NSCC grafitti threat not serious enough to cancel class

LYNN-A mysterious message scrawled on the wall of a North Shore Community College bathroom Friday had Campus Police and school administrators on heightened alert Monday, but the situation was not considered serious enough to cancel or delay classes.Campus Police received a report of the threatening message found in a Lynn Campus bathroom on Friday afternoon. In a statement released by NSCC President Wayne Burton, authorities said the message was specific to Monday, March 3, but did not elaborate on the details of the threat.NSCC Spokesperson Peggy Justice said Monday that the threat did not “list any specifics,” such as whether the individual would use a bomb or other weapon in an attack.As soon as the message was discovered school officials released an email statement to all students and faculty, and have displayed condensed statements explaining the situation on television screens set up throughout the campus.”Since the campus safety alert communication on Friday, campus police and other law enforcement agencies have continued to investigate the graffiti threat found in one of the restrooms on the Lynn campus,” Burton said in a statement. “There have been no further developments and the college will be open as usual on Monday and classes will meet as scheduled.”Justice said both city and Campus Police were on heightened alert Monday, increasing patrols and looking for any specific activity at both the Danvers and Lynn campuses. Burton and school administrators were also patrolling the Lynn campus Monday.With recent developments such as the late February shooting massacre at Northern Illinois University, colleges and universities are forced to treat every threat as potentially serious, but Burton said the behavior of one individual would not disrupt how the school will operate.”While this situation is understandably unsettling, the college should not be unreasonably controlled by threats or fear,” he said. “We continue to do our best to make sound judgments and protect our community, and hope to keep operations as normal as possible, but with heightened awareness.”In case of panic setting in among students, NSCC kept student support and advising centers open until 7 p.m. Monday to provide counseling and support to students.