Arkansas school district arming teachers, staff

A small Arkansas school district is arming and training 20 volunteer teachers and staff with handguns for fall classes to become the first in the state to make use of a little-known state law that allows licensed, armed security guards on campus.

David Hopkins, superintendent of schools in Clarksville, says the move is in response to last year’s tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut that left 20 students and six staff members dead.

“We lock the door, and we hide and hope for the best. Well, that’s not a plan,” he tells KARK-TV.

Under the new program, 20 volunteers have undergone 53 hours of training in time for fall classes and will be armed with 9mm handguns.

“We’re not just talking about passing out guns to whoever. We’re putting people through some very rigorous training,” Hopkins says.

Participants in the program are given a one-time $1,100 stipend to purchase a handgun and holster. Hopkins says the district is paying about $50,000 for ammunition and for training at a private training facility.

The Associated Press reports that no Arkansas school district had ever used the law to arm teachers on the job, although the state Department of Education says the Lake Hamilton School District in Garland County has for years kept several guns locked up in case of emergency.

The AP’s Andrew DeMillo quotes Donna Morey, former president of the Arkansas Education Association, as calling the idea of arming teachers awful. The risk of a student accidentally getting shot or obtaining a gun outweighs any benefits, she says.

The district will post signs at each school about the armed guards, but the identities of faculty and staff carrying weapons will be kept secret, Hopkins says.

The school will be discreet in carrying out the program.

“They’re not gonna be in a uniform, and they’re not gonna be wagging their gun on their side,” Hopkins says.