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Texas students pack bookbags; teachers pack heat
Gun_Toting_Teachers
By ANGELA K. BROWN
Associated Press Writer
Posted: Aug. 25 6:31 p.m.
Updated: Aug. 25 7:27 p.m.
HARROLD, Texas - Along with normal first-day jitters and excitement,
students in this tiny district started school Monday wondering which
teachers might be toting firearms.
"It was kind of awkward knowing that some teachers were carrying guns," said
Adam Lira, 17, a senior. "I don't feel like they should be, 'cause we
already have locked doors and cameras. But I didn't feel threatened by it."
Several parents said they had no idea that employees of the K-12 school were
allowed to carry concealed guns on campus until recent publicity about the
school board's policy, approved quietly last fall. They said they were upset
that the rural community near the Oklahoma border had not been able to give
input.
While some parents said they felt their children were safer, others opposed
the plan, which appears to be the first of its kind nationwide.
"As far as I'm concerned, teachers were trained to educate my children - not
carry a gun. Even police officers need years of training in hostage
situations," said Traci McKay, whose three children are among the 110
students in the red-brick Harrold school. "I don't want my child looking
over her shoulder wondering who's carrying a gun."
But Harrold Superintendent David Thweatt said the board approved the policy
in an October open meeting that had been publicized. He said the decision
was made after nearly two years of researching the best school security
options at the school, which is just off a busy highway and 30 minutes away
from the sheriff's office.
"When you outlaw guns in a certain area, the only people who follow that are
law-abiding citizens, and everybody else ignores it," Thweatt said.
The superintendent said some of the school's 50 employees are carrying
weapons, but he wouldn't say how many. When pressed further, he first said
that revealing that number might jeopardize school security. He then added
that he considered it to be personnel information and not a matter of public
record.
Each employee who wants to carry a weapon first must be approved by the
board based on his or her personality and reaction to a crisis, Thweatt
said. In addition to training required for a state concealed weapons
license, they also must be trained to handle crisis intervention and hostage
situations.
State education officials said they did not know of any other Texas schools
allowing teachers to carry guns. National security experts and the Brady
Center to Prevent Gun Violence said they did not know of other U.S. schools
with such a policy.
School districts in some states, including Florida and Arizona, have closed
loopholes that allowed guns on K-12 campuses. Utah allows concealed weapons
at public universities but not at primary or secondary schools.
Thweatt said the board took extra precautions, such as requiring employees
to use bullets that will minimize the risk of ricochet, similar to those
used by air marshals on planes.
"I can lead them from a fire, tornado and toxic spill; we have plans in
place for that. I cannot lead them from an active shooter," Thweatt said.
"There are people who are going to think this is extreme, but it's easy to
defend."
Judy Priz, who has a third-grade daughter, said that "everyone I've talked
to thinks it's great." She said she trusts the teachers with her child's
life.
"Look how long it takes the police or anybody else to get here," she told
the Fort Worth Star-Telegram for a story in its Monday online edition. "If
someone wants to come here and harm someone, at least we would have sort of
defense."
Gov. Rick Perry has said he supports the policy because "there's a lot of
incidents where that would have saved a number of lives."
The Brady Center has spoken out against the plan, saying it may not comply
with Texas law, which bans firearms at schools unless carriers have given
written permission. If the school board authorizes an employee to carry a
gun, then that person must be a peace officer, according to the center.
"It's unfair of us to ask teachers to take on the additional job of being
police officers," said Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign.
Cheryl Mehl, an attorney for the Harrold school district, said the statute
the Brady Center cites applies only to security guards, not teachers and
other employees. The district has no security guards.

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