On the first day of school for the Mascenic Regional School District Thursday, the district was notified of a potential threat to the Mascenic Regional High School campus, including a “hit list,” that it states was created by a student two or three weeks ago during summer break.

A letter School Superintendent Chris Martin sent to Mascenic parents on Thursday stated the high school administration became aware of the threat that morning and contacted the New Ipswich Police Department. According to the letter, “the student was quickly identified and isolated from their peers.”

The student, who is a minor, is not being identified at this time, according to police.

The letter states that screenshots of text messages indicated a threat to the campus that included a “hit list,” but not a specific date or time the threat might be carried out.

“Families of students on the list have been notified. If you have not been contacted directly, you child was not on that list,” Martin stated. “We are working closely with the New Ipswich PD and remain diligent in our school safety efforts to ensure that all students are safe in school.”

Sgt. Wes Volheim of the New Ipswich Police Department said the student believed to have made the list is currently suspended, and said there was no immediate threat to the student body, school campus or town. He said the department has not ruled out criminal charges in addition to consequences at the school level, but no charges have yet been filed.

“We are looking at what is the best course of action, to keep everyone safe and move forward,” Volheim said. “Our primary concern is making sure everyone is safe, and now that there is no immediate threat, we can dive into the investigation.”

Martin wrote that the principle of “see something, say something,” resulted in mitigating this threat. Volheim urged the community to always immediately report anything of concern to school administration or authorities.

“It’s incredibly important,” Volheim said. “The earlier you have a concern and report it, the greater likelihood of ensuring everyone’s safety.”

Parents with additional questions or concerns may reach out directly to Martin at 603-291-2009.

Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172, Ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.