Our Students Deserve Better.

My students were scared to be at school yesterday.  One student politely asked me to keep our door closed while in class.  Another asked to be escorted to the bathroom.  Over a third of my student simply sis not come to school.  It was a surreal day, and was also ridiculous.  My kids should not be afraid to attend a public school.  We can do so much better.
I have been a public school teacher for 18 years.  This is the first time I have witnessed this level of anxiety from my students, concerning the security of our school.  Many elected officials are claiming that we should give people like me a firearm (and training) to better secure our students.  I do not want to carry a gun to my job, and in no way do I believe that this is a reasonable solution to school safety.

On the contrary, I believe that arming teachers is our government giving up, and admitting that it does not have the ability to solve this problem of school safety. What I want to see happen is for our government officials to fund our public schools adequately.

How can make our students feel safe?
1.  Hire more school counselors
2.  Hire more school psychologists.
3.  Hire more armed law enforcement officers.
4.  Invest in better school security.
5.  Hire more school nurses.
6.  Improve access to healthcare, and provide mental health equity.

This is a start.  Students should not have to be afraid to learn.  They deserve better.