By: Lane Segura
Gun violence dominates the headlines in the United States, and few tragedies capture national attention like school shootings. Legislatures face constant public pressure to respond with new policies and laws. At the forefront of this policymaking is the ever-present, ever-controversial proposition of arming teachers and school staff.
There is an oft-cited statistic that “about thirty states” allow non-law enforcement individuals to carry firearms in schools.[1] However, this figure encompasses a wide array of legal frameworks, ranging from statewide, explicit statutory authorization to a grant of discretion at the local school district level.[2] In 2013, South Dakota was the first state to enact a law explicitly permitting teachers and volunteers to carry firearms in schools.[3] Broadly interpreted, about thirty states provide some mechanism for school employees or volunteers to be armed, subject to an assortment of restrictions,[4] such as background checks and mandatory training programs.[5] At least nine states have statutes that specifically exempt “listed school employees” from a generalized ban on firearms in K-12 schools.[6] Even among these states, specifics vary, including the scope of mandated training.[7]
The effectiveness of these laws is difficult to measure. Even within a single state, schools differ considerably. In addition to the basic public-private distinction, schools can be rural or urban, small or large, and each has a unique culture and community. This makes broad trends among schools difficult to track.[8] As an additional barrier, the deeply divisive and emotional nature of the debate makes unbiased empirical studies rare.
Supporters claim arming teachers and staff is required to “effectively protect children[,]”[9] while critics argue it “heighten[s] the safety risk to the entire school community.”[10] This polarization pervades the methodology and interpretation of studies. For example, opponents often cite the statistic that gun violence became the number one cause of death among children in 2020.[11] However, this ranking depends on how “children” are defined: while true for those aged one to nineteen, if the age range is capped at seventeen, motor vehicle accidents remain the leading cause, while including children under one places congenital defects in the lead.[12] Although the steep increase in firearm-related deaths is staggering, data on both sides of the argument are often framed for dramatization purposes to suit political arguments.
The most reliable data concerning specifically the issue of arming school staff is therefore confined to individual events. There have been several reports of firearms being mishandled by employees and teachers in schools, and even of trained officers leaving their weapons unattended in a school bathroom or locker room.[13] Critics argue that if even trained professionals make such errors, the risks only increase when minimally trained staff are armed.[14] While such incidents have not yet led to highly publicized injuries, the potential remains. At the same time, there are also stories of school personnel successfully using firearms to prevent harm, such as a teacher who stopped a kidnapping[15] and a School Resource Officer (SRO) who intervened in an attempted shooting[16] (SROs are law enforcement officers that are “specifically trained … in school-based law enforcement and crisis response[.]”).[17] Although these examples are not directly comparable, proponents argue that armed staff provide an alternative to schools that can’t afford an SRO.[18]
This national debate has now come to the North Carolina legislature. On July 29, 2025, the legislature voted to override Governor Stein’s veto and pass House Bill 193, which permits employees and volunteers in private schools to carry a firearm or stun gun under certain conditions.[19] To qualify, an individual must:
- Hold a concealed handgun permit,
- Complete a minimum of eight hours of annual training, and
- Obtain written permission from the school’s board of trustees or administration.[20]
Additionally, schools must provide parents with an annual copy of their “standard operating procedures” related to arming staff.[21] The law takes effect on December 1, 2025.[22]
Public schools, however, remain subject to stricter regulations. With a few limited exceptions, such as for emergency personnel or school-sanctioned ceremonial use,[23] carrying a firearm in a K-12 school is generally prohibited unless the individual is a law enforcement officer.[24]
Like the nationwide debate, the controversy over House Bill 193 is divided strictly along party lines, with Republicans unanimously confirming and Democrats casting every opposing vote.[25]
Representative Jeff McNeely, a sponsor of the bill, described it as a matter of achieving equitable security for private schools, many of which “don’t have the financial capacity or ability to be able to bring a law enforcement officer [or SRO] in[.]”[26] He purported that extending the law to encompass school staff and volunteers makes armed security “obtainable” for all schools and gave the examples of a staff member, a retired law enforcement officer, or even a student’s grandparent.[27] This argument falls in line with the general arguments made by proponents of similar policies, who argue that the option of arming staff provides crucial protection in rural areas with slow police response times, and where hiring an SRO could be prohibitively expensive.[28] It also gives schools local authority over security decisions, giving control to those who presumably know the staff and students best.[29] Additionally, proponents assert that the knowledge that staff members might be armed could serve as a deterrent, and that even in schools with SROs, there is no guarantee that the officer will be in the right place at the right time, and an armed staff member could help fill in the gaps.[30]
By contrast, Governor Stein emphasized the huge gap in mandatory training.[31] Law enforcement officers and SROs “receive more than 800 hours of public safety education[,]” with SROs receiving additional, school-based training addressing “how to respond to crises and how to deescalate conflicts.”[32] House Bill 193 requires just eight hours of annual training.[33] This reflects the general rationale of opposition to similar laws: that introducing more guns into schools in the hands of non-professionals increases the likelihood of accidents.[34] The potential for school liability related to injuries or deaths resulting from armed staff also raises insurance concerns. In Kansas, implementation of a policy arming school staff was stalled for years after a major insurer warned schools that implementing such policies created a “heightened liability risk[]” that they would not cover.[35]
The debate over House Bill 193 intersects with a separate proposal, Senate Bill 50, which would allow North Carolinians over the age of eighteen to carry a concealed handgun without a permit.[36] Although Governor Stein also vetoed Senate Bill 50, like House Bill 193, it is subject to potential override, and his veto has already been overridden in the Senate.[37]If enacted, Senate Bill 50 would significantly loosen gun regulations. Currently, a concealed carry permit requires that an applicant be:
- At least twenty-one years old,
- Free from any “physical or mental infirmity” that prevents safe handling of a gun,
- Successful in completing an approved firearms safety and training course, and
- Fingerprinted and cleared through a background check.[38]
The permit must be renewed, and a background check repeated, every five years.[39]
Senate Bill 50 would lower the age threshold to eighteen, eliminate the fingerprinting and more extensive background check requirement, and abolish the required safety course.[40] If combined with House Bill 193, the law would significantly reduce the threshold for who could qualify to carry a weapon in a private school: qualification would be based only on the annual eight hours of training and obtaining the school’s permission.[41]
Whether the majority of private schools will ultimately choose to implement House Bill 193 remains to be seen. When South Dakota enacted its law in 2013, few districts ultimately opted to arm teachers even several years later.[42] The coming years will reveal whether North Carolina’s private schools take advantage of this new option, and how students, parents, and communities respond.
