ATPE News is the official publication of the Association of Texas Professional Educators, the largest educator association in Texas. The magazine addresses the most important issues affecting public education in the state. Learn more at ATPE.org.
Issue link: https://atpe.epubxp.com/i/435977
22 | atpe.org atpe news Victori a S an Antonio Au stin T yler D a ll a s W itchit a F a ll s Hou st o n 1 10 3 2 4 6 7 8 9 5 C arthage, Texas, is situated in the heart of the northeast Texas Piney Woods. It's a rural community where kids still grow up camping, fshing, and hunting, and it's not unusual for boys and girls to learn to shoot even while they're still learning their ABCs. So perhaps it was only natural that Carthage would become one of a growing number of Texas schools allowing staf members to carry concealed handguns on campus. School shootings in the United States date back to the 1700s, but over the past two decades, the shootings have become decidedly more deadly. Each shooting inspires a new round of gun-control debates across the country, but some, such as the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut, have galvanized communities to take action. Eveyln Wedgeworth is a frst-grade teacher at Carthage Primary School, one of six Carthage campuses. "After the Sandy Hook massacre, our community started to really talk about how to keep our kids safe," she says. "The teachers responded to a questionnaire asking if we'd be open to guns in the schools, our school board discussed it in meetings. The public was open to the idea." Seven years ago, the small community of Harrold, in North Texas, was the frst Texas district to arm personnel. It did so under the existing Texas Penal Code ยง46.03(a)(1), dubbed the "Guardian Plan," which allows school districts to designate employees to carry handguns. In a legal opinion issued by the Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety, Chairman Joe Pickett stated that Texas laws allowed educational institutions to grant written exceptions to a state law that bans guns on school premises and in buildings where school-sponsored events are held "as long as the requirements are included in written regulations." The Guardian Plan gives school boards broad discretion, and a total of 10 districts have adopted the plan. Other schools are now considering a new alternative known as the "School Marshal Plan." HB 1009, or the Protection of Texas Children Act, was signed into law in June 2013 and creates a new category of certifed peace ofcer called a "school marshal." However, the requirements are much more restrictive than the Guardian Plan. The School Marshal Plan only allows one marshal per 400 students, and additionally requires 80 hours of situational instruction, psychological exams, and in some instances that the handgun be kept in a locked and secured safe. Because of the greater fexibility of the Guardian Plan, Chairman Pickett anticipates more districts will opt for the Guardian Plan over the Marshal Plan, but he also noted that there is nothing that prohibits school districts from adopting both plans. This past fall, Carthage ISD authorized selected staf members to carry frearms on all campuses under the Guardian Plan. "There are just a few people who carry," says Wedgeworth, "and we don't know who they are. They've been through training and we want our kids to feel that we'll do whatever it takes to protect them. I'm glad there are people who are willing to step up and do that." Most parents agree. "I haven't heard anyone who's opposed to it," says Polly Maines, whose daughter, Kacey, is a senior at Carthage High School this year. "I feel that the kids are a lot safer having someone armed School districts in Texas that have adopted the Guardian Plan 1. Cayuga ISD 2. Carthage ISD 3. Central Heights ISD 4. Ganado ISD 5. Harrold ISD 6. Huntington ISD 7. Louise ISD 8. Union Grove ISD 9. Van ISD 10. Westwood ISD Victori a S an Antonio Au stin T yler D a ll a s W itchit a F a ll s Ho u st o n 1 10 3 2 4 6 7 8 9 5 continued on page 40