Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast. No Danger to California

18 hours ago

Federal Immigration Crackdown Threatens California’s Historic Housing Reforms

22 hours ago

US House Clears Procedural Hurdle on Cryptocurrency Legislation

22 hours ago

Fresno County Lifts Evacuation Order for Max Fire Near Pine Flat Lake

23 hours ago

Newsom Calls Trump a ‘Son of a B***h’ Over ICE Raids and Guard Deployment

24 hours ago

Trump Indicated to Republican Lawmakers He Will Fire Fed’s Powell, CBS Reports

1 day ago

Wall Street Steadies as Investors Assess Inflation Data, Earnings

1 day ago

Trump Administration Sued by US States for Cutting Disaster Prevention Grants

1 day ago

Open Mic Contest Offers Fans a Chance to Perform at Outside Lands 2025

1 day ago

PBS and NPR Mount Last-Ditch Fight to Save Federal Funding

2 days ago
Armed Utah Teachers Don't Want to Be a 'Sitting Duck'
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
July 5, 2019

Share

The Utah school psychologist weaved through a maze of dusty halls before spotting him in the corner of a classroom, holding a gun to a student’s head. She took a deep breath and fired three shots, the first time she’s ever used a gun. One bullet pierced the shooter’s forehead.

“If teachers are going to be bringing firearms into schools, let’s make sure they know how to handle them safely.” — Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith
“Nice work,” a police officer told her as they exchanged high-fives in front of cardboard props representing the gunman and student.

Teachers Train for Active Shooter Situations

Miramontes recently joined 30 other Utah teachers at a series of trainings where police instructed them on how to respond to an active shooter. Teachers went through the shooting drill inside a warehouse set up to look like a school, then moved outside to a shooting range.
Active shooter training for educators is becoming more common nationwide, and Utah is one of several states that generally allow permit holders to carry guns in public schools. Other states, including Florida and Texas, have programs that allow certain teachers to be armed if they are approved under a set of stipulations.
Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith said the popularity of concealed carry permits in Utah makes such trainings even more important. About half the teachers brought their own handguns to the shooting range.
“If teachers are going to be bringing firearms into schools, let’s make sure they know how to handle them safely,” Smith said.

39 States Require Lockdown Drills

At least 39 states require lockdown, active-shooter or similar safety drills, according to the Education Commission of the States. Other states have less explicit requirements or leave it to districts. Utah requires its elementary schools to conduct at least one safety drill each month, and its secondary schools to have detailed emergency response plans. The firearm training is voluntary, but the Utah County Sheriff’s Teachers Academy already has a waiting list for its next four-week program.
Despite increasing prevalence, some school safety experts aren’t in favor of firearms training and worry that such lessons could cause undue stress or harm.
“Are police tasking teachers to perform a law enforcement responsibility by arming them to protect others? We have to be cautious of what we ask people to do in these traumatic, stressful situations,” said Ken Trump, a school safety expert with the National School Safety and Security Services consulting firm.
Miramontes said her teacher friends in Utah and other states debated about it on Facebook. But after the training, she said she felt empowered.
“I know how to protect myself and my students now; I know what to expect if the worst happens,” she said.

A Utah school teacher training for an active shooter situation
In this June 29, 2019, photo, Christy Belt, Timpanogos Academy 5th grade teacher, engages in an exercise designed to help teachers make good decisions in critical, high-stress situations such as an active shooter incident. (AP/Rick Bowmer)
At the recent session, officers showed teachers how to disarm a gunman, where to shoot on the body, how to properly aim and unload a firearm. They also went over de-escalation techniques, self-defense and medical responses such as how to pack a wound and tie a tourniquet on a child.
Officers spent months designing the course and local businesses donated money and equipment. Attendees paid $20 to participate.
Between bites of pastries, teachers relayed their fears:
“Will the gunman leave after I shoot them?”
“How do I protect the children when they come?”
The sun stretched over the mountains as teachers put down their coffee and strapped into bulletproof vests, goggles, and protective headgear. Above the ringing of gunshots, some teachers discussed summer vacation plans and classroom supply lists.

‘Not Be a Sitting Duck’

Sandy Grow, a special needs educator at a Lehi middle school, said the massacres at Parkland and Sandy Hook left her feeling unsafe at work. A gunman killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, last year. In 2012, 20 children and six educators were killed in a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.
“The idea of being trapped in a classroom with my students and not being able to protect them bothered me,” she said. “I want to defend them and keep them safe, not be a sitting duck.”
Mike Ericksen thinks a lot about how to keep students safe at Mountain View High School, where he’s the principal and his son is a student. In 2016, before he began working there, five students were stabbed in the boys’ locker room.
Reloading his handgun for target practice, Ericksen said the training has left him better prepared to fight back if someone threatens his school.
“I’m more confident in my skills and what to do if something happens,” he said. “I’m not as nervous now. I can help.”

