IFC’s Educators Academy, our first ever, is just two weeks away. It’s an intensive three-day training event designed to quickly train those school staff members volunteering to be present, trained, and willing to stop any violent attacks on Iowa school kids. 

This prototype course has been developed to be easily duplicated across Iowa. There are still a few seats left for the first night of the Academy’s special event IFC Steak Dinner; “An Evening With Ed Monk” on August 15th.  You can get tickets here.

One of the best examples of this concept in action comes out of Texas.  Here is an important highlight of the Texas Guardian Program and its cost-effectiveness, brought to us by Ammoland.com about the Groesbeck, Texas Independent School District’s implementation of this program.

Groesbeck Independent School District press release:

Two months ago, I sent my monthly superintendent newsletter informing parents of our Guardian Program and new signage (see picture below). Being installed this week, signs will be posted on our campuses which state, “ATTENTION: GISD STAFF ARE ARMED AND TRAINED TO PROTECT OUR STUDENTS. 12”X12” signs will be attached to all building entrances, and larger 3’X3’ signs will be displayed at all parking/drive way entrances.

 

Last year the Groesbeck ISD school board watched the devastation of schools across the country, being forced to prepare for the unthinkable –the potential of a school shooting, and considered appropriate policies. The Board updated local policy, authorizing a School Safety “Guardian” Program (TX Govt. Code 411.1901). Its purpose is to provide students and faculties an armed self-defense option prior to the arrival of Law Enforcement in the event of an active shooter or “active killer” on campus.

 

The Guardians are ISD staff members who have passed strict requirements and training. In order to protect them from becoming targets of an intruder, their names are confidential and are not to be released. I ask that names not be guessed at nor rumors passed in an attempt to protect these individuals.

 

Although the program has been in place for almost a year, the Board of Trustees approved for the district to make the program more visible. By providing the community this information and by placing signs up across the campuses, we are taking additional steps so that people know we are NOT an “easy target” .

The cost of a School Resource Officer is approximately $100,000 per year, but in Texas, Guardians can be trained for about $1000! Yet, believe it or not, it’s the insurance industry here in Iowa that is trying to shut down IFC’s efforts to protect our most loved school children. They are doing that by cutting off insurance protection for any school district that has non-law enforcement armed staffers. This is the same industry that recently engineered a medical malpractice claim in Iowa City to scare our legislatures into limiting medical malpractice non-economic damages in Iowa to protect their profits.

But please remember, like our willing school staffers who are attending the IFC Educators Academy to be Ready at All Times, never forget that those anti-freedom dangerous quacks are playing a long game — but so are we at IFC. Help us by joining or renewing your IFC membership here today.

Shoot Straight, Speak The Truth, and Never Surrender Our Liberties.

Dave Funk
President, IFC