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NORTH ATTLEBORO - North Attleboro High School students were dismissed about two hours early Wednesday when a threatening message was discovered written inside the school building, then later a 12-year-old North Attleboro Middle School student was arrested in what police say may have been a copycat crime at that school.

Superintendent Rick Smith made the decision to dismiss high school students at 11:40 a.m. - during their fifth period classes- after what he described as a "vague threat" was discovered in the building.

Smith declined to give any specifics about the threat, citing an ongoing police investigation, saying only that the wording of the message could be interpreted in several different ways.

"The writing could be read in multiple ways - one of them non-threatening, and in another way it could have been read as a bomb threat," he said.

Smith said that school will be in session as usual today but students would be greeted by changes in operating procedures. Students will be asked to leave their backpacks at home unless the bags are made of a clear see-through material, and all students will be required to enter through the front door only.

Upon discovery of the threat Wednesday, police were contacted as outlined in the school district's protocol and the decision was made to dismiss school.

Once the building was empty, police conducted a search, which included assistance from school staff, state police and a bomb sniffing dog. Nothing was found.

"There was a message written on an interior wall that could be interpreted as a bomb threat," Police Chief Michael Gould Sr said. "We conducted a search of the building with assistance from state police and school staff and it proved negative."

Gould said the investigation is ongoing and he said several students have been asked to the police station for interviews.

"They are not suspects. We're talking to these students because they may have information that will helpful to the investigation," he said.

A few hours after the high school incident, a note containing a bomb threat was found in a bathroom at North Attleboro Middle School. The note was found about 2:15 p.m., just as the school was beginning its normal dismissal, so no evacuation was necessary.

After a police investigation, a 12-year-old middle school student was arrested and charged with making the threat. The juvenile is charged with willfully communicating a threat that causes the evacuation or serious disruption of a school.

The student allegedly told police that he had heard that the high school had been dismissed as the result of a threatening message, and that he wrote the note hoping classes would be canceled at the middle school as well.

Smith said middle school students will be informed of both the situation and the consequences for the student. "Middle school students will be advised about what has happened as a result of the serious mistake made by this student," Smith said. "The police have advised me that he will be prosecuted for this felony. The school department will wait to see how this proceeds before applying all available disciplinary action."

At the high school, Gould said the early dismissal of students went well, adding, "We had exceptional cooperation from students, the administration and staff."

Parents of students were notified of the early dismissal with a recorded message left by the school department's reverse-911 telephone system, known as Connect-Ed.

Students learned they would be leaving the building early when Principal Robert Gay made an announcement asking everyone to leave the building at the sound of the bell.

After they were dismissed from school, students lined up in the athletic field, waiting for buses. Students were buzzing about the incident as they called friends and parents on their cell phones, but said they knew little about the incident.

"I heard there was something written on the wall, like a bomb threat, so they let us out," said Brini Varetimos, a sophomore at the school. "They really didn't say very much."

Lindsey Patruno, a sophomore agreed, saying, "They said they would call us later to let us know if there will be school tomorrow."

Parents were notified of all changes to school procedures through a Connect-Ed call made Wednesday night.

In addition, the high school and middle school complex will be under 24-hour surveillance for the foreseeable future, through both a police presence at the high school and through the school's video camera system.

The police investigation into the high school incident is still active.

"This is among the most serious offenses any student can commit. It is so disruptive to the educational process and we have to do everything we can to deter it," Smith said. "I am pleased with the efforts of the North Attleboro Police Department in this matter - it is very typical of the great way they handle school issues."

It is not the first time that North Attleboro High School has had threatening messages scrawled on walls. In May 2007, the school was locked down- a procedure during which doors are locked, blinds are closed and students are told to remain silent - after a series of threatening messages were found at the school.

Smith said that Wednesday's message was not similar to the threats found in 2007.