School District Says “No” to Armed Guards

As colleges, universities, schools and districts get ready for the start of another school year; Iowa City School District made a major security-related decision. They decided not to do anything and keep School Resource Officers (SRO’s), armed guards or unarmed security of any kind out of their schools.
According to an article the District committee that made this recommendation was comprised of principals, teachers, students and parents. Seemingly absent from the committee was law enforcement and/or security professionals.

This decision is extremely unfortunate. I firmly believe the single most valuable school safety improvement that can be implemented is placing a School Resource Officer in a school. School Resource Officers are law enforcement professionals that have receive specialized training to help them thrive in a school setting. Their roll goes far beyond that of security and is a great example of community based policing.
Certainly armed security guards can have considerable training and are an asset to school safety; but they generally lack the same level of training as an SRO. However, if a school district is asking a security officer to protect students from a violent attack; such as Columbine or Virginia Tech, unarmed security really isn’t security at all. That is not meant as an insult to unarmed security officers. Even the bravest firefighter usually requires some tools to protect and rescue people from an inferno. Security is no different. If your job is to stop a school shooter, a weapon is a requirement.
Principals, teachers, students and parents, asking to have a School Resource Officer assigned to your school is not a sign of trouble. It is a commitment to safety.
Remember, always collaborate with your local response agencies on emergency planning issues.
Stay safe!
Brad
This post is provided by SafePlans (www.safeplans.com), an all-hazards preparedness solution including emergency plans, staff training, and detailed site mapping.

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