Winston-Salem State University joined a growing list of historically Black colleges and universities that have recently received a bomb threat, but a university spokeswoman says they were prepared.
The call came in to the university's main campus line just before noon Wednesday. More than 20 other HBCUs had already had received bomb threats in recent weeks.
With that in mind, officials met and planned for a local threat. Members of the WSSU community were encouraged to download a campus safety app so they could get emergency information quickly, says university spokeswoman Haley Gingles.
“We're really just trying to preach personal preparedness in the event that there are emergencies on campus,” she says. “And making sure that you have all the tools and devices that are available to make sure you're safe.”
Officials did not shut down the campus and the threat was found to be unsubstantiated.
The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Forces are investigating the threats as hate crimes.
“Everyone was safe [Wednesday],” Gingles says. “That's what we really want to focus on is that safety is our highest priority at Winston-Salem State.”