As of Tuesday, Oct. 1, some teachers can enter Florida classrooms armed with guns, as reported by CBS Miami. This change went into effect on the second anniversary of the Las Vegas massacre, where 58 people were murdered, making the entire gun reform discussion feel especially poignant.
Disturbingly, Florida is actually one of eight states, including Utah, Texas, and Arkansas, that allows some teachers and coaches to carry guns in schools. Donald Trump, by the way, floated the idea that schools whose teachers complete gun training should receive bonuses.
As a basis, the Guardian Program allows some school staff, including coaches and hired guards, to carry guns on school grounds after they pass a psychological exam, background check, and at least 140 hours of range training. But Florida has recently brought teachers into the mix.
In Florida, legislators voted to extend the Guardian Program to include teachers, provided the school district agrees. As of now, Orlando and Miami-Dade, which are two of the biggest school districts in the state, have declined to participate in the program. Instead, those districts use armed police officers.
Why the vote to extend the Guardian Program? The vote happened after the Parkland massacre in February 2018, when 17 people were shot and killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill in May. This academic year is the first time it’s gone into effect.
Interestingly, CBS News reports the teachers who are allowed to carry guns are supposed to remain anonymous for safety reasons. So there are no exact numbers publicly available on who is carrying and who isn’t. In Florida, the teachers participating in this program carry concealed handguns. Florida’s Department of Education reports that, as of now, 39 out of 67 Florida counties opted into the program.
Mind you, there are numerous other responses to mass shootings. Bans on assault weapons. Responsible gun ownership programs. Free mental health support for students and faculty. Federal gun buyback programs. Much stricter background checks. Corporate accountability.
In short: There are countless valid, reasonable solutions that do not involve arming more people—and especially not the people trying to teach geometry.
“Teachers should not be burdened whether they think they want to or not with the responsibility of worrying about carrying a firearm,” Debbi Hixon, whose husband, Chris, was the school’s athletic director at the time he was shot and killed at Parkland, stated.
There’s also the valid question of whether or not teachers are adequately prepared or trained. Teachers are already overworked and underpaid. Now they have to worry about correctly handling a weapon, too? With so many responsibilities on their plates, it seems close to reckless to encourage teachers to add a weapon, too.
And, frankly, accidents do happen. But accidents with a gun can be deadly.
For example, in 2014, a Utah elementary school teacher accidentally fired her gun when she was trying to use the restroom. In her attempt to holster the gun, it went off. Luckily, it struck the toilet. But of course, this accident is a chilling reminder that a gun going off in a school can lead to a dead child, honest mistake or not.
Gun trauma, especially in a school setting, is something to consider. How many students (if not other faculty) will be increasingly uneasy, distrustful, or otherwise upset by the presence of more, not less, guns? Not to mention the risk of abuse of power or excessive force, something that students of color are particularly at risk of experiencing as it is.