Elementary Students Gained Access to a School Administrator‘s Gun

A school in Ohio is under fire amid reports that students were able to get hold of a firearm kept at the school.

The incident took place back in March at Highland Elementary in South Bloomfield Township. The school, like many others, has a concealed weapons program that allows certain employees to carry guns.

The transportation director was a participant in the program. She left two students and her gun in an unlocked case when she went to use the restroom. When she came back, the gun was on the desk. The presumption of the superintendent was the students had been playing with the weapon prior to the director’s return.

For her part, the transportation director was suspended and removed from the concealed carry program. But to many, this is part of a larger discussion about the role of guns in schools. In the wake of school shootings, some people and organizations called for school employees to be armed. Those against that sentiment have cited this story as their counterexample.

According to Ohio law, schools are permitted to have concealed carry programs, but they must have training for handling the weapons. The schools, however, are not obligated to reveal to parents’ which staff are armed or that anyone is armed period.

The district is currently reviewing the concealed carry program.