BATON ROUGE — The FBI is investigating threats sent to students at Southern University and other Historically Black Colleges and Universities on Thursday. 

Southern University placed its campus on lockdown Thursday after receiving a potential threat to campus security, canceling classes and campus activities through the weekend, even after the lockdown was lifted.

The lockdown for the entire Baton Rouge landmass, which also includes Southern University Law Center, Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center, and Southern University Laboratory School, was issued around 11 a.m.

By 12:45 p.m., the lockdown was lifted.

"Students residing off campus and all non-essential employees should evacuate campus. Accommodations will be made for students who reside on campus and instructions will be communicated directly to them," the university said.

Five other HBCUs across the country — Clark Atlanta University, Bethune-Cookman University, Hampton University, Alabama State University and Virginia State University — also received threats to their campuses. Spellman College also had its campus shelter in place out of an abundance of caution due to its proximity to Clark Atlanta.

The FBI sent the following statement Thursday afternoon:

The FBI is aware of hoax threat calls to a number of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The FBI takes these threats very seriously because it puts innocent people at risk. While we have no information to indicate a credible threat, we will continue to work with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to gather, share, and act upon threat information as it comes to our attention. We urge the public to remain vigilant, and report any and all suspicious activity and/or individuals to law enforcement immediately.