Campus Alert Archive
NSU

First Wave: Norfolk State Gets the Call at the Same Hour as Six Other HBCUs

VAbomb threatemergency notificationmedium confidence
UnfoundedNo evidence of an actual threat was found. The institutional response is documented because the alert communication is identical to what would occur during a real incident.

Norfolk State University was among at least seven HBCUs that received bomb threats on Tuesday, January 4, 2022 — the first day of spring semester classes and the opening of what would become the largest coordinated wave of bomb threats against historically Black institutions in modern history. NSU issued its Spartan Alert email around 7:20 p.m. EST, telling the campus community of a bomb threat under investigation. The 'All Clear' came that night after NSU police and Norfolk PD swept campus. No devices were found at any of the seven HBCUs targeted that day.

Alerts
2
Response
min
Killed
—
Injured
—
Institution
Norfolk State University
Hbcu · VA
~5,800 studentsSpartan Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence · 1 verified verbatim

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Verified verbatimWAVY-TV Norfolk and 13News Now both quoted this Spartan Alert email verbatim in their January 4, 2022 coverage of the NSU bomb threat224 chars
The University has received a bomb threat and asks everyone on campus to shelter in place and stand by for further instructions. Several law enforcement agencies have been notified and are investigating the threat on campus.
Verbatim text quoted by WAVY-TV and 13News Now covering the January 4, 2022 NSU bomb threat; the Spartan Alert email was sent at approximately 7:20 PM EST
First day of NSU's spring semester — symbolic timing maximizing disruption on a return-to-campus day
One of at least seven HBCUs to receive a coordinated threat on January 4, 2022 — the wave that triggered the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force investigation
'Stand by for further instructions' deferred any action directive, relying on shelter-in-place as the holding posture while law enforcement assessed
ALL CLEAREmail
Approximate reconstruction226 chars
All clear. Norfolk State University Police, with assistance from the Norfolk Police Department, have completed a sweep of campus. No devices were found and no credible threat has been identified. Normal operations will resume.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed wording — verbatim all-clear text not published
13News Now reported NSU police gave the 'All Clear' signal after the bomb threat investigation
All-clear arrived the same evening — comparable to the multi-hour sweeps at Howard, NCCU, and Spelman the same day
No devices were ever found at any of the seven HBCUs threatened on January 4, 2022
Context

Background

Norfolk State University, founded in 1935 in Norfolk, Virginia, is one of the largest HBCUs in the country and a member of the MEAC athletic conference. The January 4, 2022 bomb threat wave marked the opening salvo of what would become a year-long campaign of racially motivated bomb threats against historically Black institutions. On that single day, at least seven HBCUs — Norfolk State, Howard, Xavier University of Louisiana, Prairie View A&M, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, North Carolina Central University, and Florida Memorial — received coordinated threats; some accounts also include Spelman College and Texas Southern. Norfolk State's threat came in late afternoon, with the Spartan Alert email going out at approximately 7:20 p.m. EST. The campus sweep, coordinated between NSU PD and Norfolk Police Department, produced no devices. The FBI's investigation would later identify six juveniles as persons of interest in the broader wave. Norfolk State would be targeted again on February 25, 2022, in the third major wave.
Analysis

Key Findings

January 4, 2022 was the first day of NSU's spring semester — the threat actor's choice maximized psychological disruption at a return-to-campus moment
NSU's 7:20 PM EST alert timing put the alert in students' inboxes during evening study hours — a different psychological window than the morning threats that followed on February 1
Spartan Alert (email) rather than SMS as the primary channel — reflects NSU's 2022 communications architecture before the system pivoted to SMS-first in later waves
Norfolk State was repeatedly targeted: the same campus received a second bomb threat on February 25, 2022, suggesting the threat actors maintained target lists
Outcome
All-clear issued the same evening after a campus sweep found no devices. No injuries. The threat was part of a coordinated wave that also targeted Howard, Xavier University of Louisiana, UAPB, Prairie View A&M, NCCU, Florida Memorial, Texas Southern, and Spelman College.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Police at Norfolk State University give 'All Clear' following bomb threat on campus
    13newsnow.com
  2. News
    Authorities investigating after Norfolk State, at least 6 other HBCUs receive bomb threats Tuesday
    wavy.com
  3. News
    All Clear At Norfolk State University Following Bomb Threat
    patch.com
  4. Source
    'Feds Need to be On the Clock': Howard University Among Seven HBCUs Targeted on Same Day with Bomb Threats
    atlantablackstar.com
Tags
bomb-threathbcunorfolk-statehbcu-bomb-wave-2022racially-motivatedfirst-wavecoordinated-threatUnfounded
Added May 2026Updated June 2026Via ingestion