BY EMILY OSIECKI
GUEST WRITER
In response to the recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida, President Donald Trump is calling for legislation that would put guns in schools, specifically into the hands of teachers. The proposal would allow trained teachers to carry concealed weapons in schools.
The president’s proposal is similar to the program developed in Texas by state lawmakers that trains and arms principals, teachers, coaches, and other staff to become school marshals. In order to become a marshal, participating members undergo background checks and active-shooting training. Additionally, marshals are not to disclose their status to any students, faculty, or staff.
While this may seem like a good idea to some, I find there are several issues with this program and Trump’s proposal. I personally disagree that guns should be placed in schools as a source of protection. In response to Trump’s proposal, I think we should be addressing the following questions: How do we evaluate that a teacher is fit to carry a weapon? How do we fund such a program? And finally, how do we ensure that this is the safest way to protect our children?
The first issue is a question of mental health and stability. In other words, how do we determine that a teacher will act responsibly if given a weapon to protect his or her classroom? Understandably, lawmakers in support of this proposal want to evaluate teachers by having them undergo background checks.
However, this raises the question of how extensive will these background checks be? What will they be looking for? Past crimes? Acts of violence? What if the teacher suffers from a mental health disorder, but has not disclosed it to a mental health professional? There is no way to guarantee that a teacher will use the weapon sensibly. There is also no way to guarantee that the weapon will not end up in the wrong hands.
Second, what are the financial implications of this proposal? Where does President Trump expect the money to come from? School budgets? Public school budgets are difficult to expand because community members do not want to pay higher taxes. Often times, schools do not receive the funding they need to provide their faculty with the resources necessary to teach their students. In some cases, school officials are forced to cut music and language programs because they simply cannot afford to provide them as part of the curriculum.
When I was a student in elementary school, I remember my teachers reminding us to bring in our own pencils, erasers, and staples because they did not have budget to provide them for us. What other additional resources are schools going to have to give up in order to allow for teachers to carry weapons?
Finally, there are other beneficial ways to provide safety and security in schools. We could raise age restrictions we could get rid of bum-stocks, and we could even ban assault rifles. Unfortunately, these solutions are not supported by the National Rifle Association which provides funding to many pro-Second Amendment Republican lawmakers. Until these politicians are no longer beholden to the NRA, it is unlikely that we will see changes to gun control laws any time soon.
The proposal to put guns in schools has received opposition from students, teachers, parents, and politicians. Teachers have expressed to lawmakers that they do not feel confident carrying guns in schools. Politicians, such as Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington State, have responded to President Trump’s proposal by saying, “I’ve listened to the first-grade teachers that don’t want to be pistol packing first-grade teachers.” Additionally, we have students, such as the victims of the Parkland shooting, who have the courage to voice their opinions, to question lawmakers, and to demand change.
Teachers are employed to provide an education, not to provide protection and safety for the school. When they are given the added responsibility of carrying a conceal weapon, it could add unnecessary stress to both the teachers and their students. It could perpetuate fear within students, and could consequently discourage them from attending school. I suggest that we keep guns out of the hands of teachers and arm them with the resources that they need to educate their students instead.