Following President Trump’s recent remarks regarding a desire to arm teachers in order to improve school safety. Many students, teachers, and citizens nationwide have offered opinions.

Students and teachers have both fallen victim in tragic school shootings leaving them with mixed opinions on how they should be better protected in the case of an active shooter on campus.

Sophomore Jack Wehle thinks that though it may be a flawed plan something must change.

“I am very uncomfortable knowing that if there is an active shooter, we are basically just sitting hoping that help arrives soon.” Wehle said.

Although it would not be his top choice of defense, Wehle admitted to the possible positives of arming teachers.

“At least we would have some sort of last option defense in the case that a shooter arrives,” Wehle said.

Wehle is not alone in feeling uneasy that we have very little defense against a shooter. However, other students would argue that the solution is not through adding more guns to the equation. One of those students is senior Gabby Thompson.

In Thompson’s opinion, she feels as though putting guns in the hands of teachers would throw off the teacher-student relationship.

“I think that the dynamic in the classroom would feel a little more uneasy,” Thompson said. “There is already a hierarchy in the classroom [and] this would maybe even establish fear in the students.”

To Thompson, more guns would not help relieve the situation but actually produce more chaos. In her opinion, armed teachers could only cause more violence than that which is already occurring.

“Why fight fire with fire when there are other options?” said Thompson.

Of course, there is more to the equation than just the opinion of students. Teachers too must now deal with the possibility that they could personally be armed in the school.

One teacher, a veteran combat officer who has gone through firearms training in the military, Mr. Joyce teaches Math at Hopkinton High School. He brought some statistical analysis into play.

“Statistically even, adding guns to school is a poor idea. More guns does not mean more safety,” said Joyce.

Some may think a veteran like Joyce would want to be armed. However, he wanted nothing to do with it.

“You cannot make school safer. You have to work on making people safer with a kinder and gentler society,” said Joyce.

High school mother Claire Delaney proposed a solution beyond to stop a shooter. She wants to stop shooters from having power in the first place.

“I believe assault weapons need to be banned so that my kids and all of us are safer,” said Delaney.

A stricter restriction on guns is a consideration in Congress, but will always be disputed by those who believe their rights to own guns are protected under the second amendment.

The debate on gun laws and protection will be argued over but the common thought is violence must be prevented quickly and deliberately.