Seven bomb threats have been made at Lawrence public schools since March.
By:Aleen Crispino Special Writer
Several parents called for action by the school district to end a recent wave of bomb threats and subsequent evacuations at the township public schools, while the school board offered possible solutions at a meeting on April 19.
"This is really getting to be ridiculous," said Bob Bostock of Springwood Drive, the parent of two children in the district – a daughter at Lawrence Intermediate School and a son at Lawrence Middle School. He said he has received "four letters home in less than a month" regarding bomb threats, and that his daughter’s class was instructed by a teacher to bring in activities to occupy their time during evacuations.
‘I know this board, this staff and this administration are doing what they can," said Mr. Bostock. "I hope that a strong message will be sent because they (students making bomb threats) are putting the lives, the safety of our kids, teachers, staff and law enforcement personnel" at risk, he added, also pointing out that students were "losing instructional time" during evacuations.
Business Administrator Thomas Eldridge said security cameras were installed in Lawrence High School, and confirmed on Monday that installation of cameras in Lawrence Intermediate School is complete.
The cameras are located throughout the building at LHS and "primarily outside the bathrooms" in the intermediate school, said Superintendent of Schools Philip Meara on Monday.
Seven bomb threats have been made at Lawrence Township Public Schools since March 20.
A bomb threat scrawled on a boys’ bathroom wall on March 24 resulted in the evacuation of LMS to the adjacent high school auditorium.
No explosives were found and a 13-year-old LMS student was suspended in connection with the incident, according to police.
A non-specific bomb threat found in an LMS bathroom wall on March 21 was deemed noncredible and the school was not evacuated, police said. Bomb threats were found on the bathroom walls in LIS on March 20 and March 27, resulting in the evacuation of the school, police said.
On both occasions no explosive devices were found, police said. A 9-year-old LIS student was suspended for the March 27 threat, according to police. A second intermediate school student has also been suspended for making a bomb threat on April 18, said Mr. Meara.
A bomb threat discovered on a bathroom wall by a teacher at Lawrence High School on the morning of March 22 was accompanied by a telephoned threat to the main office. Students and staff were bused to the National Guard Armory on Eggerts Crossing Road for approximately two hours, according to police, while bomb-sniffing dogs from Lawrence and Ewing police departments as well as Mercer County and Cumberland County sheriffs’ departments and the U.S. Park Police checked the building for bombs, finding none.
"I can tell you the kids will be punished," said Lawrence Township School Board President Laura Waters. The board will discuss the issue at a retreat to be held on April 29, she said.
"The actions the county prosecutor takes with these students are extremely severe," said Mr. Meara, who began his tenure as superintendent on March 20. "They can extend to compensating the local police department for their time and efforts," he said.
There is a need to educate students "in pre-K through 12th" about the potentially serious consequences of making bomb threats, said Mr. Meara. "In the case of the students we have worked with and apprehended, they had no idea," he said, adding that a Slackwood Elementary School second-grade student had also allegedly made a bomb threat before he came to the district. He asked for parents’ help in informing students of the serious consequences of making bomb threats.
"It’s important to us that we create a heightened awareness of bomb scares and evacuation drills and we need to do that with the children through curriculum," Mr. Meara in a phone conversation on Monday.
Other parents offered suggestions at the school board’s April 19 meeting.
Ellen Buchsbaum, also of Springwood Drive, whose son attends fifth grade at Lawrence Intermediate School, called for "communitywide meetings" between "the board, superintendent, chief of police, parents and children" to have "a very serious discussion" about the bomb threat problem.
Jonathan Clancy of Shirley Lane said he was concerned about the response by the schools and the Board of Education to the bomb threats, adding they were "treating the symptoms rather than the problem."
Schools with burgeoning populations may contribute to students feeling isolated, Mr. Clancy said.
"Students feeling alienated strike out for attention in large schools," said Mr. Clancy, adding that smaller schools play a role in determining a student’s sense of self worth. "Do we need cameras outside bathrooms? What message does this send to the students?" he asked.
Ms. Waters said that research exists on the value of smaller school environments, adding "It would be wrong of us to think of the results and ignore the root cause of the problem.
She said the board will form new task forces, with community members, to examine issues in the high school.
Joan Hedden of Princeton Pike offered the schools the use of a film titled "A Price to Pay," on the consequences of shoplifting, directed by her son Brian, a Lawrence High School graduate and film student at New York University. The film, created by her son for his Eagle Scout project, shows "little kids, then teenagers shoplifting," said Ms. Hedden, and subsequently getting caught. The film shows the consequences in later life, such as not getting accepted to colleges or hired for jobs, she said.
Mr. Meara asked for a copy of the film.

