The State College Area School District canceled school and all school-sponsored activities today after a threatening note was found at about 3:15 p.m. yesterday in a bathroom located on the second floor of the high school's South Building.

The note specifically threatened violence on Friday, April 20 -- the eighth anniversary of the school shootings at Columbine High School.

According to a press release, police are concerned because Friday coincides with Columbine shootings. They also cited the recent Virginia Tech shootings as another motivation to cancel school and related activities.

On Monday, a gunman killed 33 people, including himself, on Virginia Tech's campus.

On April 20, 1999, students Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris killed 12 students and a teacher before committing suicide at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo.

The note did not threaten specific individuals, but made general threats of violence, State College Police Chief Tom King said. He said he could not say more about the type of violence the note threatened because police were still investigating.

King said the fact that these kinds of threats don't often occur at the school, the timing of the note with the Columbine anniversary and Virginia Tech shootings, and the fact that the note was found late in the day were factors in the decision to close the school.

"Because the note was found so late in the school day, we haven't been able to determine the credibility of the threat at this point," King said. "We must err on the side of safety."

Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon said Penn State is not taking any extra measures despite recent events.

Penn State police officer Brian Bittner said the police would be "extremely vigilant, as always."

State College School District Superintendent Patricia Best said the decision to reopen the school Monday would be continually evaluated as the investigation continues. She said she expects the junior prom, which is planned for this weekend, to be unaffected because it's not being conducted at the school.