Jack Davis

Justin Doepker
Casey Emmons
Tristian Foster
Sam Sponseller
Mr. Gross
English 12 B (3)
May 13 2014

Guns in Schools
How would it feel to know a nearby school just had a mass murder-suicide? Would it be
better to have more protection on the school grounds? Or should it just be left in its unfortunate
vulnerable state? If teachers were allowed to carry guns for defensive purposes, they could
prevent intruders from doing any form of harm. Concealed weapons must be allowed to be
carried by educational staff members in schools. This would put less stress on law enforcement
agencies that are already stretched out across the state(s). Law enforcement can take time to
respond while teachers who would be inside the building(s) are properly trained and would
respond immediately to save students lives. Although some people may say the presence of guns
in a school environment would cause more problems than it would solve, if teachers were to
carry concealed weapons this could prevent or even stop harm to innocent students.

In the event of a school shooting, police response is often too late, and by the time they
arrive the damage is already done. If teachers were permitted to carry concealed weapons it
could reduce the response time and save students lives. This proves to be true in the incident that
occurred during the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting. The principal of the school, Dawn
Hochsprung, and a teacher lunged at the shooter in an attempt to stop him and lost their lives
(Sandy Hook Principal: Mother, Educator, Leader, Hero 1). If these educational figures were
allowed to possess a gun they could have defended themselves and potentially survived as well
as potentially saving students lives.
Police agencies are stretched thin due to government cutbacks, increase in crime, etc. If
teachers were permitted and trained to carry guns in schools this could reduce stress on
surrounding police agencies and reduce the amount of worrying that can be distracting to the
teachers, parents, children, and even the police officers themselves. Law enforcement can not
respond to every threat or call they get due to all the other calls that they receive on a regular day
basis. 19 states were researched and the total amount of calls to 911 was 173,958,226 calls with a
range from 197,000 calls to 89,605,140 calls in the states in 2011. It would be extremely
beneficial to allow trained staff members to carry and shoot a sidearm in a school district. This
way the police agencies could focus more on the other hundreds of thousands of calls that they
receive.
In Michigan, open carry (wearing a pistol that is not concealed) is legal. Open carry on
school grounds and in school buildings is also legal if user has a valid CPL. But is illegal for
anyone without a CPL to open carry in or on school grounds. Any person(s) walking into a
school with a gun ready at the hip could potentially be dangerous. Especially not knowing right
away if he/she has a concealed pistols license. Secondary precautions must be ready in the act of

a shooting. Michigans state law MCL 750.237a states that it is a 93-day misdemeanor for
possessing a weapon on school grounds. However the law does not apply to security personnel,
peace officers, or those who have permission from the schools administration; teachers and
other willing staff (6 facts about Michigans open carry 1).
Another reason that teachers carrying weapons is a smart idea is to look at the thought
process of criminals who would pose a threat upon schools. As of today the only way an
individual looking to harm school children can be stopped is with law enforcement. If guns were
present in schools the intruder would have to completely rethink whether their plan would work.
Plenty of schools do not have any sort of security systems, and in most cases this is inevitable
due to a lack of funding (School Security: Why Its So Hard to Keep Kids Safe 1). These armed
teachers would be the cheaper alternative form of security that most schools are in need of. The
chance of a criminal entering an educational facility knowing it contained armed personnel
would be slim to none. As soon as the killer would open fire they would be facing their own
death. It would be easy for any individual with a plan to cause damage to enter a school and
cause havoc. Knowing that weapons would be present would make any intruder think twice
about the mistake they had planned on making. Teachers armed with guns will give the whole
school a reputation to "stay away." If there's a madman out there, it's less likely he'll go to the
school that has armed teachers. This helps to prevent emergency situations (Should Teachers Be
Armed 1). Next, if teachers are armed they'll be more prepared if an emergency situation does
occur. The person(s) planning the attack would have no reason to even attempt a school shooting
with the idea of multiple trained staff members on school grounds. In lockdowns the students all
hide under desks in a corner which makes them an easy target and defenseless, but if the teachers

