Policy Development

Policy on School Shootings
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A series of unfortunate incidents associated with gun possession has led to the call for the strengthening of gun laws in the United States. On January 20, in Winston Salem, North Carolina, A Winston-Salem State University football player, Najee Ali Baker, was shot to death at a party in the campus of Wake Forest University. Since the beginning of this year, there have been over 23 school shootings already in the U.S., and some people have been injured or killed. In average there are more than one shooting a week. Evelynn (2015) points out that the right to gun ownership is a highly debated issue in the US. Some argue that gun possession is an integral part of the country’s heritage and that it is a birthright. On the other side, critics argue that civilians have no justifiable reason to own guns. Despite the fact that the arguments from both sides divide, this whole situation has led to the realization that gun control laws need to be strengthened.
The increase in shootings led to the development of policies in some schools aimed at arming teachers. According to Hawkins, about 170 school districts in Texas allow teachers to be armed for self-defense (Hawkins, 2018). A school “Callisburg independent school district” has armed its teachers for a period exceeding four years as a way of protecting students. According to the school superintendent “We’ll do whatever’s necessary to protect our ki…