6600%, that is the increase in school shooting incidents from 1969 to 2024. The threat of school shootings is more real than ever. To think that “it won’t happen here” is naive and what leads to tragedies. All schools should have a trained and armed teacher at the ready if a school shooter ever came knocking.
The Columbine school shooting occurred in 1999 and although it wasn’t the first school shooting it made the biggest impact on society. Since that day over 338,000 students have experienced some type of gun violence at school. In 2022 alone 43,000 students experienced gun violence and 43 of those people died. America is facing a gun violence crisis that many schools are unfortunately unprepared for.
According to the FBI, the average response time to a school shooting is three minutes. Another study by the New York Times found more than half of all school shootings ended before law enforcement could arrive. But why not have a teacher armed and on campus at all times in case of this? There would be no waiting for law enforcement; the response could occur instantly.
Having an armed teacher on campus works. A study conducted by the Department of Homeland Security said that having somebody armed and ready can reduce the number of total casualties by up to 70%, or at the very least slow down and scare the attacker.
One of the biggest arguments against arming a teacher on school grounds is that the funding going towards providing the training and resources could be better spent on mental health services. Just trying to prevent school shootings by reaching out to kids is sometimes not enough and should not be our last line of defense. Not to mention, just under half of all school shootings are committed by adults, schools’s reach can only go so far.
What it all comes down to is are you willing to have a gun on school grounds to save lives? The difference in seconds in a school shooting can make a major impact. Having a few people who feel uncomfortable should not overrule having a gun in the building because how uncomfortable will you be when you have to bring a book to a gunfight?
