There have been eight school shootings in Indiana over the past 180 years, two of which have been deadly.
In May, Governor Eric Holcomb (R) signed House Bill 1177 (Public Law 218), which secures funding to arm teachers in Indiana schools. This development has confused, excited, and worried Hoosiers.
School Resource Officer Kyle Gater talks about how Carroll lacks the need for the recent law.
“We have school resource officers, probably not gonna happen here, but it has been talked about for smaller school districts that don’t have school resource officers in schools,” he said.
This involves schools in rural counties that don’t have sustainable resources that allow them to have school resource officers.
Social Studies Teacher Kyle Wood explains the logistics of House Bill 1177.
“Around 33 states allow teachers to be armed, including Indiana. I believe this bill will provide money for training teachers and establish a standardized course for those staff members who carry a firearm in the building,” Wood said.
The question is how the weapons will be stored.
One option besides having teachers carrying firearms would be to store them in biometrically opened lockboxes.
“Using a fingerprint scanner, a lockbox would probably be the safest,” Gater said.
Biometric scanners cost anywhere from $85 to $250 depending on the level of security and safety measures. The lockboxes would unlock with the correct fingerprint.
A cheaper option would be locked drawer with a key, but with lower costs comes an escalated danger.
“If I use the key and the student is able to get it, it makes it very dangerous,” Gater said, “Maybe a specific key, but even the key is dangerous”
This raises concerns about whether a student would be able to get the weapon. But with high-tech mechanics, House Bill 1177 could elevate the safety in rural Indiana schools.
“But if you’re gonna put a gun in a teacher’s hand and you’re gonna go through all that training,” Gater said. “You might as well just spend the money and make it that much safer.”
