As Texas students return to school this fall, the Texas School Safety Center (TxSSC) has launched a public awareness campaign to educate students and parents about the serious consequences of making or sharing threats.
Intended for grades 4-12, the campaign includes a powerful PSA video and supporting resources for educators and parents to share the message, “Threats Are No Joke! Don’t do it. Don’t share it. Report it!”
The video depicts how a single text message shared among students can quickly escalate into chaos, triggering fear, confusion and a full law enforcement response. This PSA serves as a critical reminder that there’s no such thing as “just a joke” when it comes to threats about school violence, school safety or harm to others.
“When someone makes a threat, whether they mean it or not, it can put everyone’s safety at risk,” said Kathy Martinez-Prather, Ph.D., TxSSC director. “Many students and parents don’t know that even sharing or joking about a threat can be illegal. This campaign aims to change that and emphasize that threats to school safety are a crime and carry real consequences.”
The video features a law enforcement officer discussing how making or sharing threats can impact a student’s future and a Texas School Safety Teen Ambassador encouraging students to report threats by telling an adult they trust such as a parent, teacher, or coach.
“Many times, students share things on social media or with our friends and we don’t realize that it can spread fear and panic,” said Sebastian, a Texas School Safety Teen Ambassador. “It is our responsibility to help keep our schools and friends safe and speaking up is how we stay safe.”
The video and resources, including teacher and parent guides, posters and social media graphics, are available to educators and the public at no cost on the TxSSC’s website.
The TxSSC is a university-level research center at Texas State University with the mission to serve schools and communities to create safe, secure, and healthy environments. The TxSSC provides safety and security information through research, training and technical assistance for school districts, open-enrollment charter schools and junior colleges throughout the state. To learn more visit txssc.txstate.edu.