Molly B. Posted October 26, 2019 at 02:59 PM Share Posted October 26, 2019 at 02:59 PM The Student Safety and Protection Resolution will once again be presented for approval at the Illinois Association of School Boards at their annual conference in November. Please contact your local school board and encourage them to support the resolution! Contact your local school board members and board president to urge them to support this important resolution. Our children's lives may depend on it someday. School boards should be allowed to decide if they need/want TRAINED and armed personnel as a part of their security plan. 1. Student Safety Submitted by: Mercer County SD 404BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Illinois Association of School Boards shall support and advocate for legislation which provides local school boards the option of developing Student Safety and Protection Plans which allow voluntary district employees, in any capacity, the ability to carry a concealed firearm on district property, provided the employee has a valid Illinois FOID card, holds a certified Illinois Concealed Carry License, has completed all additional trainings and certifications set forth by the respective school board, one of which MUST include yearly certified Active Shooter Training. Only district employees who fulfill all requirements listed and receive Superintendent and Board approval would be eligible as an active and armed part of the Student Safety and Protection Plan. District Rationale: The safety and protection of our students and school staff is one of the top priorities in each district. School Boards are always asking what more they can do to prevent or stop a tragedy from occurring in their schools. One proposal is to allow local school districts the option to have voluntary armed staff in their buildings. Ideal school security plans include SROs (school resource officers) present at each building students attend. However, some schools are unable to employ full-time security due to a lack of financial resources. SROs are often only on-site for a few hours per day and one officer at a time. A more recent problem districts are running into is the lack of law enforcement staff in their local city police and county sheriff ’s departments. In our district, we could allocate funds to hire a full-time SRO in each of our five buildings, but it would do no good, because there aren’t enough officers or deputies on staff in our community to fill those positions. Another problem, mainly found in rural areas, is the distance school buildings are from local law enforcement teams. Mercer County School District has five buildings in three towns. Our 378 square miles makes us the fifth largest school district in Illinois in terms of area. Three buildings sit in a town with its own police force; it is also a county seat and home of the Sheriff ’s Department. Our fourth building is in another town, 10 minutes away. Our fifth building, an elementary school, is in a town 21 minutes away. That town has one officer who is backed up by the sheriff ’s department with an approximate 20-minute response time. We are certain that our district is not in the worst response time situation in Illinois. The most misunderstood part of this topic is that this resolution is about local control, one of IASB’s top priorities. The resolution, if adopted, would not compel or require any school district or school board to develop or implement an armed staff plan. Our state is not homogenous north to south, east to west. Our communities and districts differ greatly. Some communities are perfectly comfortable with having their teachers and school staff trained and armed so they can protect people in their buildings. Other communities are adamantly opposed to the idea. That is okay. The districts in our state should be allowed to determine what is best for them, rather than leaving the determination to those in Springfield who do not know or understand communities outside their own. Illinois state law currently does not allow for local control of school boards in determining if they want to include an option for trained and armed staff to protect their students and fellow staff members in an emergency situation until law enforcement arrives. Several states, including Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky, have developed programs to train and approve concealed carry school staff and allow districts to decide what is best for their communities. Resolutions Committee Rationale: Similar to a previous proposal by the submitting district, this resolution calls for the Association to support and advocate for local options for schools, including for armed district personnel subject to training, background checks, licensure; and collaborative superintendent and board approval. The Firearm Concealed Carry Act (PA 98-63), effective July 9, 2013, prohibited any concealed carry in “any building, real property, and parking area under the control of a public or private elementary or secondary school.” School districts are also governed by the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990, which makes it unlawful for any unauthorized individual to possess a firearm in a school zone. Exceptions include if an individual possessing a firearm is licensed to do so by the state in which the school zone is located. Individuals in Illinois would not have violated the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act if they carried a concealed weapon in a school zone, if State law had not prohibited it. Similar to the debate in 2018, Resolutions Committee discussions largely centered on the acknowledgement that many rural school districts do not have the fast response times of emergency responders in urban and suburban areas. Because of geography, resources, and other limitations, response times to emergencies in some rural districts can be substantial.The committee discussed concerns about having firearms in schools and finding assurances that the proper training was in place. The lag in response times in some rural areas and the concept that this is solely the decision of the local school district were important facts for many committee members. The Resolutions Committee RECOMMENDS DO ADOPT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Molly B. Posted October 26, 2019 at 03:13 PM Author Share Posted October 26, 2019 at 03:13 PM Reply here when you have contacted your school board! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Molly B. Posted October 26, 2019 at 03:14 PM Author Share Posted October 26, 2019 at 03:14 PM I have contacted all the school boards in my county, plus some friendlies in other counties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captdan Posted October 26, 2019 at 07:57 PM Share Posted October 26, 2019 at 07:57 PM Forwarded to relevant parties in our county. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cybermgk Posted October 28, 2019 at 05:51 PM Share Posted October 28, 2019 at 05:51 PM Done to CCSD 46 and HS District 127 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Fife Posted October 29, 2019 at 07:25 PM Share Posted October 29, 2019 at 07:25 PM There are some oak park email addresses in this article https://mobile.oakpark.com/News/Articles/10-29-2019/Contact-your-local-school-board-members Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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