Additional reporting by Livia Kam ’26.

In light of the recent bomb threat received by MFS on April 15, students are continuing to raise questions regarding school safety protocols and emergency procedures.

While the threat was determined by Moorestown Mayor Quinton Law to be AI-generated and non-credible, many students did not recall ever practicing the drill, causing increased uncertainty during and after the event.

As defined by the Moorestown Police Department, a shelter-in-place protocol typically requires schools to “initiate a lockdown, which can include sheltering in place or evacuating to a predesignated location.” 

According to the Department of Education’s New Jersey School Security Drill Guide, unlike a lockdown, which is generally used during an immediate danger inside the building, a shelter-in-place is implemented when there is no known immediate threat, allowing law enforcement to assess the situation based on several factors and determine the safest course of action. 

“As someone who’s been at MFS since Lower School, I do not remember practicing a shelter-in-place … which makes me worried,” said Safiya Lowe ’28.

Fiona Yan ’28 said, “I was still a little on edge [during the threat] … and once [my teacher] told me that we’re having a shelter-in-place, I didn’t know exactly what it meant, but I used context clues to piece together [that] maybe we’re not supposed to leave.”

As per the official MFS Student and Family Handbook, accessible through myMFS, MFS is required to conduct security drills such as “Active Shooter, Lockdown, Bomb Threat, and Non-fire Evacuation” in addition to alternating drills such as “Lockdown, Shelter-in-Place, Tabletop drills, and more,” in accordance with NJ law. 

During a conversation with Head of School Julia de la Torre, she clarified that according to the handbook, MFS is required to rotate through various drills every month, but has the option to choose the drills most relevant to the community. 

In alignment with the School Security Drill Guide, MFS most commonly conducts a minimum of two evacuation, active shooter, bomb threat, and lockdown drills annually. Because of this, shelter-in-place situations are practiced and implemented less frequently than other drills.

As previously reported by WordsWorth, the last time the school initiated a shelter-in-place protocol was on March 27, 2022, in response to a tornado warning. Rather than remaining in classrooms, students were recommended to move to the basement, which was considered the safest option, and one of the first uses of the shelter-in-place protocol in a weather emergency. Similar to recent confusion, the shelter-in-place then was described as “a universal first experience.” 

Although students and faculty members recall practicing a shelter-in-place drill during which each division would relocate to different locations, at the time of publication, WordsWorth was unable to find anyone who could pinpoint the exact year the school stopped implementing the drill. Based on these interviews, the last time a shelter-in-place drill was conducted might have been between the years 2018 and 2020.

“[A shelter-in-place] is one of the least-used drills in schools because there are not that many scenarios where you would want to gather students …[the most recent use of shelter-in-place] was just about limiting movement around campus so the police could do their job; that was the goal,” de la Torre said.

During the shelter-in-place, students also raised concerns regarding restricted phone usage and being unable to communicate with people outside their classrooms.

“I didn’t like that I couldn’t use my phone because I know my parents were worried about my safety,” said Vincent D’Amico ’28.

De la Torre explained that because of the uncertainty during a bomb threat about what the detonation device could be, students and staff are advised against using cell phone devices and walkie-talkies.

Now, according to de la Torre, the threat has prompted discussions about the future of “AI robocalls” and whether MFS should be more prepared for them.  

“We are looking to set up a meeting with our administrative team and the local police department to follow up on the drill, but to also talk more broadly about how we can collaborate and align our efforts,” said de la Torre.