Polk County cancels school Friday amid TikTok challenge

POLK COUNTY, Ga. - There will be no school for students in Polk County this Friday after reports were made regarding "threatening social media posts."

Polk School District says it made the decision to cancel school "out of an abundance of caution." 

"We have turned all information over to our law enforcement agencies. Together, we can continue to partner to keep our schools safe," a statement from Polk Schools read in part.

District officials say high school students who were scheduled to take final exams Friday will not be required to make the exams up.

The district had previously released a statement in regard to a new TikTok challenge that has several school districts across the country taking heightened precautions.

More than 7,800 children are enrolled in the Polk School District.

NATIONAL TIKTOK CHALLENGE CAUSES SEVERAL SCHOOL DISTRICT TO TAKE HEIGHTENED PRECAUTION

It’s unclear where the TikTok school threat on Dec. 17 emerged, but the challenge suggests numerous school shootings will take place on December 17. 

TikTok has removed most of the challenges from its platform. Thursday afternoon, the social media platform released a statement on Twitter.

"We handle even rumored threats with utmost seriousness, which is why we're working with law enforcement to look into warnings about potential violence at schools even though we have not found evidence of such threats originating or spreading via TikTok," the company wrote.

ATLANTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS TAKE PRECAUTIONS AMID TIKTOK CHALLENGE

Authorities in cities across the country, including Atlanta have said they’ve received no evidence that the threats are credible, but school officials are taking heightened safety measures as a precaution.

Atlanta Public Schools put out a statement about the threat informing students and parents that they may see additional security and police presence in buildings.