School districts across Tennessee could decide whether employees can carry guns under new bill

In 2016, a state law allowed school districts in two Tennessee counties to choose whether teachers should carry concealed guns at school. Neither county armed employees. But a new bill would expand that option to school districts across the state.

The background

When it passed, the law applied to Pickett County and Wayne County. It allowed the local boards of education to vote on whether the director of schools should be allowed to authorize specific school employees to carry concealed weapons on school grounds.

According to the director of Pickett County Schools, their district wasn’t interested in arming school employees. But Marlon Davis, the director of Wayne County Schools, said his district pursued the option to supplement school security.

At the time, he said there was a lack of funding for school resource officers, or SROs, in the district. In the end, it was logistical complications with training and insurance that prevented Wayne County Schools from authorizing concealed carry.

Now, several years later, neither district is eligible anymore, since they’re no longer among Tennessee’s “distressed” counties. But HB0041 would extend the option to any board of education in the state. The bill currently has no sponsor in the Senate, which it would need in order to pass. The office of House sponsor Rep. Jay Reedy, R-Erin, declined WPLN’s interview request.

One director’s perspective

Eric Lomax serves as director of Perry County Schools, about an hour and a half southwest of Nashville, and just north of Wayne County. He said he’s “pro-Second Amendment” and has even taken a training for open carry, which he clarified he does not do within the school system.

But Lomax said, he would not want school employees to carry guns.

“There’s too much opportunities for kids to maybe get ahold of a firearm.”

In addition to student safety concerns, Lomax said he’d worry about teachers getting mistaken as a threat in an active shooter situation. 

“When the law enforcement come in, they’re not going to know who’s the good guys and who’s the bad guys.”

And Lomax doubts the district’s insurance would cover the additional liability. 

Instead of arming teachers, Lomax prefers other safety measures.

“I’m in favor of SRO officers in the buildings.” Lomax said SROs in his district run active shooter drills after school hours and receive far more training than a teacher would get.

But that’s also not a perfect solution. Data show that schools with SROs are more likely to refer students to law enforcement, even for minor infractions. And that often disproportionately affects students of color.

So far, as other security measures go, Lomax said the fire marshal has been checking to see whether doors are locked. Perry County Schools have also implemented one-way entrances during school hours, requiring visitors to be buzzed in and vetted.