Arming Teachers
"The vast majority of teachers want to be armed with textbooks and computers, not guns," said Kenneth S. Trump, President of National School Safety and Security Services, in response to the national discussion on arming teachers and school staff, and armed volunteers in schools.
Trump advises school districts against allowing teachers and school staff to be armed.
Trump says that while gun control and gun rights advocates typically seize on school proposals to arm teachers to further political agendas, his opposition to arming teachers and school staff focuses solely on implementation issues, not political statements and beliefs about rights to bear arms.
"School districts considering arming teachers and school staff with guns would take on significant responsibility and potential liabilities that I firmly believe are beyond the expertise, knowledge-base, experience, and professional capabilities of most school boards and administrators," Trump said. He added that school board members, superintendents, principals, teachers, school safety experts, and public safety officials he has talked with around the nation consistently do not believe that educators and school support staff should be armed.
Trump, a 25-year veteran school safety expert who has trained and consulted with school and public safety officials from all 50 states and Canada, noted that school districts setting policy to allow teachers and school staff to be armed with guns would take on an enormous amount of responsibility and potential liability.
Trump says allowing teachers and school staff to be armed begs a number of questions:
Does the school board have appropriate and adequate policies and procedures governing the carrying and use of firearms by teachers and school staff? What type of "use of force continuum" has the school district created for staff to use firearms? How does that stand up in comparison to such standards held for police officers and others
Trump advises school districts against allowing teachers and school staff to be armed.
Trump says that while gun control and gun rights advocates typically seize on school proposals to arm teachers to further political agendas, his opposition to arming teachers and school staff focuses solely on implementation issues, not political statements and beliefs about rights to bear arms.
"School districts considering arming teachers and school staff with guns would take on significant responsibility and potential liabilities that I firmly believe are beyond the expertise, knowledge-base, experience, and professional capabilities of most school boards and administrators," Trump said. He added that school board members, superintendents, principals, teachers, school safety experts, and public safety officials he has talked with around the nation consistently do not believe that educators and school support staff should be armed.
Trump, a 25-year veteran school safety expert who has trained and consulted with school and public safety officials from all 50 states and Canada, noted that school districts setting policy to allow teachers and school staff to be armed with guns would take on an enormous amount of responsibility and potential liability.
Trump says allowing teachers and school staff to be armed begs a number of questions:
Does the school board have appropriate and adequate policies and procedures governing the carrying and use of firearms by teachers and school staff? What type of "use of force continuum" has the school district created for staff to use firearms? How does that stand up in comparison to such standards held for police officers and others