South Fulton Today

Polk County canceled school Friday following social media threats of violence, Superintendent Katie Thomas wrote on Facebook.

"Polk School District, in partnership with the Polk School District Police and local law enforcement agencies, worked tirelessly into the evening and early morning hours investigating multiple social media threats related to school violence specific to our local schools," Thomas wrote. "These were in addition to the nationwide threats related to the TikTok 'American School Shooting Day' on Dec. 17."

Friday would have been the last day students were in class before the holiday break.

"Polk School District apologizes for the inconvenience, undue stress and in some cases, disappointment that missing today may have caused for students and parents," Thomas wrote. "We will continue to do what is in the best interest of all involved – especially related to safety. We hope that our Polk School District families have a wonderful holiday break and look forward to students returning on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022."

Students were scheduled to take final exams on Friday but will not be required to take them next year, Fox 5 News reported. The school system has 7,800 students, the story said.

TikTok removed many of the challenges from its platform Thursday afternoon, the company said in a statement on Twitter, according to Fox 5.

"Our staff and students did exactly what we have asked of them, 'If you see something, say something,'” Thomas said. "In some cases, parents even called 911 and reported individuals that may be behind the threats. Each allegation is being investigated and any individual found responsible will be charged accordingly. "

Officials in cities nationwide said there is no evidence the TikTok threats were real but school officials were increasing precautions just to be sure, Fox 5 reported.

 The Polk superintendent lamented that the threats surfaced during the holiday season.

"Unfortunately, we live in a world where threats of school violence are real," she said. "This is supposed to be the most joyous time of the year for everyone, but especially our students. Social media, nationwide violence, and the mental health crisis – are all factors that contribute to what has sadly become the norm for school systems."