Arizona Superintendent Tom Horn has sided with Republican lawmakers to urge schools statewide to add school resource officers to their staff, a key defense at a time when the country is reeling from the crisis. I said yes. unprecedented surge in a shooting incident.
“I don’t want to see someone break into a school and shoot people because there’s no one there to protect the students and staff.” At a press conference, he announced the results of a poll that showed parent support for SROs in schools.
The Arizona Department of Education asked 614 parents for a survey. The vast majority are from Maricopa County, and 80 percent were found to approve setting up her SRO on public school grounds. According to Horn, the consensus indicates that parents want a closer relationship between law enforcement officers and schools.
“The biggest tragedy that can happen in our state is a madman breaking into a school and killing 20 children,” he said. 2012 Sandy Hook School shooting“If a parent found out that a school might have a school resource officer to protect their child, I can imagine how they would feel about it if they didn’t.” .”
The poll is part of Horn’s ongoing push to strengthen the ranks of the Arizona SRO and was conducted in response to the Phoenix Union High School District’s recent review. 2020 decision not to renew SRO contractsThe school district chose not to renew the agreement, partly due to the switch to distance learning and the national focus on racial inequality in law enforcement.
Its steering committee is Set to discuss roles subject to change Targeting district school SROs on April 13.
To encourage schools to hire SROs, Horne’s administration launched a grant program that provides financial assistance for schools to do so. school safety programThe grant would also fund the employment of juvenile probation officers, social workers and school counselors, but after Horn warned he Refuse to recommend a school counselor to a state board The program was criticized for not having an SRO on staff at the school.
At a press conference, he doubled down on that claim, saying he recognizes the importance of school counselors as students across the country. Address mental health issuesarmed officers come first.
“I think kids should have someone to talk to when they have emotional problems,” he said. “Every school has a school resource officer and a counselor or social worker.” We hope that this will happen, but our number one priority is to save the lives of our students.”
MPs Fight for SRO, School Safety Act
Senate Speaker Warren Petersen has argued that law enforcement officers are more valuable than counselors in their ability to deal with imminent danger.
“If someone with armed forces enters the school, who will you protect?” he asked. “Do you want to stand behind a police officer, or do you want to stand behind a counselor?”
Petersen criticized Democrats for missing the point by advocating for more counselors when SROs are the way to protect children in Arizona.
“Republicans here in Congress want to make sure our children are protected,” he said.
House Majority Leader Leo Biacicucci agreed, blaming Democrats for voting against the Republican bill and calling the session advertised as increasing school and teacher preparedness for school shootings. introduced.
“(Democrats voted against) is a disturbing and really frustrating part for us here as Republicans,” Biacicucci said. “We are looking for a solution.”
Republicans of Lake Havasu City measurement
This year, we allocated $10 million for a safety pilot program that schools and teachers can choose from. The program includes lessons in threat assessment, firearms safety, and combat medicine. The bill was widely criticized by Democrats, who criticized it for overburdening teachers when it should focus on restricting access to guns.
Republican legislators also introduced and unanimously endorsed suggestion Require schools to teach courses on firearms safety to students. got a backlash From a gun violence advocate who noted similarities to the National Rifle Association issue. Specificationwhich was sent to the governor’s office Wednesday in favor of only Republicans, would decriminalize the carrying of firearms on school grounds by parents with concealed gun permits.
student reaction
High school student from Yuma, Michael Anthony Rodriguez, appeared on the Capitol with social justice group Rural Arizona Action to express his disapproval of promoting more SROs. Schools, especially in rural communities like his, need more overall funding, and it would be disingenuous to concentrate resources on such a small part of the school environment.
“It feels like you’re trying to put bandaid on the situation instead of actually fixing the underlying problem,” he said.
At Rodriguez’s school, Santa Cruz Valley High School, the bathrooms are in disrepair, and some stalls don’t even have doors. Also, teachers are retiring for low pay, including a popular teacher who used to attend from Tucson. Journey.
“I feel like our community has always been poor,” he said. “And our schools are underfunded, so our children don’t have the opportunity.”
Samual Kahrs noted that the majority of school shooters got their firearms through family members and said adding more guns to school campuses through SROs would not help. .as much as possible 74% of school shooters use guns
Obtained from parents, family and friends. Also, teens’ access to firearms has surged since the pandemic, and as a result of increased gun sales, one-third of his households with children under the age of 18 own at least one of his guns. there is
The 17-year-old is often concerned about safety, as many of his classmates share that their families keep guns at home or have them in their cars. State Law
Unloaded guns may be stored in a locked vehicle unless they are visible when visiting a school campus. Lawmakers should shift their focus to addressing gun safety at home, where problems often arise first, Kahrs said.
“We shouldn’t have more guns in schools,” Kahrs said. “Legislators need to stop resource officers from spending what little education money we have, not just through safety checks and laws requiring guns, but access to these weapons of mass destruction. We need to spend time creating policies that restrict people’s safes.
a Democrat Proposal
Requiring gun owners to keep ammunition, firearms, or both in storage containers when not carrying them was rejected by the Republican majority, who refused to hear.
