Cypress College campus was closed until noon today, Monday, March 5, due to a threat made by a 24-year-old former student.

The Whittier Police Department received information from the suspect’s family that he was threatening violence against an unnamed school and determined that Cypress College was the possible target given that the man was a former student.

After noon, Cypress reopened their campus and held classes as usual.

In response to the threats, mass emails and text messages were sent to Cypress College students and employees to inform them that “police received a credible report of a possible violence against the campus” and that all classes before noon would be cancelled.

“It brings me a lot of confidence that it works,” said Lisa McPheron, Director of Campus Communications for Fullerton College, about the mass notification that went out to Cypress students and faculty.

Fullerton College Campus Safety also has faith in the notification system in place.

“We would react the same way,” said Steven S. Selby, Director of Campus Safety, referring to how the incident was handled at Cypress College.

“We would take the same action if some student made a credible threat,” Selby continued. “It reflects how important the active shooter drill is.”

Selby recommends students be proactive and think about “very simple things that you can do to keep yourselves safe” like knowing where the emergency phones are on campus, knowing where the exit doors are and doing a walk through in their heads if such a situation were to happen at Fullerton College.

Selby recommends students familiarize themselves with the college itself in the event that a serious threat were to occur because, as he explained, we should already know what to do in the event of an emergency instead of having to learn while it goes on.

Students may refer to the campus safety website for any further information on emergency procedures.