Broward County School Board Votes ‘No’ On Guns For Teachers

by Sharon Aron Baron April 10, 2018

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Marjory Stoneman Douglas in Parkland. Photo by Sharon Aron Baron.

By: Sharon Aron Baron

Teachers in Broward County will not be allowed to carry guns, even though a new state program was created to permit it.

On Tuesday, the Broward County School Board voted to reject participation in the Aaron Feis Guardian Program which was approved by the Legislature and signed off by Gov. Rick Scott after the school shootings at Marjory Stoneman High School on February 14.

“It is the intent of the school board to not participate in this program,” said the memo from school spokesperson Tracy Clark.

The bill allows school districts to decide whether to participate in the school guardian program if it is available in their county. Under the program, a school guardian must complete 132 hours of comprehensive firearm safety and proficiency training, 12 hours of diversity training, pass a psychological evaluation, and initial drug test and subsequent random drug tests. No teacher would be required to participate.

The school board wants the funding, which was allocated for the Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program, redirected into the safe schools allocation in order to provide additional funding for school resource officers.