On Friday, Sept. 13, at 8:06 a.m., Archie Williams High School students and families received a text alert warning of a bomb threat on campus. The message urged students not to come to school. Archie Williams administration communicated that they’d received the threat at 8 a.m. and that the event was not a drill.
11 minutes later, another text message was issued to the entire Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD), stating, “SCHOOLS ARE CLOSED TODAY SEPTEMBER 13TH,” with a link to an official notice from TUHSD Superintendent, Tara Taupier.
“Due to a threat of violence sent to the District this morning, ALL SCHOOLS WILL BE CLOSED TODAY. The threat did not specify a target site. Please remain home or return home if you are already on campus or in transit. The District will update as more information becomes available,” Taupier wrote.
Currently, school administrations have ordered the evacuation and cancellation of four Bay Area schools. This includes Archie Williams, Tamalpais High School, Redwood High School, and Hall Middle School, likely due to its proximity to Redwood’s campus.
At Archie Williams, water polo teams had been on campus for morning practice and were evacuated the moment the threat was received. Senior water polo player Paige Murphy was one of the students ushered from school.
“We were taking a break in between swim sets, and then we heard the big speaker that was like, ‘Everyone, if you’re on campus, please go to the baseball field.’ At first, I wasn’t sure if that applied to us because we were in the pool,” Paige said. “[But] then we all just grabbed our towels and started walking to the baseball field.”
The water polo players never reached the field as another, more urgent announcement prompted them to grab their things and leave campus altogether.
On Wednesday, Sept. 11, a similar incident occurred at Casa Grande and Petaluma high schools. A 14-year-old boy was arrested in connection with threats of violence towards the schools. Reports say that he planned to commit an act of violence on Friday afternoon.
The student has been taken into police custody and is now in juvenile detention. It is unclear whether these incidents are related, but administrators plan to update students and families as more information comes in.
UPDATE: At 12:35 p.m., Archie Williams Principal Jacob Gran issued a follow-up notice regarding the bomb threat, confirming a sweep found no explosives on any of the school sites.
“Our law enforcement partners with Central Marin Police Authority and Mill Valley Police Department have completed thorough sweeps of our campuses and no threats were found. All schools have been declared safe. Our safety protocols were effective, and we appreciate the cooperation of our staff, students, and families,” Gran wrote.
Gran also outlined the day’s events, explaining how the Superintendent’s office received a threat at 7:30 a.m., prompting school officials to cancel classes for the day and ensure the safety of students and staff. Peculiarly, the bomb threats in the TUHSD weren’t the only ones at a high school in California. According to Gran’s notice, several other California school districts dealt with messages of violence that day.
These are speculated to be correlated with the infamy of “Friday the 13th,” the namesake of a classic horror movie, and a supposed day of extreme bad luck.
Administrators urge students to stay safe and support themselves during this tumultuous time. School counseling offices will be open and accommodating to students grappling with the incident and its repercussions.
“Threats of violence like this can be frightening and disruptive, and everyone responds differently. It’s important to remember that there is no right or wrong way to react. Please talk to your child(ren) and remind them that counseling and wellness support are available at school if they need help processing today’s events,” Gran wrote.
Regularly scheduled sports and after school activities will proceed per usual, and the Archie Williams campus is reopening after 2 p.m. today. Additionally, all weekend activities will happen as planned and students can expect to restart school the following Monday.
Because this school closure cuts into the district’s allotted days off, the last day of school for TUHSD high school students is now a day later than normal, on Friday, June 13, 2025. Administrators will continue to give updates as necessary.
This story was last updated on Friday, Sept. 13 at 1:50 p.m.
