Sunman-Dearborn Schools Developing Plan To Arm Some School Employees

The idea will be up for discussion at the July 12 school board meeting.

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(West Harrison, Ind.) - Sunman-Dearborn Schools teachers could be allowed to possess a gun in school as a means of protecting students from the threat of an active shooter.

The Sunman-Dearborn Community School Corporation Board of Trustees is planning to discuss a potential policy which might allow certain school employees to conceal carry a firearm on school grounds. The suggestion was made at a school safety meeting held back in April, weeks after a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

S-DCSC Superintendent Andrew Jackson shared the news about the concealed carry idea in a letter sent to parents June 29.

“The actual policy is still being drafted, but it will include very specific requirements to be considered, including a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation, various levels of training, and allowed weapons and ammunition,” Jackson wrote.

The school board will discuss the matter at their next meeting on Thursday, July 12 starting at 7:00 p.m. in the East Central High School Library. The public is being encouraged to comment at the meeting, Jackson added.

“(The board) are completing their due diligence and considering all various aspects of school safety and all suggestions made during the public forum,” he stated.

Jackson stressed that the board has not made a decision or adopted a policy at this time.

Sunman-Dearborn schools will be more secure in the 2018-2019 school year. In May, the school corporation announced that it would be adding a second school resource officer. A third resource officer will be in schools on a rotating basis with the Dearborn County Sheriff’s Department, helping cover seven schools across the sprawling 160 square mile school district. Other area districts - such as Lawrenceburg, South Dearborn, Rising Sun-Ohio County, and Boone County - have followed suit.

Earlier this year, Indiana lawmakers approved $5 million in additional funding for the Secured School Safety Grant Program, adding to $9 million allocated to schools each year for hiring resource officers or making school building safety upgrades.

Indiana is among at least 14 states where lawmakers have passed legislation allowing school districts to arm teachers. Others include Georgia, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Wyoming.

Only one school corporation in Indiana currently allows administrators to carry firearms. Administrators at North White School Corporation in Monon, Indiana must complete two training sessions before they can choose to be armed on campus.

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