I was personally dismayed by the Tamaqua School... - Rhonda Jones Levy

Letter to the Editor

As an attorney, teacher of 20 years and a proud alumna of Tamaqua Area High School, I feel obliged to weigh in on the Tamaqua School Board’s recent decision to begin arming teachers. The Board’s decision is not only foolhardy and ill-considered; it has the real potential to be extremely dangerous.

Like all of us, teachers want students to feel safe and protected at school. Arming teachers, even willing ones, is not the way to achieve this goal. Teachers, throughout our nation, spend hours training and learning how to protect their students through state required fire drills, lockdowns and shelter in place drills. Educators are required to contact social services when they suspect abuse and each year countless teachers do just that.

Teachers today are already carrying a heavy load. They not only have responsibility for the education of their students, they must often serve as counselors for troubled or bullied students, as well as, emotional support for today’s overworked parents. Asking them to bear the responsibility of protecting their students by using a firearm, in a life and death situation, is completely foolish and fraught with peril. Do we require bank tellers to protect the bank in addition to their regular duties? Do we ask doctors to protect the hospital while performing surgery or medical procedures. Teachers are trained to teach, not act as security guards.

The list of things that could go wrong with arming classroom teachers seems obvious. What if a troubled student accidentally gets access to a gun? What if, in attempting to stop a shooter, a teacher accidentally shoots and kills a student? What if, a harried, exhausted teacher, after years of dealing with volatile students, misinterprets a student’s aggression and goes for the gun. 

Teachers are not trained police, not even teachers who know how to use a firearm. People go into the profession to instruct and nurture children. How many talented young people will be dissuaded from entering the profession of teaching if they must also bear the responsibility of using firearms? Shooting at a moving target, accurately, during a chaotic and dangerous situation should never be part of the job requirement. Does the Tamaqua School Board really want to put their teachers and their students in this untenable position?

Access to firearms, especially those designed to kill large numbers of people quickly, is a volatile political issue in this country. So many innocent children have been killed at school and, of course, we must do everything in our power to protect our students. Arming teachers is simply a knee jerk response. It is not the answer. Listen to what many of our students, parents and teachers are saying. Support reasonable gun control measures to keep these weapons away from those who should not have them. It’s way past time for our politicians to do that. In the meantime, the Tamaqua Board should hire trained security guards if they must, but please don’t place this additional, unconscionable burden on teachers. 

Should the Tamaqua School Board fail to reconsider its decision to go ahead with arming teachers, any tragic consequences arising as a result will fall squarely on its members’ shoulders.

Respectfully,
Rhonda Jones Levy
TAHS Class of ‘71