Page 2 - aruba-today-20180901

A2 UP FRONT
Saturday 1 September 2018
School safety panel will recommend best practices in report

By MARIA DANILOVA causing confusion. Brogan
Associated Press said the commission will
WASHINGTON (AP) — A fed- consider age restrictions for
eral panel convened after gun purchases, as well as
the deadly school shoot- whether people with men-
ing in Parkland, Florida, will tal health problems who
issue a series of best prac- are likely to harm them-
tices to make schools safer, selves and others can pos-
including recommenda- sess weapons.
tions on arming teachers, Brogan said the panel will
a senior Education Depart- produce a tool kit "that
ment official told The As- provides recognized best
sociated Press. Age restric- practices, not just the shiny
tions on gun purchases also new object on school safe-
are being considered. ty, but what people are al-
Frank Brogan, assistant ready doing that seems to
secretary of elementary be showing a track record
and secondary education, of success that can be put
also said the agency will out there in inventory fash-
let states decide whether ion."
they want to use federal "You cannot do that with
grants to purchase firearms a uniform approach to this
for schools or train person- Frank Brogan, Assistant Secretary of Elementary and Secondary Education speaks to the Associ- thing because the country
nel, despite strong criticism ated Press in his office at the Education Department in Washington, Thursday, August 30, 2018. is so very different, place
from Democrats and edu- Associated Press to place, school to school,
cation groups who argue state to state," Brogan said.
the funds are intended for Educators from some re- says, "can be particularly ceeds Act, a bipartisan law "There is no one way to
academics, not guns. mote rural schools also told helpful" in rural districts that shifts education au- make schools safe."
In the department's first the panel that they rely on where the nearest po- thority to states, provides Besides recommenda-
comprehensive account armed school personnel lice unit may be far away. about $1 billion in annual tions on arming and train-
of the panel's work, Brogan because the police may Other recommendations funding for various school ing school staff, the re-
told the AP on Thursday take too long to arrive. Oth- included employing school needs, including 20 per- search and best practices
that arming educators "is ers, however, argued that resource officers and en- cent specifically set aside identified by the panel
a good example of a pro- arming teachers is dan- suring they worked closely for school safety. will include suggestions
foundly personal decision gerous and could make with the rest of the school "The people at the local on equipping schools with
on the part of a school or schools feel like prisons. staff. level who've been there for magnetometers and other
a school district or even a An early draft of the com- Brogan emphasized that years could make the deci- safety tools, character de-
state." Trump and Educa- mission's report recom- there is no one-size-fits-all sions about what services to velopment programs and
tion Secretary Betsy DeVos mends that states and com- approach to school safety purchase, what equipment the impact of video games
have said that schools may munities determine "based and that states and local to buy to fulfill the general and movies on violent be-
benefit from having armed on the unique circumstanc- jurisdictions had leeway to broad obligations laid out havior. The report will be is-
teachers and should have es of each school" whether decide for themselves how in that law," he said. sued in "very late fall or by
that option. to arm its security personnel to approach it. The debate arose earlier the end of the year," Bro-
Brogan cited the "school and teachers to be able to If a state does decide to this month after a small ru- gan said.
marshal" program in Texas respond to violence. The equip schools with fire- ral school district in Oklaho- The commission was cre-
where school employees draft's section on training arms, it will be able to use ma and the state of Texas ated by President Donald
can volunteer to carry school personnel was re- Title IV federal grants for asked the department to Trump in March after 17
weapons on campuses viewed by AP. their school needs. Brogan clarify what the funds can people were killed in the
after undergoing training. That approach, the draft said the Every Student Suc- be used for. shooting at Marjory Stone-
"The position is: You have man Douglas High School
the language ... the lan- in Parkland, Florida. The
guage was written specifi- panel is chaired by DeVos
cally to and always inter- and also consists of the
preted to mean 'this is your heads of the departments
money,'" Brogan said. of Justice, Health and Hu-
Democratic lawmakers man Services and Home-
and teachers blasted the land Security. The body
idea, accusing the Trump has conducted a number
administration of acting in of listening sessions, school
the interests of the National visits and meetings over the
Rifle Association, and sev- summer, but experts have
eral congressmen called been skeptical about what
for legislation that would it may accomplish.
prohibit the use of those Andy Rotherham of Bell-
funds for guns. wether Education Partners,
Brogan also clarified that a national nonprofit edu-
the commission will tackle cation consultancy and
gun control as instructed research group, and a for-
by the White House. DeVos mer Clinton administration
had told a Senate hearing official, predicted that the
in June that the panel will commission's impact will be
not look at guns "per se," "next to nothing."q