(KICD photo)
The Spirit Lake School Board has rescinded its plan to let up to ten non-teaching staff members carry a concealed weapon on school grounds.
The move comes after the company that has provided the district’s liability insurance said it would not renew the policy on July 1. Board President Teresa Beck said the district had no other options but to withdraw the gun policy that had been approved last fall as part of the school’s safety plan.
“I believe we had the support of the majority of our community. I know we had it (from) teachers, parents, students. I’m sad that we can’t do it. We all feel thatit’s the best thing to keep our kids safe,” Bell said. “And while I believe it’s the right thing to do, insurance companies don’t at this point.”
The board made its decision last night during special meeting and indicated the district’s existing insurance carrier will renew its policy, which was set to expire June 30th. In a written statement, Spirit Lake’s superintendent said there’s “no data suggesting school shootings are going away anytime soon” and having armed school employees trained to quickly respond would save “more innocent lives” if there were an active shooter at the school.
(By Corey Harguth, KICD, Spencer)