Portland school officials say Lincoln Middle School administrators appropriately employed the district’s new protocol on handling threats this morning by securing the Stevens Avenue campus and consulting with police.

The administrators prevented people from entering or leaving the campus after a threatening note was found in a bathroom at 8:30 a.m., but did not have a full-scale lockdown, said Assistant Superintendent Jill Blackwood. Police evaluated the threat and determined there was no danger, allowing school officials to permit normal access to and from school to resume.

Blackwood said securing the campus is distinct from a lockdown because it does not require all classroom doors to be locked, shades to be pulled and students to remain quiet – a precaution that is reserved for intruders and other imminently dangerous situations.

Securing the campus is intended to be less disruptive to classes than a lockdown while still allowing authorities to assess the threat.