Tennessee governor answers 5 school safety questions after Uvalde

Gov. Invoice Lee mentioned Thursday that his administration started reviewing Tennessee’s college security insurance policies and packages the day after an 18-year-old gunman walked into an elementary college in Uvalde, Texas, and killed 19 kids and their two lecturers.

“We can be taking steps within the days and weeks to come back that can improve our capability to safe college students within the classroom,” mentioned Lee, talking with reporters for the primary time for the reason that Could 24 bloodbath at Robb Elementary Faculty.

Precisely what these steps can be continues to be being mentioned. However Lee mentioned they gained’t contain repealing a invoice he signed final 12 months that enables most Tennessee adults to hold a handgun with out a allow.

His prime two priorities: make college campuses safer and assist psychological well being, particularly for younger folks.

Lee has sought to strengthen each areas since taking workplace. In 2019, the brand new Republican governor raised the state’s annual funding in class security funding, particularly to extend the variety of colleges supported by legislation enforcement personnel often called college useful resource officers. And in 2021, he championed a $250 million psychological well being belief fund that dedicates annual funding earnings to assist college students’ emotional well-being.

He additionally expects college security to be on the minds of legislators after they return to Nashville subsequent January. 

“There can be an extended checklist of things that individuals will discuss and suggest — one in all them being whether or not to arm lecturers, one other being passing a pink flag legislation,” Lee mentioned. “I believe we’re going to see a sturdy dialog all throughout America about what methods to implement.”

Lee spoke with reporters in Fayetteville, Tennessee, after saying that Wisconsin-based Ariens, a maker of business garden mowers and snowblowers, will convey almost 370 new jobs to construct its merchandise within the rural Center Tennessee city.

Requested later by Chalkbeat in regards to the Texas taking pictures, the governor characterised his workplace as “very engaged” on pupil security. 

“I’ve had very emotional conversations with dad and mom who’re afraid to ship their kids to high school,” he mentioned about how the taking pictures has shaken households and college communities anew.

Lee answered 5 questions from Chalkbeat on gun violence and pupil security. Chalkbeat flippantly edited his solutions for readability and brevity.

Q: Whereas the varsity 12 months has ended, college security is on the minds of Tennesseans after the Uvalde bloodbath. How are you working to forestall the same tragedy right here in Tennessee?

A: For 3 years, now we have made investments, however now we have to do extra. From day one after that tragedy, we began an evaluation of what has been completed, and we’re creating a technique. A part of the technique is to make sure colleges are utilizing the sources which might be accessible to them. 

Faculty useful resource officers are a key first step. Loads of accountability is important to verify colleges are literally finishing up established protocols, and that may be a part of the SRO’s duty. We’ve realized that, on this occasion in Texas, a missed protocol or a scarcity of consideration to element can have tragic outcomes.

Q: After the 2018 mass taking pictures at a highschool in Parkland, Florida, a number of Tennessee lawmakers proposed letting some lecturers carry weapons in school. The payments usually stalled, however there’s speak once more of turning some lecturers into armed safety guards. Would you assist such laws?

A: I’ve mentioned earlier than that I’d be in favor of a technique that features coaching and vetting and a really strategic and applicable plan for (arming lecturers). There are plenty of particulars that need to be proper for that to be thought of. But when lawmakers introduced it forth, I will surely think about it.

Q: A few of your critics have pointed to the 2021 “constitutional carry” invoice you signed as a part of the issue by permitting folks 21 and older to hold handguns, overtly or hid, with out a allow — all at a time when Tennessee has one of many nation’s highest charges of gun deaths. Was widening gun entry the unsuitable path?

A: Constitutional carry is a legislation that applies to law-abiding residents. What we’re speaking about in Texas was legal habits. Criminals don’t observe allow legal guidelines. They don’t observe gun legal guidelines. They break the legislation. Constitutional carry has nothing to do with criminals who break the legislation. The truth is, once we handed constitutional carry, we additionally handed legal guidelines that strengthened penalties for many who broke the legislation with weapons. It’s crucial that we separate criminals who use weapons in legal exercise and law-abiding residents.

Q: What about limiting entry to weapons by people who find themselves almost certainly to misuse them? Many are urging passage of pink flag legal guidelines that allow police or members of the family to petition a court docket to order momentary removing of firearms when an individual could current a hazard to others or themselves.

A: That’s linked to psychological well being, however who’s the arbiter of psychological well being? There are plenty of issues about pink flag legal guidelines — not solely on problems with psychological well being however their effectiveness normally. Buffalo, New York (the place one other gunman killed 10 folks on Could 14) has pink flag legal guidelines. So there’s simply plenty of questions round these approaches.

Q: In terms of assist for psychological well being, Tennessee trails the remainder of the nation. The state ranks thirty fourth worst nationally for prevalence of psychological sickness and decrease charges of entry to care, and fortieth for youth psychological well being, in accordance with the 2022 report by Psychological Well being America, the nation’s main community-based nonprofit for stopping psychological sickness. How are we bolstering psychological well being helps?

A: That’s precisely why we established the psychological well being belief fund a couple of years in the past. And our state’s new schooling funding system really strengthens our capability to faucet into sources for psychological well being wants, for youngsters particularly. The pandemic exacerbated all the the reason why we have to be investing in these areas. So now we have a dedication to investing in psychological well being sources and providers throughout the state.

Marta W. Aldrich is a senior correspondent and covers the statehouse for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Contact her at maldrich@chalkbeat.org.