by Richmond Dad Jeb Hoge
In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook massacre, I imagine lots of parents like me descended into a giant pit of “What if?” questions. It’s
terrible to consider, but it’s human nature…we always wonder what we would do (or what we would want others to do) in a similar circumstance. We try to get a clear picture of what happened there, we try to remember everything we can about our own surroundings, and we ask ourselves, “How would I react? How would I want my school to react?”
Honestly, I can’t understand why schools would still use this “shelter in place and hide quietly” approach. It doesn’t do anything to impede an attacker’s progress. It doesn’t make life any harder for the attacker. All it does is make the environment very quiet, which is the last thing you want if you’re trying to avoid contact because any sound then attracts attention. Why not trip the fire alarms? For that matter, set off the sprinklers if possible. Cut power to the building. Make the simple act of walking the hallways disorienting and uncomfortable, and move the kids out and away from the school, fast.
We also can do better than leaving the teachers and staff to be human shields for the kids. I’m not advocating arming teachers with guns (more on that later), but there are alternative options that have to be presented. Recently, a group in Virginia led the charge to have EpiPens provided in all VA schools to save the lives of kids suffering allergic reactions. These are secured from kids’ hands yet quickly available to be used on a moment’s notice when a life is at stake. We should do the same with CS/pepper chemical spray like police use for non-lethal intervention.
If not that, then at least provide teachers with insight and training (and training is the key) on how to make use of common school implements for protection. Stab or slash with a pair of scissors. Empty a fire extinguisher at the attacker. Throw a garbage can. Smack the attacker with an opened stapler . . .any of these works better than standing there with empty hands and no idea what to do, and all of these techniques can be trained.
“But we’re teachers! We’re here to educate!” It pains me to say it, but the time for that objection has passed. You’re not doctors, but you learn CPR. You’re not firefighters, but you practice fire drills. How many teachers have said “I would do anything for these kids”? Parents know what they mean by that, and now it’s time to ask just a little more.
“Hide in the bathroom and wait for help” is no longer sufficient. I want school systems to make a protective/defensive curriculum part of the teacher certification process, just as much as conflict resolution and first aid/CPR should be. I want to know that our schools have workshopped how to work as a TEAM in protecting our children, just like schools practice fire drills. No one knows a school’s layout like its teachers, administrators, and staff. No one knows where chokepoints or shortcuts are like you. With proper professional training, YOU CAN LEARN how to work with the resources you have, the staff you have, and the space you have to locate, outmaneuver, and even trap an assailant in your space, but you cannot do it without learning and practicing those skills.
I mentioned guns in schools before and I want to revisit that. I understand the concern over the idea of teachers being armed, and I know that a lot of it stems from fears relating to “not being safe” or “not knowing what to do.” I strongly believe that any person who carries a firearm should be well-trained and practice regularly, but that takes time, money, and intent to do. If you don’t have enough of any of those, then you shouldn’t be carrying a weapon. While nothing else allows, say, a 5’1” lightweight human to take down any assailant of any size like a firearm (and the training to use it), if you’re not committed to it, you shouldn’t have it. Having police officers in schools is an option that some districts implement, but it isn’t the best solution because trained officers can do much more within the community than stroll the halls of a school waiting for trouble that may never come.
If I had the ability to wave my hand and bark “Make it so,” however, I would have school systems work with police departments to “deputize” administrators. Redefine principal or assistant principal roles to include security and firearms training, with the goal being that upon certification, those roles become part-time law enforcement positions with duties and responsibilities being focused on the school and the safety of the children and staff. And yes, that includes being trained in carrying and using firearms, with the same emphasis on de-escalation and “use in last resort” that any police officer should have.
Don’t want to do that? Then the job’s not for you.
We want to call schools a safe place. We want to know that when we leave our children there, they’ve got the best of protection. It’s time for us to know that “the best of protection” includes better plans than “hide and keep quiet,” because all that does is provides a shooter the time and space to hunt. We can do better than that.
