(Tallahassee)- Recently, Senator Don Gaetz filed Senate Bill 896, which would expand the Guardian Program to include colleges and universities, an expansion from the current K-12 precedent.
In light of recent shootings, Gaetz cites miscommunication as a major breach in safety.
His new bill aims to address that.
"What this bill seeks to do is make sure that in a classroom, in a campus setting, in a gathering of students or faculty, if something terrible happens, that we've taken every step that we can take," Gaetz told the Florida Phoenix.
(Photo: Al Jazerra)
Representative Michelle Salzman filed House Bill 757, a nearly identical bill, in an attempt to speed up the implementation of the bill. Both Gaetz and Salzman are legislators from Pensacola, collaborating to improve school safety.
One of the proposed mandates of the bills is to ensure every door can be locked.
If you followed the up-to-the-minute details of the Florida State University shooting last April, you might remember how horrifying the situation was. Adding to the chaos was the inability to lock doors.
"The fear in people's faces, the shaking and the crying started really badly in everyone after we realized there were no locks on the doors," Sarah Walker told CNN last year.
(Photo: Al Jazerra)
Later on, school spokesperson Amy Farnum-Patronis confirmed that the seemingly unlocked doors were, in fact, locked from the outside.
Unfortunately, to students who were able to open the doors from inside, the doors appeared to be unlocked and operating normally. With no system in place to notify students, the doors were electronically locked, keeping threats out and allowing the students to move when and if necessary.
Gaetz and Salzman’s bills also look to manage communication. Beyond the seemingly unlocked doors, there were other concerns about communication during the shooting.
(Photo: Florida government website )
Robert Morales, the dining coordinator, and Tiru Chabba, unfortunately, passed away during the shooting.
The bill is intended to ensure everyone on campus has up-to-date information, no matter where they are. Another topic to note will be the media. “Up-to-the-minute” details became false and speculative, with statistics such as death totals and armed gunmen falsely reported.
For campus and community safety, only facts must be shared with first responders and the public, a point that may be noted as the bill reaches the House and Senate. Noting the recent tragedy at Brown University on Dec. 13, school shootings have become far too common, and lawmakers are taking action.
The Guardian Program passed after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, and is currently exclusive to K-12 schools. The program trains and permits school staff members to carry weapons and allows them to respond with deadly force to deadly threats.
Let me know how you feel about the new bill at jason.f@lead4earth.org.
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