Threats ahead of Trump official’s talk prompt Dallas Baptist U. to cancel speech, evacuate

HUD leader was slated to speak at a summit at the university on Thursday.

Dallas Baptist University on Thursday canceled classes and evacuated the campus as threats prompted the school to close ahead of a talk by U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner.

“Out of an abundance of caution, the University has made the decision to cancel classes for Thursday, January 22,” officials announced in a statement on social media.

Turner was a former Dallas Baptist University trustee and served as an associate pastor at a church in Plano prior to his nomination as HUD secretary, the Baptist Press reported.

Turner and Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson were slated to speak at a summit at the university on Thursday, the Dallas Morning News reported.

Campus spokeswoman Kim Soto told the Baptist Press that the university had been “made aware of several unverified threats involving the campus.”

“While there is no confirmed indication of immediate danger, university leadership is proactively assessing the situation and working closely with law enforcement officials to ensure the safety of our community,” she said.

Later Thursday, campus officials announced the all clear, adding classes would resume Friday.

“We are grateful to share that the Dallas Police Department and the FBI worked alongside our DBU Police Department to investigate the matter, and we can now issue an all-clear. There is no active or ongoing threat to our campus community,” the statement read.

Turner’s talk would have “focused on how faith-based organizations could help ‘vulnerable Americans achieve economic prosperity’ by investing in ‘Opportunity Zones,’ or economically distressed communities,” the Dallas Morning News reported.

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Jennifer Kabbany

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