FORNEY, Texas— Forney Independent School District officials say a social media trend of fake accounts representing school districts, fake student accounts and posts encouraging riots and other violence is not just a local issue, but concerns schools across the country.
It comes after the district learned students had shared a social media post encouraging other students to leave class and ‘riot’, according to an email from the district to parents at one of the affected campuses. .
The district says the post in question is the same post circulating across the country and is not related to Forney ISD or any of its campuses.
“People started talking about the post and confused it as being related to our campus,” the email read. “Several other schools and districts across the country are having the same issue with this same social media post.”
“Like a phone game, the message was drastically changed from the original message of getting out of class to something more serious when the students shared it,” the email continued. “It creates unnecessary hysteria and panic for our students.”
Although district officials believe the latest post is false and unrelated to the district, the Forney ISD Police Department is aware of the posts and has additional security measures in place.
After a previous TikTok challenge that circulated last fall, districts are now seeing an increase in the creation of fake accounts using school names and logos, according to the district.
“Fake accounts often feature insensitive and/or inappropriate posts and start rumors,” the email continues. “This behavior does not represent the spirit of the Forney ISD community nor will it be tolerated in our schools.”
District encourages parents to tell their kids about the consequences of creating fake accounts — citing violations of student code of conduct, school disciplinary action, possible legal action if posts include or lead to violence or harassment, and fines for using district marks on their school logos and names.
The district says it is actively working with Instagram to identify the creators of certain fake accounts.
“Thank you for your collective efforts to speak with your students about the importance of showing respect and kindness to others in all aspects of their lives, and for reporting inappropriate behavior so that we can work together to resolve these issues. issues,” the email continued. “Together, we can preserve the long-standing community and district pride that resonates throughout the Forney family.”