are armed the chances of survival are greater than their chance of survival praying that the
shooter doesnt come in the classroom and pick them all off one by one.
Anyone who is against the idea of armed educational figures may argue that teachers
should not be trusted with weapons. This is a reasonable statement, as many teachers would
prove to be quite unsafe with a firearm. These types of concerns can be put to rest by different
types of precautions such as training for each staff member. Plus not every teacher has to carry.
Only the selected and willing teachers would be permitted to carry a concealed weapon. There
are schools that already contain armed staff and have been functioning well. A private school in
Arkansas requires any staff willing to carry to have background checks, mental health
evaluations, and go through a minimum of ten hour training (Arkansas Schools Train Staff,
Teachers To Be Armed Guards 1). Most teachers have obtained their position due to their
trustworthy personality to begin with. After all, if law enforcement is trusted with their training,
teachers should be trusted with similar training as well.
Weapons must be allowed to be carried by educational staff members in schools across
the States. Having teachers carrying weapons would cause any criminal looking to cause harm to
children in school to think again as to whether it was worth it to open fire if they would be facing
their own death right after. Although 37.7% of mass shooters commit suicide after their crimes
(What-percentage-of) it would still cause them to highly consider the consequences. The reason
shooters commit suicide after the shootings is not because of mental illness, or anything of sorts.
Mental illness is the term for the most severe illnesses symptoms like hallucinations, delusions,
etc. Years of mental health studies show that only a fraction of mental diseased people show
signs of violence (Gun violence and mass shootings 1). What causes them to snap off is actually
guilt they feel after the rage is terminated and they comprehend what and who they killed

(Business-and-Insider). Again, the time it takes for a response to a questionable situation would
be cut significantly as any armed staff member could attend to it before law enforcement would
arrive (What percentage of mass shooters 1).
With teachers being tested and trained for capability to handle weapons regularly the
whole school grounds would much safer than all the school grounds that do not have any real
means of defence. Having weapons in the school systems would not cause them to be corrupt,
but would make for a far safer environment for the students, staff, the facilities, and many
innocent lives. Concealed weapons must be allowed to be carried by educational staff members
in schools. This could be the difference between life and death of an innocent child.

Works Cited
Day, Craig. "Arkansas Schools Train Teachers, Staff To Be Armed Guards." - NewsOn6.com.
WorldNow and KOTV, 4 Nov. 2013. Web. 19 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.newson6.com/story/23876223/arkansas-school-administrators-talk-arming-t
eachers-staff>.
"Gun Violence and Mass Shootings Myths, Facts and Solutions."Washington Post. The
Washington Post, n.d. Web. 13 May 2015.

Gridley@mlive.com, Gary Ridley |. "6 Facts about Michigan Open Carry Law and Guns in
Schools. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 May 2015.
"National Program Committee." Economics and Cognitive Science (1992): Vi. Web.
N.p., n.d. Web.
Rochman, Bonnie. "School Security: Why Its So Hard to Keep Kids Safe | TIME.com."Time.
Time, 18 Dec. 2012. Web. 19 Nov. 2014.
<http://healthland.time.com/2012/12/18/school-security-why-its-so-hard-to-keep-kids-saf
e/>.
Singley, Paul. "Sandy Hook Principal: Mother, Educator, Leader, Hero." Scarsdale, New
York Patch. Patch Media, 17 Dec. 2012. Web. 19 Nov. 2014.
<http://patch.com/new-york/scarsdale/sandy-hook-principal-mother-educator-leaderhero-24b4a88b>.
"Should Teachers Be Armed?" Should Teachers Be Armed? N.p., n.d. Web. 13 May
2015.
"What Percentage of Mass Shooters Commit Suicide." N.p., n.d. Web.
Sandy Hook Principal: Mother, Educator, Leader, Hero. Scarsdale, New York Patch.
N.p., 17
Dec. 2012. Web. 13 May 2015