Concealed-carry for teachers dominates first ever school safety meeting in Troy

The first ever meeting of Troy Public Schools’ safety committee saw a large turnout to discuss a recent proposal by a community member to allow teachers to carry concealed weapons.

At the start of the meeting, Troy Superintendent Jacob Francom said that the committee has not been completely formed yet, and they are still taking names. Hy Boltz, the school board’s vice chairman, and Janis Fontaine were the only board members attending in their capacity as board members, Francom said later by email.

Francom opened the meeting with a news report about a school in Shelbyville, Indiana that has implemented a number of safety measures, including panic alarms, bullet-resistant doors and cannons that shoot a blanket of smoke from the ceiling to reduce visibility. The system was estimated to cost around $400,000.

Francom then read an email from resident Fran McCully, who could not attend, offering support for armed teachers on school grounds. The email noted the expectation of a process for teachers to apply for carrying.

Francom said that there is already a process in place if a teacher wishes to be armed on school grounds. There is no requirement for psychological evaluations or training detailed in the policy, but Francom said he expected that the board would look at those things if a request was made.

Fontaine said that in considering options for increasing school security, Troy can look at what steps other schools have taken. Yet she said every school is unique.

“No one size fits all, but the more information we get from the community — the pros, the cons, good suggestions — they will all be considered,” Fontaine said.

Voices in opposition

Parent Shawna Kelsey presented the board with a petition signed by about 100 people opposed to school staff being armed on school grounds.

“It’s really great that so many people in the community ... are willing to step up and be here and share ideas,” she said. “We may not agree on those ideas, but I think we agree on the outcome of having a safer school.”

Kelsey said teachers carrying guns would make her uncomfortable having her children in the school.

Tessa Jones, a former teacher, said she couldn’t imagine having to carry any weapon as a teacher. She said she has guns, but is concerned about accidents if teachers were armed. Instead, she urged paying more attention to the emotional needs of students.

Current teacher Rachel Rue said she thought the school should start with measures such as a more secure door system.

“I’ve been in so many schools where you have to buzz in, and they see you in the office, and they let you in,” she said. “Anyone can walk into our school right now. Anyone at any time.”

Francom said that Troy Schools is currently getting quotes for improvements to external security, as well as for panic alarms for the classrooms.

How to prepare

One attendee asked about the effectiveness of security measures in other schools. Though Fontaine and Boltz acknowledged that schools around the country have been taking steps since at least the 1990s, and some protections were in place during the recent Florida shooting, they did not know how effective different measures might be.

A 2013 report from the National Research Council, commissioned by President Barack Obama after the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting, sought to identify how to reduce firearm related violence.

The report states, “Although communities, schools, and campuses have developed myriad safety plans, there is very little information available about their effectiveness.”

In part, that lack of information returns to frequency of incidents. In the same report, the committee concluded that from 1983 to 2013 there were a total of 78 mass shootings in the United States.

“Mass shootings are a highly visible and moving tragedy, but represent only a small fraction of total firearm-related violence,” the report states. “Although it may seem that protection against such an event is nearly impossible, proactive law enforcement activities, including community policing and intelligence-led policing, may help prevent some mass shootings.”

Corey Meyer, whose wife Jennifer Meyer first circulated a petition to allow teachers to conceal carry, spoke about the March 20 incident in Maryland where a 17-year-old student shot two other students with a handgun before being stopped by school resource officer Blaine Gaskill.

Meyer said he did not feel that other safety measures were sufficient.

“The only thing that takes out an armed assailant is an armed good guy,” he said.

Meyer said he had spoken with teachers who did want to carry at school.

Troy High School counselor Kelly Palmer said that he was concerned, given current security procedures, over some staff being in the open and defenseless in case of an attack.

“The idea of literally using your body as a human shield to protect the lives of children is an incredibly noble thing, and it sounds awesome, but in that moment, to step up and do that — I cannot tell you what I would do,” he said. “And I don’t think anyone really could until they were faced with that moment.”

Palmer talked about the vulnerability he felt as the only person in a hallway during a simulated shooter training at the school. While he did not know if he would feel safer with a gun in his pocket, he said he wanted the school to look at its options.

“I am not totally opposed for trained individuals to be in the school armed,” he said. “I would prefer it not be a teacher. I would prefer that it be a member of the law enforcement community.”

Parent Haakon Karuzas said he feels bear or pepper spray could be more effective in a high-stress situation for someone who is not training on firearms all the time.

Francom noted later in the meeting that bear spray is not permitted on the school grounds, cautioning any teachers against bringing it to school without permission from the board.

Do you feel safe?

Palmer also spoke about a school survey to assess the impact of the February school shooting in Florida on students in Troy.

Most students knew about it, and said they were not terribly concerned about such an incident happening in Troy, he said.

Mark Roesler-Begalke, a board member who attended the meeting as a private citizen, said he felt any decision should be based on statistics and facts, not emotions.

He presented national statistics for violent crimes in schools, such as the decline from 1993 to 2010 from 59 out of every 1,000 students experiencing violent crime in schools to 14 out of 1,000.

He also said that — including accidental discharges and all other sources — in the 1992-1993 year the rate of students shot in a school was .553 per 1 million. In 2014-2015, that same figure was .15 per 1 million.

“That’s an incredible drop,” he said. “Schools are just about the safest place we have for kids in this country.”

Roesler-Begalke also cited Northeastern University criminology professor James Fox, who has been studying mass shootings for over three decades, and noted that mass shootings at K-12 schools since 1990 average no more than one per year.

However, since the shooting in Columbine, Colorado and with the onset of 24-hour news, the level of coverage that the public receives of such incidents has increased, he said.

Jennifer Meyer said she is concerned with a potential threat regardless of the probability.

“I don’t let (my kids) walk to school,” she said. “I drive them to school or my husband does. We do whatever we can to keep our kids safe.”

Community steps

Roesler-Begalke quoted statistics that indicate all school shooters had been male, and most were current students who had experienced or perceived a major loss, expressed suicidal tendencies or been bullied.

“It would say to me that maybe we need more counselors in the school, we need to think more about mental health issues, not more about putting guns in the school,” he said.

Sophomore Moxley Roesler-Begalke said he has seen bullying at the school, and even experienced it himself in previous years.

Community member Jesse Grossman said she would like to see more mental health resources in the schools for both staff and students.

“I’d just like to echo some of the comments that I’ve heard about really not forgetting about mental health and caring for each other, and understanding that school safety is a lot about keeping yourself safe as well, emotionally and physically,” she said.

Wendy Tunison, a paraprofessional with the school, said that identifying and helping children who need it requires a community-level effort.

“We are building relationships every day. We love those kids like our own,” she said of staff. “However, once those kids leave our doors, we need our community to embrace them and love them too.”