New law allowing armed teachers beings this semester

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Guns are the number one killer of children across the United States. It's reached such a level that in June the U.S. Surgeon General declared gun violence a public health crisis.

As students across the Mid-South begin a new semester, a new Tennessee law begins that allows some members of a school's faculty to carry firearms on campus.

RELATED: Tennessee governor signs bills to allow armed teachers nearly a year after deadly Nashville shooting

Jacob York of McNairy County told FOX13 that he experienced bullying throughout his school years, but never once questioned his safety.

"I think SRO's (School Resource Officers) are the only people in schools that need to have a gun on them," York said.

A year after York graduated in 2022, three children and three adults were killed in a shooting at Covenant school in Nashville. Following that, lawmakers passed numerous bills to increase school safety including a measure that would allow teachers to carry firearms.

All throughout Good Morning Memphis on Monday, starting at 6 a.m., FOX13 digs into the requirements of the new bill, speaks to gun training professionals and shares how different school districts in the Mid-South are dealing with the new law.