Officials with two Windham County school districts locked school doors ( yesterday / Monday ) because of safety concerns.
They were notified late last week that a person who had previously made threats involving school-age children might be returning to the area.
The threats were not specific, but the schools say they decided it was best to keep their doors locked today.
Ron Stahley is the superintendent of Windham Southeast Supervisory Union. He says many parents chose to keep their children out of school.
"Our attendance was pretty low," Stahle said. "Between 40 and 50 percent of the students were absent. And so I think parents had decided that they want to keep their kids home. We respect that decision but we hope they realize we’re keeping students’ safety in mind."
The districts involved serve Brattleboro and surrounding towns and the towns in the West River Valley.
Officials say they’ve become more sensitive to possible threats to children since last year’s shooting at a school in Newtown, Conn.