COLORADO SPRINGS — Amy Wrany is ready.
If Colorado lawmakers ever decide to let educators carry concealed firearms in elementary and secondary schools, Wrany, a teacher in Harrison School District 2, probably will be packing heat.
Wrany was one of 380 educators from around the Front Range who attended a free concealed-carry class that the Centennial Gun Club, near Aurora, held this summer.
It was the second time general manager Dick Abramson has offered the one-day class at no charge to anyone who works in a school system — administrators, teachers, secretaries, bus drivers, janitors. The normal fee is $175. The class in November drew similar high interest, he said.
“We’re very concerned about the situation with schools being attacked, and we like to get teachers more information on firearms,” Abramson said. “We fear what we don’t understand, and this class helps them be more comfortable and confident around firearms.”
The goal, Abramson said, is that if a gun were to show up at school, in someone’s backpack or someone’s hand, trained teachers and other employees would have the ability to “keep everybody safe.”
About 35 volunteers taught sections of the class, including the sheriffs from Arapahoe and Douglas counties.
Wrany said she has thought about getting a concealed-weapon permit for a while and plans to follow through. By obtaining a permit now, Wrany said, she won’t have any waiting time, should legislators take action.
Arming teachers has become a hotly debated issue. Two federal laws, The Gun-Free School Zones Act and The Gun-Free Schools Act, restrict the possession of firearms in or near schools.
According to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, nearly all states and Washington, D.C., prohibit guns in K-12 schools, but 11 states allow concealed-weapon permit holders to carry firearms into schools.
The Centennial Gun Club’s Abramson said Utah removed “gun-free zones” from its public elementary and secondary schools 12 years ago and “They’ve never had a school shooting.”
In Colorado, it is against the law for any citizen to carry a gun inside a school. Concealed-weapon permit holders must lock their guns in their vehicle in a closed, secure compartment.
Rep. Patrick Neville, R-Castle Rock, who was a sophomore at Columbine High School during the 1999 shooting, and his father, Sen. Tim Neville R-Littleton, sponsored a bill in the spring to allow concealed-weapon permit holders the right to carry handguns at K-12 public schools.
It failed in committee, as did similar proposals in 2013 and 2014.
But Patrick Neville said he expects another measure to be introduced in the next session.
“Flashy ‘gun free’ signs do not deter criminals,” he said. “It only invites them, and it’s time we start using some common sense to address this threat. If something like that was in place on April 20, 1999, I think some of my classmates might still be here today.”
Two students killed 13 people and wounded an additional 24 before committing suicide during the rampage at the Littleton-area high school.
Neville said he’s passionate about the subject because of his experience at Columbine. He spoke at both Centennial Gun Club classes for educators.
“Teachers want to train themselves and equip themselves to protect our children. It is time to let common sense prevail by letting them do so,” he said. “I’m tired of sending my kids to school on blind faith they will safely return from the forced victim zone our current policies have created.”
Law enforcement officers and school security workers have legal authority to carry a gun inside a Colorado school.
A Quinnipiac University poll from April 2014 showed about half of Colorado voters supported allowing teachers and school officials to carry guns on school grounds. Nearly three-fourths were in favor of having metal detectors at school entrances.
Opponents do not believe arming teachers is the way to keep schools safe. Marta Fioriti, a religious leader at Broadmoor Community Church, United Church of Christ and a ministry candidate, said as a mother of three young children who attend public schools, said she has strong feelings against having guns in schools.
“If our end goal is not to have people coming into our schools with guns, we need to start by modeling it,” Fioriti said. “Building a community is not about creating a community of fear but of using people’s gifts and talents to make people safe.”
Fioriti said she favors workshops that look at different types of responses to confrontation and conflict.
“Even if a teacher has a gun, imagine the scenario if some mentally ill person comes in and starts shooting. Is the teacher going to be trained enough to pull out a gun and start defending a class of 35?”
Scott Olson, executive director of the Pikes Peak Justice and Peace Commission, which promotes nonviolence, said he worries that teachers having guns would send the wrong message to children.
“It brings unnecessary potential use of force into the classroom,” he said. “Teachers would need to be on guard, and there’s the possibility a kid could grab it. It’s a sad situation we’ve gotten to this point, and I’d rather see alternatives.”