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

US Seeks One-Day Sentence for Police Officer Convicted in Breonna Taylor Case

DON'T MISS

Tulare Police: We Have No Role in Federal Immigration Raids

DON'T MISS

Wall Street CEOs See Some Tariff Impact Filtering Into Customer Behavior

DON'T MISS

US House Poised to Send Stablecoin Bill to Trump After ‘Crypto Week’ Drama

DON'T MISS

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

DON'T MISS

Why California Ag Is at Odds Over Converting Land to Solar Farms

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Irrigation District Pitches 137% Fee Hike for More Kings River Flood Water

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He Is Ending Government Funding California’s High-Speed Rail Project

DON'T MISS

Bakersfield Tax Return Preparer Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Fraud Scheme

DON'T MISS

Congressional Hopeful Lorenzo Rios Says No to PBS Funding. Once Led Local Station

UP NEXT

Space Industry Urges Congress Not to Axe System That Prevents Satellite Collisions

UP NEXT

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

UP NEXT

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

UP NEXT

US Army to Change Transgender Soldiers’ Records to Birth Sex

UP NEXT

Exclusive: US Congress Republicans Seek $27 Billion for Golden Dome in Trump Tax Bill

UP NEXT

Mexican Cartel Leader AKA ‘Hummer’ Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking

UP NEXT

Conservative Pundit, ex-Secret Service Agent Dan Bongino Picked as FBI Deputy Director

UP NEXT

Judge Blocks Trump’s Immigration Policy Allowing Church Arrests

UP NEXT

Trump Backs Musk as He Hits Federal Workers With Demands and Threats

UP NEXT

53% Approve of Trump’s Job Performance Amid Economic Concerns

US House Poised to Send Stablecoin Bill to Trump After ‘Crypto Week’ Drama

1 hour ago

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

1 hour ago

Why California Ag Is at Odds Over Converting Land to Solar Farms

1 hour ago

Fresno County Irrigation District Pitches 137% Fee Hike for More Kings River Flood Water

3 hours ago

Trump Says He Is Ending Government Funding California’s High-Speed Rail Project

16 hours ago

Bakersfield Tax Return Preparer Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Fraud Scheme

16 hours ago

Congressional Hopeful Lorenzo Rios Says No to PBS Funding. Once Led Local Station

16 hours ago

US Attorney Beckwith Dismissed by Trump Admin, Replaced With Sanchez

17 hours ago

Trump Says He Would Love for Fed Chair Powell to Resign

17 hours ago

Trump Says Coca-Cola Agreed to Use Real Cane Sugar in US

17 hours ago

US Seeks One-Day Sentence for Police Officer Convicted in Breonna Taylor Case

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Justice Department has asked a federal judge to sentence a former Louisville police officer who was convicted la...

12 minutes ago

Former Louisville police detective Brett Hankison poses for a booking photograph at Shelby County Detention Center in Shelbyville, Kentucky, U.S. September 23, 2020. Picture taken September 23, 2020. Shelby County Detention Center/Handout via REUTERS.
12 minutes ago

US Seeks One-Day Sentence for Police Officer Convicted in Breonna Taylor Case

21 minutes ago

Tulare Police: We Have No Role in Federal Immigration Raids

The U.S. flag is seen on a building on Wall St. in the financial district in New York, U.S., November 24, 2020. (Reuters File)
54 minutes ago

Wall Street CEOs See Some Tariff Impact Filtering Into Customer Behavior

1 hour ago

US House Poised to Send Stablecoin Bill to Trump After ‘Crypto Week’ Drama

Maurene Comey, Assistant U.S. Attorney and prosecutor on Combs' case, arrives at the Federal courthouse during the Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial at U.S. court in Manhattan, in New York City, U.S., May 21, 2025. (Reuters File)
1 hour ago

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

Sheep Graze Next to Kettleman City Solar Farm
1 hour ago

Why California Ag Is at Odds Over Converting Land to Solar Farms

3 hours ago

Fresno County Irrigation District Pitches 137% Fee Hike for More Kings River Flood Water

A drone view of a California High-Speed Rail Bridge where it crosses through Fresno, California, U.S. June 8, 2025. (Reuters)
16 hours ago

Trump Says He Is Ending Government Funding California’s High-Speed Rail Project

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend