chief communications officer Shanna Spickard said parents “may see an increase in the number of notifications keeping them informed. It is also important to note that due to privacy laws and the integrity of investigations, there may be times that schools are limited in what information they have as well as in what they can share with families.”
Last month, CMS came under scrutiny by parents for not promptly notifying families about shooting threats to five schools. The threats became public after a media outlet reported that a suspect had been arrested, and a few days later, CMS Superintendent Crystal Hill apologized via a video message for not notifying parents “in a timely manner,” saying “we commit to doing better.”
In Sunday’s video, Hill said that “established safety protocols were followed impeccably while we worked with law enforcement to investigate threats against our schools last month.”
There have been drops in crimes in CMS schools as well as the number of guns and other weapons on campuses, CMS Chief Operations Officer Tim Ivey said in the video. He said that between the 2021-22 school year and the 2023-24 school year, CMS has had:
a 7.7% decrease in the number of criminal acts in schools
a 49% decrease in the number of weapons other than firearms
a 69% decrease in possession of firearms, from 29 firearms to 9
—Cristina Bolling
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