Tennessee Senate passes bill allowing armed public school teachers

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Teachers carrying guns could soon become a reality in Tennessee schools as a bill continues to make its way through the legislature.

The Senate passed HB 1202 on Tuesday, April 9, in a 26-5 vote not long after clearing the gallery following cries from people protesting the legislation. The bill would allow faculty or staff members of a school to carry a concealed handgun on school grounds under certain conditions.

Teachers who decide to carry would have to undergo 40 hours of annual gun training at their own expense, in addition to receiving approval from the school director, passing a mental health evaluation, and passing an FBI background check.

Those training requirements are the same as what the state requires for school resource officers (SROs), with some lawmakers like Rep. Ryan Williams (R-Cookeville), the bill’s sponsor, saying the legislation could be a solution for schools struggling to find SROs.

“If you’re from a rural district where resources are limited, you don’t have the ability to provide enough SROs for your community or an SRO at all, this would give you an opportunity to find a different pathway with training, fingerprints, mental evaluation,” Williams told News 2.

Williams also believes having armed teachers could be a good deterrent for potential shooters. However, the bill has faced opposition from people like Jason Sparks, a gun violence survivor, who argue it would actually make schools less safe.

“Measures that make our schools more like military bases with signs that guns are inside do not create the nurturing and trusting environment that is conducive to learning,” Sparks said. “We know that arming our teachers does not make our students safer. In fact, it increases the chances that a teacher’s gun will fall into the wrong hands.”

Several people, including a group of Covenant School mothers, took to the state capitol Tuesday to protest the bill as Democrats and Republicans went back and forth over it, with some getting very passionate.

“This is irresponsible. The public school teachers don’t even want the bill. They’re not even asking you for this,” Sen. London Lamar (D-Memphis) said. “We just passed legislation to have SROs in every school. Can’t we see how that works yet?”

Some of the protestors in the gallery broke out into chants during the debate over the bill, at one point chanting, “Shame on you.” Despite repeated warnings from Lt. Gov. Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge), the gallery was eventually cleared.