On March 17 at 5:54 a.m., District 196 officials announced all district schools would be closed due to threats left on voicemail at multiple schools in the district. The voicemail was first discovered at 3:30 a.m. at a school in Eagan, and Eagan Police were notified immediately.

As later reported by the Eagan Police Department, “Because we were alerted to these threats in the early morning hours, investigators did not yet have the time needed to determine where these threats came from or whether they were credible. With students and staff preparing to arrive, District 196 made the decision to close schools out of an abundance of caution.” Families and staff were alerted of the closure by phone, email, and text at 5:54 a.m.

The threat investigation involved multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Eagan Police Department, Apple Valley Police Department, Rosemount Police Department, the FBI, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and other agencies. As a result of a thorough investigation, the police determined there was no credible threat. 

“We are confident that it is safe for students and staff to return to school,” the police stated.

How do we know?
During the investigation, a number of facts emerged: 

• The call originated out-of-state.
• The threats were not Minnesota nor District 196-specific.
• The messages have been linked to a national trend of threats against schools and other high-profile entities, in which computer-generated messages are intended to cause disruption and fear, aimed at getting the attention of the police and diverting law enforcement attention and emergency resources from other work.
• The investigation is now being handled by the FBI because making this type of threat is a crime, and it is the FBI’s responsibility when crime crosses state lines.
• This incident differed from a Dec. 16, 2025, threat that caused the closure of District 196 high schools. On Dec. 16, specific high schools were named in online threats, and police traced the messages to an IP address located in Eagan. A 16-year-old student was arrested for those threats.

Safety is the Priority

The District takes all threats seriously and works with law enforcement to investigate. Decisions to close schools are typically made before 6 a.m. At that time, investigators were still working with telecom companies to determine where these threats originated or whether they were credible. With students and staff preparing to arrive, District 196 decided to close schools out of an abundance of caution.

We understand how disruptive this is to close and that there is a high level of anxiety in our community around safety. We will always make decisions with the safety of our students, staff, and school community as our top priority.