No, armed guards won’t make schools safer

by Oliver Cockle

In the past twenty years the landscape of daily life at school has changed due to school shootings and it is something that the Utah Legislature is debating now. Currently they are working on passing a bill called HB84 that would put armed security guards in all schools. 

“The whole intent of this piece is to make sure that if somebody cites the threat in their Utah school, there’s any number of folks that are prepared to make sure that they aren’t able to hurt anybody,” co-sponsor Rep. Ryan Wilcox said.

This bill was clearly created with good intentions in mind with Governor Spencer Cox saying, “odds are that [a school shooting will happen here. And I’m probably going to have to be the one to stand in front of those parents and look them in the eye, it’s going to be devastating if I can’t in good faith say we tried to do something.” This makes it very clear that the government is just trying to do what is best for students and keep people safe.

However, this does not mean that by passing this bill the government is doing what is right. Putting armed guards into schools isn’t necessarily going to help. 

First of all, putting armed guards into schools doesn’t necessarily mean that it will help protect students. In fact, in schools across the country with armed guards in them right now there have only been a handful of times where armed guards have actually done anything, most of the time the guards just aren’t prepared for a shooting that day and aren’t able to prevent them fast enough. Just because we have someone in the school to protect us doesn’t mean that they will be able to.

For example, in Tennessee 84% of schools have armed guards in them and yet only seven other states have more shootings on school grounds than them. School shootings are just too unpredictable and armed guards may not be able to do anything about it. 

Second armed guards are going to have an effect on school life. In some ways this might help and will prevent things like bullying and doing illicit substances since there will be law enforcement there to stop it. This could help stop people who are having a difficult time doing something they shouldn’t because the bullying never happened.

However, the drawbacks to this far outweigh the pros.

First of all, the reason children shoot up schools goes far deeper than just bullying and helping stop that is not going to necessarily prevent a shooting. Also many of the students will be living in fear because there is an armed security guard. This could cause school to be a less friendly environment since students will be afraid to be themselves. Also guns can be scary things to kids and if it is just some newly trained person it will be even more frightening to everyone because something bad could happen.

Finally, there are much better ways to protect schools than putting more guns in them. Putting armed guards into schools will cost money and there are much better things to put money into.

For example, putting more money into counselors and other things that will make sure to watch out for students who are going through a rough time. This will help stop a problem before it ever occurs. Scaring kids doesn’t necessarily stop them from doing something but helping kids does.

We also could put money into helping alert schools if something is going to happen. If we have better alert systems, then again, we can stop a tragedy before it occurs.

Overall, putting more people with weapons into schools is not going to solve the issue. Instead, we need to make sure that school shootings don’t happen instead of just defending schools when they do.

Yes, armed guards will make schools safer in the short term

by Owen Prince

As our nation grapples with the extremely pressing issue of school shootings, the debate of which solution we should implement has gained prevalence. The difficult part is deciding which actions are appropriate and the most effective.

A new bill that has gained traction in Utah has its downsides, however, I believe that it would be an effective counter mechanism against school shootings in the short-term.

Utah’s State Republican Rep. Ryan Wilcox, also the chair of the Utah School Security Task Force, recently made a draft legislation of rules he believes we should implement in schools. This draft legislation is titled the “School Security Amendments.”

At the top of this list is a rule stating that every school, whether private or public, would need to have someone in the school who is licensed to carry a firearm. Wilcox has stated “trained armed security” who knows “every nook and cranny” of the school is the best form of protection in the event of a shooting. The worker referenced in this law would be known as the school guardian. They would complete at least 84 hours of training in firearms, first aid, de-escalation, etc.

The Utah committee voted to forward the bill for consideration in the upcoming 2024 Legislative session. However, there were some doubts about effectiveness which held the vote back from being unanimous. Some people don’t believe that more guns in schools will equate to safer students and teachers.

With Utah having some of the loosest gun laws in the country, some people believe we should start there and limit guns rather than employing more of them. Some believe that it is too easy for someone to get their hands on a gun in Utah and that is the root of the problem.

Another concern that this bill brings is the funding it would require. Some sources say it will cost upwards of $100 million to enact.

I believe this bill would be an effective counter-mechanism against school shootings in the short term as it is a direct counter-mechanism against school shooters. Despite that, in the long term, I believe that we need to solve this issue at the source, the shooter. This bill still puts lives on the line and combats school shooters rather than eradicating the problem altogether.