A Mahwah parent on March 5 told the Board of Education she was alarmed after fifth-grade students exchanged text messages that, she said, included threats to bring a gun to school and "shoot up the school." She asked the board to enforce "meaningful consequences" so other students see that such threats are not tolerated.

"I am still alarmed," said Aziza Vigil, who identified herself during the meeting and gave a Mahwah address. She told the board she had discussed the matter with district officials and Mahwah police but remained concerned that the consequences students received were insufficient and that other children observed a lack of accountability.

Dr. DiTorto, the district superintendent for the meeting, responded that the district had not dismissed the matter. He said the incident began outside school grounds but became a school matter because of a reference to the school in the messages. "We engaged all the appropriate authorities," Dr. DiTorto said, adding district staff followed the threat-assessment protocol and involved police. He said the district notified the families of students involved and explained that confidentiality restricts how much the district can disclose publicly about individual student disciplinary actions.

Vigil pressed for clarity about how the district decides penalties such as detention or suspension for threatening conduct, saying her own children had received detention for lesser misconduct. Board members said they understand the concern but reiterated that student-discipline matters are confidential; one board member said not all board members might have seen the messages and that full specifics cannot be discussed in public.

The meeting also included a district presentation earlier by Dr. DiTorto on the student-safety-data-system (SSDS) report for July 1–Dec. 31, covering incidents that must be reported to the board and state: violence, vandalism, harassment, bullying, weapons and substance offenses, and incidents that lead to student removal. Dr. DiTorto described programs and trainings in the district — examples included HIV-policy training, conflict-resolution, cyberbullying, threat-assessment training, school-safety-team training, character-education assemblies, responsive-classroom for K–5, SEL days at the middle school, and an elementary-level "morning friends" program to help students transition to school.

Dr. DiTorto said the SSDS report and related training information are reported twice a year to satisfy state and federal reporting requirements and to inform the board. The board did not discuss new district-wide disciplinary policy changes at the meeting; school officials reiterated they had followed established procedures for the incident raised in public comment.

The board closed public comment after the exchange and proceeded to other agenda items.