Des Moines, IA (WHOTV) –There have been 128 school shootings in America since the tragedy at Columbine. American children are growing up with locked doors, security cameras, and adults debating the best ways to keep them safe. An Iowa school district invited law enforcement to put safety back in the hands of students through a program that instructs kids to fight back.
When a sheriff’s deputy asks how they would survive a school shooting, the students at Colo-Nesco High School in Colo, Iowa are armed with answers, and administrators are proud of that fact. “If there’s a shooter in the school, it’s going to be scary. So, we need to get them prepared,” said Colo-Nesco Elementary School Principal Mickolyn Clapper.
In fact, in a worst case scenario the teenagers know how to counteract and take down any would-be shooter. Sophomore Devin Francis explained, “It’s better to think about what we can do (in that situation), instead of what we cannot.”
Most local law enforcement agencies promote the program that Colo-Nesco implemented with training sessions and school assemblies earlier this year. The strategy called ALICE does not involve armed guards. No guns are used for defense. There is no budget busting cost or any of the things that superintendents consider deal-breakers.
