A Facebook post led to the Okeechobee School District allowing teachers to carry guns
One school district started a conversation on social media about teachers carrying guns in the classroom. Two weeks later, it adopted a policy allowing it.
According to ABC25 WPBF News, the Okeechobee County School Board unanimously voted on Wednesday to allow teachers to carry guns inside the classroom. This measure comes over a year after the district opted in to the Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program, which allows other school staff members to carry a weapon.
This doesn’t mean every single teacher in the county will be packing heat.
Although the program is voluntary, teachers will be subject to an application process that involves more than 140 hours of training, a psychological test and a drug test.
Only after this process will they be allowed to carry a concealed weapon in class.
The results of a recent district survey fueled the Guardian Program’s expansion. On July 10, the district asked community members via Facebook whether the program should include teachers.
WPBF reported that roughly 62 percent said yes.
The Guardian Program is a voluntary measure under the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, a law passed after the Parkland mass shooting requiring all Florida schools have an on-duty campus police officer.
While both Broward and Miami-Dade counties have chosen to opt in, the latter allows only charter schools to participate.
This story was originally published July 26, 2019 at 5:35 PM.
