Memphis-Shelby County School (MSCS) teachers will not be allowed to carry handguns or weapons in school.
This announcement comes from the district, a month after the Tennessee legislature passed a law that allows school faculty and staff to carry weapons on campus “subject to certain conditions.” Gov. Bill Lee signed the bill into law on April 26.
The “united decision” for MSCS to not allow staff to carry weapons was made by superintendent Marie N. Feagins along with Shelby County sheriff Floyd Bonner and interim Memphis police chief Cerelyn (C.J.) Davis.
“On behalf of Memphis-Shelby County Schools, I want to thank Chief Davis and Sheriff Bonner for their ongoing partnership and support in keeping our students and families safe. Thank you also to the community for your commitment and collaboration in moving Memphis forward together,” Feagins said in a statement.
According to the district, a resolution was passed days after the announcement, which prohibited employees from carrying firearms on school grounds.
“The Board does not believe that arming school staff is the most effective approach for Memphis-Shelby County Schools. That is the expectation of the Board that school staff serve first and foremost as trained, focused, and dedicated educators, not law enforcement and/or security officers,” the resolution said.
They added this was not an “effective” solution for the district.
Feagins, Davis, and Bonner continue to emphasize that “firearms have no place in classrooms,” and they are “united on this issue.”
“Schools are for learning, and emergency situations should be handled by trained officers,” Bonner said.”
This controversial law went into effect in the aftermath of the Covenant School to address safety concerns in schools statewide.