How do we keep kids safe in school?

NORWALK — Guns in school? That is one of the biggest questions facing educators these days. Ohio school districts could begin arming employees as soon as this fall under a bill signed into law Gov. Mike DeWine. The law, as enacted, requires up to 24 hours of training before an employee can go armed, and up to eight hours of annual training. The training programs must be approved by the Ohio School Safety Center, and DeWine announced he's ordering the center to require the maximum 24 hours and the maximum eight hours. Schools can provide additional training if they wish, DeWine said. Before announcing the bill signing, the governor outlined several other school safety measures he and lawmakers have promoted, including $100 million for school security upgrades in schools and $5 million for upgrades at colleges. The state is also adding 28 employees to the school safety center to work with districts on safety issues and to provide training under the new law. Ohio has also provided $1.2 billion in wellness funding for schools to address mental health and other issues, the governor said. "I can tell you I recently received something from the Diocese," said Martin Linder, president of Norwalk Catholic School. "They are asking schools to wait until everything is finished. When it comes to something like this we go with their recommendations. "That being said, I will be engaging different people about school safety in general," he added. "Training we can do. It is a multi-tiered approach. You have to be both welcoming and secure. I have had talks with people and walked around the campus talking about how we can make school more safe. "In the old days you didn't think about things like this ... more and more it's at the forefront of what can we do to keep people safe." Linder said the summer months is a good time for such reviews. "These include fire drills and tornado ... all of it," he said. "What are we doing for lockdowns and all of it. I think we are very blessed in our county, specifically in Norwalk, everyone is willing to come in and give you their expertise. "A tribute to our community and the ability to work together. All of the safety services are taking this very seriously." Norwalk City Schools Superintendent Brad Cooley said it's too early to be making any big decisions. "Our board has not discussed this particular item," he said. "Overall, from the bigger perspective, I like local control and we can make better decisions. Law enforcement is our best option. "I am not making a snap decision. That can be looked at. Very controversial. I am not here today saying that would not fit. In some instances it could fit. We are blessed with the sheriff right here and the police down the street. We kind have that built in." Cooley said when he was high school principal he had then-police chief Mike Conney come into the high school for drills and to get a feel for the layout of the school. School safety has always been a priority, Cooley said. Nothing, Cooley said, is off the table. "In the big scheme of things I will explore all options, even if they are controversial," he said. "This will be an item of discussion. From locked doors to our camera system. "In the worst case you are better with a live human there to stop that carnage. ... This has to be considered. A good person with a gun is a good thing." The new law "is giving schools an option, based on their particular circumstances, to make the best decision they can make with the best information they have," DeWine said. Norwalk City Schools board member Duane Moore said he is in favor of a resource officer in the school. "Guns in school is the very, very last resource," Moore said. School board member Jeremy Norris, a former Marine, said something has to be done. "Well, we need to take advantage of any state or federal funds that the we can get from the government and we need school safety officers in the schools," he said. Does he favor teachers with guns? "I am not against it, but I definitely think it has to be voluntary and will definitely need a lot more training that what they get," he said. "I've trained a lot of teachers and administration here at Norwalk City Schools and just the few hours we have on the range is not enough. "It's a lot more than shooting ... it's de-escalation. There is a lot of involved and a lot of decision making by board members." What did we learn from the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas? "Unfortunately, having police officers at the school is not always the first answer since they stood there for an hour and did nothing," Norris said. "Had a teacher been in that school with a firearm, knew how to use it, knew how engage the evil person in there than it probably wouldn't have lasted." Members of the New London Local Schools board of education talked about the issue last week with Superintendent Brad Romano and agreed more information is needed before any decisions are made. Read more on this story in the Weekender.