No Middle Tennessee school districts have announced plans to arm teachers as new year starts

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The new school year begins with a new law allowing armed teachers in Tennessee.

They’d need permission first, and so far, the Tennessee Education Association said it’s not aware of any teachers doing so, but much of that information is confidential.

As school districts throughout Tennessee prepare to start school in August, none have formally announced that they will be arming teachers , according to the Tennessee Education Association.

“At this time, we don’t have a list of any educators who have signed a contract with their local government to actually be able to carry their guns, or we haven’t had any educators who decided they were going to carry a gun in their classroom,” said Tanya T. Coats, President of the Tennessee Education Association.

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The group’s president said they have been closely monitoring the development of the law and the decisions teachers have made.

In April, Governor Bill Lee signed a bill allowing school districts to arm their teachers.

The law requires teachers to submit a background check , pass a psych evaluation, and have permission from the school principal and local law enforcement while also undergoing 40 hours of training in basic school policing.

In a previous interview, Sen. Paul Bailey (R-Sparta) told News 2 that the legislation was written to help rural school districts struggling to hire school resource officers.

“This was designed to help those rural counties that feel like they need to have a layer of protection in place in the event that they don’t have a school resource officer, and even if they do have a school resource officer, this can also add an extra layer of protection and the safety of our kids,” Sen. Paul Bailey (R-Sparta) said.

However, many school districts in Middle Tennessee have turned down the offer.

Metro Nashville Public Schools, Clarksville-Montgomery County, Williamson County, Wilson County, Sumner County, and Rutherford County Schools are among the districts not allowing their teachers to be armed.

In a statement, Wayne County School District said, “As of now, no one has undergone this training, nor has anyone reached out to express interest.”

Tullahoma City School told News 2, ” We are incredibly grateful that our schools have a School Resource Officer (SRO). These armed law enforcement officers are highly trained to handle emergency and crisis situations, and they will be the individuals carrying any weapons on campus.”

“I know the mentality it takes to be armed and for teachers to switch from a helping motivation to a protecting mindset is totally opposite,” JC Shegog, a security consultant and instructor , said.

JC Shegog served as an officer in Houston and West Memphis. He is now working as a law enforcement and SWAT instructor.

Shegog said that if a teacher wants to carry a weapon on school campuses, continued training should be a top priority. “This is a long road mentally, emotionally, and physically in order to occupy those two spaces at the same time.”

The President of the Tennessee Education Association told News 2 they’ve been educating educators before they make their final decision.

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“So besides the 101 things that they have to do in their classroom, we will add there will be the other seven or other criteria required to carry a gun in the classroom,” Coats explained.

“There are a lot of criteria, and we know that educators are always going to step up for whatever is required of us,” Coats added. “Because our everyday safety is trying to make sure our students are safe in the classroom and that we are teaching what needs to be taught regardless of a student’s zip code. We want to make sure that students are getting the very best.”

According to the executive director of the Tennessee Sheriff’s Association, he said the list of school districts’ decisions is confidential, and they are “not tracking this.”

The Tennessee Department of Education said similarly: “The law does not require school districts to report their decisions regarding allowing or not allowing teachers to carry firearms to the Tennessee Department of Education.”

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