In a significant development that has sparked both support and controversy, Georgia’s Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones and Senators Max Burns and Clint Dixon, all Republicans, have unveiled a plan to enhance school safety by offering teachers extra pay to carry guns.
As reported by the Associated Press, teachers who opt in could receive an additional $10,000 per year after completing required firearms training.
The proposed law is designed as an “opt-in” program, meaning teachers and schools can choose to participate.
The initiative will be introduced during Georgia’s 2024 legislative session.
According to Jones, this plan builds upon recent moves by the state legislature to improve teacher safety training and allow local school systems to make their own decisions about allowing firearms on campus.
“The proposed program would be an opt-in measure by the teachers and school system,” said Jones in a press release.
Jones argues that the bill will enhance the safety of Georgia’s children.
“This legislation and associated state funding will ensure that our school systems and teachers have the necessary resources and training to increase safety across Georgia,” he stated.
Senator Burns supports the plan as “another tool to enhance school safety,” emphasizing that the primary role of lawmakers is to protect children.
“Using existing, volunteer employees, we can leverage the current use of School Resource Officers (SROs) and make our schools more safe and secure,” Burns explained.
Senator Dixon agrees, saying the bill will make schools “even more prepared for emergency situations.”
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The proposal also aims to bolster school safety by expanding grant programs to hire more certified School Resource Officers.
However, not everyone agrees that arming teachers is a prudent strategy.
Lisa Morgan, president of the Georgia Association of Educators, expressed reservations to the Associated Press. “We are not there to serve as law enforcement, and introducing more firearms into the school is not a way to solve the problem of violence in our schools,” she said.
Morgan suggests that instead, schools should hire more counselors to improve safety.
The proposed bill has reignited a debate over how to best ensure the safety of America’s schools.
It’s clear that the discussion is far from over, and the nation will be watching closely to see how this common-sense proposal fares when it comes up for consideration in Georgia’s General Assembly in 2024.
