JANUARY 17, 2025|
Photo – CCSD#2 presentation frame – By Matt Copeland Bigfoot99
Carbon County School District Two held a community forum in Hanna on Wednesday evening to discuss a plan to allow school employees to carry concealed weapons on school grounds.
District Superintendent Darrin Jennings discussed the proposed rule change that would allow trained school employees to carry firearms on school grounds. Jennings explained that school staff have been permitted to carry firearms since 2017 under Wyoming state law 21-3-132. The decision to arm school staff was left to individual districts. With the state legislature’s recent push to abolish all gun-free zones, Jennings said the community should decide if Carbon County School District Two should allow vetted and trained staff to carry concealed weapons at schools.
Superintendent Jennings said the rash of school shootings across the county has left many parents concerned for the safety of their children attending state-mandated schools. Jennings said allowing concealed carry by school staff is his district’s way to help protect students.
Carbon County students are not completely unprotected while attending class. Deputy Tyler Christen, with the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office, serves as the School Resource Officer for district two. Deputy Christen is a highly valued asset; however, Superintendent Jennings mentioned that he can’t be present at all seven of the district’s schools at the same time. Having armed school staff would be like having multiple Resource Officers at every school.
Jennings said the proposed rule change will follow the training guidelines set out in Wyoming state law 21-3-132. Employees must complete an initial 16-hour law enforcement training course followed by 12 hours of additional training every year to be permitted to carry on school grounds.
Carbon County Sheriff’s Office will administer firearms training to school officials at no cost to the district.
If the employee passes the live fire training, Jennings said they will then be sent to Casper to undergo a law enforcement-style psychological exam. Only after successfully completing all training and testing would the employee be considered for concealed carry program in schools.
A qualified applicant must have been employed by the school district for at least five years, be in good standing, and submit to random drug testing.
Superintendent Jennings explained that only the participants in the concealed carry program and select school administrators would know who is armed. However, Jennings acknowledged that maintaining confidentiality in Carbon County will be challenging.
The superintendent said not everyone with a gun should be allowed onto school grounds. Individuals must be properly trained to minimize the chance of a student being accidentally shot during an emergency.
Rule CKA’s proposed training and testing requirements will ensure that armed employees meet the necessary criteria.
Members of the audience suggested requiring firearms proficiency testing more than once a year and increasing the amount of shooting range time for successful candidates in the program.
Jennings emphasized that the Carbon County School District Two Board of Trustees will consider all feedback from the community before deciding if Rule CKA should be enacted or not.
The superintendent is asking all residents to visit the CCSD2 website and submit an online comment on the proposed rule change. A direct link will be included with this story when it is posted to the Bigfoot99 website later today.
District Two administrators will hold additional community forums starting on Wednesday, January 22nd, at the Encampment K-12 School. Another meeting is scheduled for the following Wednesday, January 29th, at the Saratoga Middle High School.
A final community forum will take place on Wednesday, February 4th, at Medicine Bow Elementary School. All meetings are scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m.
After the three community forums, Carbon County School District Two officials will hold a final public hearing on Wednesday, February 19th, at 2:00 p.m., during the regular school board meeting at the CCSD2 Central Office in Saratoga. The Board of Trustees will vote on Rule CKA during their March 17th meeting at the Saratoga Middle High School
Proposed CKA Rule Changes and Online Comment Submission: Carbon County School Dist. No. 2 – District Public Notices
