Cobb County alerted families and students of North Cobb of a false threat on the school May 9. According to the district, images and videos of armed men that suggested acts of violence on the school campus spread on social media, leaving students alarmed and scared for their safety. Debunking the threats in order to bring peace to students, family and staff, principal Matthew Moody sent out a message to all families to provide the school’s stance. 

“Over the weekend, our administration was made aware of a possible threat to our school. Cobb County Police Department and the Cobb County School District Police Department immediately launched an investigation and discovered that the rumors were unfounded,” Moody said.

In the original threat, seemingly posted on the social media app Snapchat, a photo emerged of armed shooters with a caption that stated “Me when I go to school at [sic] 5/9/23 at approximately 1:35 PM.” From that point on, several other students spread the image on Snapchat and Instagram, while other false threats also emerged on the platform the following day. May 10, another student posted a threat on a social media site, stating that at 2:30 PM that same day, the school would face a shooting. The school initiated a code yellow on the school after the post gained traction, and Moody sent out another email to families explaining the situation. 

“Two students are in custody and repercussions for engaging in behavior which disrupts the school day are severe. All relevant District policy, state and Federal law, will be applied…We continue to be vigilant in securing our campuses and doing everything we can, to keep our students and staff safe,” Cobb County School District said.

Later that Wednesday, the school faced another threat. Airdropped to Apple phones in a classroom, a photo of a “kill list” surfaced, putting the class and surrounding classrooms into another state of panic. Sent into another code yellow, Awtrey Middle School also sent their students into a code yellow, due to the school’s proximity to NC. Put into custody, two students faced the repercussion of engaging in school-disrupting behavior. Due to the nature of the situation, several students left school early through pick up from parents, drove themselves home with other classmates and several did not come to school the following day to ensure their safety. 

“My family and I were very concerned over the threats. We were in contact a lot during the code yellow and both me and my brother were told to follow protocol and listen to our teachers. I did not go to school Wednesday when the threats blew up because I was very scared over the possibility of a code yellow that was not a drill and I stayed home. I am very scared that the threats might continue and actual harm being done to the students here, but I do trust in our adult figures that they will be able to control the situation,” junior Abigail Rigg said.