Another school and another group of families are going through the unimaginable. Something unacceptable. People are angry and scared, but how do we begin to deal with that?

Students should not be afraid to go to school. Young students may not completely understand what is going on but they understand enough. Older students have seen more than one shooting incident and now the students in Florida have dealt with it on a more personal level. This is not an issue that students should ever have to deal, and yet here we are. How do we begin to answer the questions of elementary school kids who hear stories on the radio and news? They sit at the same dinner table as their parents hearing them discuss the latest tragedy. We think they don’t listen or that they don’t understand but they understand so much more than we give them credit for. How do we begin to tell them that they will never be in danger at school because school is a safe place? Are we lying through our teeth when we say those things?

How do the older students fit into the conversation? They understand what is happening more than the younger students. Some of the students are months from being able to vote, but they are still in a position where the only tool they have is their voice. Do we tell them to sit down and let the adults handle this issue? After the shooting on February 14^th there were more cases of students with weapons at school, but was it to attack other students or was it in self-defense? How do we reassure the students that they can and will be protected in our educational institutions?

Students know what is going on and their concerns cannot be ignored. Please sit down and listen to everything they have to say. They go through their education being told that they are safe and they are realizing that the safety cannot be guaranteed. The conversation needs to be opened up and not ignored.