Joint Statement from City Manager Richard C. Rossi, Superintendent of Schools Jeff Young, and Police Commissioner Robert Haas

Thank you to all who shared your questions and concerns about this week’s threats against the Cambridge Public Schools (CPS). Heading into this weekend, we want to summarize the situation as it stands, while encouraging all members of the CPS community -- including community-based and Department of Human Service Programs (DHSP) Preschool, After-School, and Community School programs housed in CPS facilities -- to use this weekend to find a sense of respite from the emotionally demanding situation that our community continues to face.

Our community is going through an experience that is unfortunately becoming increasingly commonplace. Despite the many benefits of our technology era, individuals and groups have new avenues and tools at their disposal to commit acts of intimidation. These are challenging and uneasy times for Cambridge families and the programs that serve them; yet, the support that members of the community have shown around this week’s circumstances has been remarkable. We encourage you to continue to come together.

The safety of our community is our top priority. The decisions made around our emergency preparedness plans are made with great thought and extensive consultation. We are collectively taking the necessary steps -- out of the utmost caution -- to ensure the safety and security of all members of our schools, children and community.

Many have asked for more details about the investigation and our overall safety response. As an overview:

• The police department is working collaboratively with local and federal partners – including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Experts in cyber crimes and information are supporting this investigation and intelligence is actively being gathered.
• This situation is the highest priority of our local police department and CPS security. We want to assure you that extensive resources are dedicated and committed exclusively to this investigation and the public safety response.
• The Cambridge Police will continue to provide support and a uniformed presence at the schools until the threat is confirmed as non-credible. 
• Based on the current investigation, we continue to believe that this threat is likely a continuation of previous threats that originated early Tuesday morning. At this time, there is a high degree of confidence that the same individual continues to be behind the e-mails.
• At this stage, we are unable to provide specifics of the emails that have been received thus far. We appreciate and understand why families and staff may wish to know more. Please know that we're doing our best to share as much information as possible to put things into perspective with the most appropriate transparency.
• While around-the-clock efforts are taking place, patience may be required to adequately investigate these ongoing threats. When there is more information that we can share without jeopardizing the investigation, we will do so.
• We will continue to provide e-mail and website updates to inform the community of the security level that will be in place on Monday morning, as well as to notify you of any further incidents or updates. By the end of the weekend, we will determine whether a phone update is also warranted, and will strive to keep families informed without raising unnecessary alarm.

What you can do:

1. Please continue to make sure that you understand the ways that your family can stay informed. After each threat, we have maintained ongoing and open lines of communication to evaluate the situation and allocate police, CPS security, and other city resources to the response. We will be consulting over the weekend to determine the appropriate safety level at all of our schools, and will notify families via CPS email, website, and mobile app. 
2. Please remain vigilant and reach out if you see anything unusual or have new information to share. While we greatly appreciate the many comments and questions we have received over the past two weeks, we would like to recommend that families and staff be thoughtful about when and how you share your concerns. We will read and review every communication that is sent to leaders within our city. Families and staff have shared observations that have influenced many aspects of our response, but we also remind you that we will be best able to prioritize if the volume of feedback remains manageable.
3. If you or anyone you know has learned of any possible connections to the e-mails, witnessed any suspicious behaviors, or has any information to provide to officers, please don’t hesitate to call the Cambridge Police at 617-349-3300 (non-emergency) or 911 (emergency). Any insight, as little as it may appear to be, could be valuable in solving the investigation. The unsettling reality is that even when police find nothing out of the ordinary, any threat remains undetermined until its source can be found. In the case of an anonymous online posting, the investigation often takes more time.
4. Take care of yourselves, your children, and one another. While there have been no incidents to report on to date, this is a sensitive time in the world. We will continue to work collaboratively to support the emotional well-being of children, families and staff. Resources for talking with children can be found online at www.cpsd.us and we encourage families and teachers to spend time building your own sense of resilience and calm during this very difficult time, so that you can be there for our students and children.

As always, we stand together with our community. Thank you for being part of all that is best in the City of Cambridge.

Richard C. Rossi, City Manager
Jeff Young, Superintendent of Schools
Robert Haas, Police Commissioner