Lake County School Board member wants to arm teachers

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — Members of the Lake County School Board got an earful at a meeting Monday night as they discussed a plan to arm classroom teachers.

Parents, students and teachers packed the meeting where the Lake County Sheriff’s Office explained how such a plan would work—and how teachers would be trained.

School board member Bill Mathias has proposed the idea to have teachers and administrators carry a gun on campus and be trained to confront an active shooter.

“We will be speaking about where Lake County stands today and what can we do in the future to protect our kids,” Mathias said.

Mother Tish Hansen, in the wake of the deadly shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, told Channel 9's Myrt Price she is worried about the safety of her daughter and other children at Lake County schools.

"It's a concern for every parent across the nation right now,” Hansen said. “I think that the teachers have a lot on their plate, as it is."

A representative for the Lake County teacher’s union does not support Mathias’ proposal.

"Let teachers teach and let law enforcement protect our students. Utilize what we were trained to do,” teachers union president Stuart Klatte said.

The Sheriff's Office is proposing 130 hours of training for teachers, including a precision pistol course, simulator training and active shooter training.

"School personnel would shoot 10 to 20 percent more rounds than a typical law enforcement academy student shoots," said Sheriff Peyton Grinnell.

This is a developing story. Check back on wftv.com and Eyewitness News at 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. for updates.

Cox Media Group