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How likely is Pittsburgh to arm its school officers?

  • Courier Newsroom
Police officers from Pittsburgh Public Schools and city police attended a school board meeting that focused on the possibility of arming officers on school campuses. (Photo by Kat Procyk/PublicSource)

Pittsburgh Public Schools is debating a proposal to arm the officers who patrol district schools.The district’s Chief of School Safety George Brown Jr. made the request to arm officers Monday night at the board policy committee meeting. The Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers, which represents the officers, supports the proposal.
However, the proposal doesn’t appear to have the support of the majority of the school board, whose members expressed concerns about the safety of students — Black students in particular — if officers were to carry guns.
“We know who gets shot: students of color and students with IEPs,” said board member Moira Kaleida, who chaired the Monday meeting. The IEP reference is to individualized education plans provided for students with special needs.
The district adopted the current school safety policy in 1997 to promote the safety and welfare of students while they are in school and while traveling to and from school and to keep district property safe. It does not authorize school police to carry firearms.
READ MORE AT:
https://www.publicsource.org/how-likely-is-pittsburgh-to-arm-its-school-officers/
 

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