Butler County Area Vocational-Technical School and Mars Area School District both addressed rumors Thursday about possible threats.

The vo-tech sent a message to families Thursday stating that information regarding a potential threat to the school was false.

“Today, during our 1st Session, we were provided information that deemed it necessary to investigate a possible threat to our school. Administration, with the School Police present, have investigated and have found the information to be untrue,” executive director Regina Hiler wrote. “Please know our students and staff are safe. However, due to the wide sharing of misinformation, we felt it important to share this with you.”

Hiler recommended that anyone who has information regarding threats to the safety of students and staff contact the police directly.

“At Butler County AVTS, we believe that if there are open lines of communication between families and the staff, we will be able to provide a better learning environment for our students,” she wrote.

In an email, Hiler said there was no further information to share at this time.

Mars Area superintendent Mark Gross also sent a message Thursday afternoon to parents regarding messages circulating on social media, primarily on TikTok, related to school shootings and bomb threats at schools across the nation on Dec. 17.“These social media posts warn of threats, but are not specific to Pennsylvania and do not contain specific threats, schools, actors or locations,” Gross wrote.The email said that Mars Area district and local law enforcement officials were aware of the messages.He encouraged anyone with information regarding the rumored threats or any suspicious behavior to contact the Safe2Say youth violence prevention program run by the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, or to call 911 in the event of an emergency.“Mars Area School District strives to remain proactive in the protection of our students, faculty and staff members. Thank you for your patience and cooperation,” he wrote.