[1] Amy Rock, Which States Let Teachers Carry Guns in School?, Campus Safety (Aug. 6, 2025), https://www.campussafetymagazine.com/news/which-states-let-teachers-carry-guns-in-school/134686/; Which States Allow Teachers to Carry Concealed, U.S. Conceal Carry Ass’n (May 10, 2024), https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/blog/which-states-allow-teachers-to-carry-concealed/.
[2] Guns in Schools, Giffords L. Ctr., https://giffords.org/lawcenter/gun-laws/policy-areas/guns-in-public/guns-in-schools/ (last visited Sept. 24, 2025); Rock, supra note 1.
[3] Michael Wyland, School Volunteers with Guns, Nonprofit Q. (Mar. 11, 2013), https://nonprofitquarterly.org/school-volunteers-with-guns/.
[4] Guns in Schools, supra note 2; Rock, supra note 1.
[5] Guardian Program, Godley ISD, https://www.godleyisd.net/departments/police/guardian-program (last visited Sept. 24, 2025).
[6] School Safety: Guns in Schools, Nat’l Conf. of State Legislatures (June 20, 2023), https://www.ncsl.org/education/school-safety-guns-in-schools.
[7] Id.
[8] Research Review Methodology, RAND (July 16, 2024), https://www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/methodology.html.
[9] Which States Allow Teachers to Carry Concealed, supra note 1.
[10] Amanda Litvinov, Arming Teachers Still a Terrible Idea, NEA Today (June 10, 2024), https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/arming-teachers-still-terrible-idea.
[11] Jill Terreri Ramos, Fact-check: Are Firearms the Leading Cause of Death in Children?, Statesman (June 7, 2022), https://www.statesman.com/story/news/politics/politifact/2022/06/07/fact-check-firearms-leading-cause-death-children/7529783001/.
[12] About Provisional Mortality Statistics, 2018 Through Last Week, CDC Wonder, https://wonder.cdc.gov/controller/saved/D176/D408F176 (last visited Sept. 23, 2025); Ramos, supra note 11.
[13] Kelly Drane, Every Incident of Mishandled Guns in Schools, Giffords L. Ctr. (Dec. 2, 2021), https://giffords.org/lawcenter/report/every-incident-of-mishandled-guns-in-schools/.
[14] Christine McHugh, Increased Risks and Costs of Arming Educators, United Educators (Dec. 2024), https://www.ue.org/risk-management/premises-safety/increased-risks-and-costs-of-arming-educators/#:~:text=Liability%20and%20Insurance%20Considerations&text=In%20some%20cases%2C%20the%20school,result%20in%20excessive%20force%20claims.
[15] Christian Xaypanya, Armed Teacher Saves Student from Attempted Kidnapping, USA Carry (June 9, 2021), https://www.usacarry.com/armed-teacher-saves-student-from-attempted-kidnapping/#:~:text=by%20Christian%20Xaypanya,protected%20under%20the%20Second%20Amendment.
[16] Emily Shapiro, ‘Heroic’ Resource Officer Hailed for Stopping Armed Teen at High School, Saving Lives, ABC News (May 16, 2018), https://abcnews.go.com/US/police-officer-confronts-armed-man-illinois-high-school/story?id=55204700.
[17] Frequently Asked Questions, Nat’l Ass’n of Sch. Res. Officers, https://www.nasro.org/faq/ (last visited Sept. 21, 2025).
[18] The Effects of Laws Allowing Armed Staff in K-12 Schools, RAND (July 16, 2024), https://www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/analysis/laws-allowing-armed-staff-in-K12-schools.html#:~:text=Officers%20could%20mistake%20the%20teacher,in%20the%20past%20few%20decades.
[19] House Bill 193 / SL 2025-81, N.C. Gen. Assemb., https://ncleg.gov/BillLookUp/2025/H193 (last visited Sept. 24, 2025).
[20] H.R. 193, 2025 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (N.C. 2025), https://ncleg.gov/Sessions/2025/Bills/House/PDF/H193v5.pdf.
[21] Id.
[22] Id.
[23] N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-269.2(f)–(g) (2025).
[24] Id. § 14-269.2(a).
[25] House Bill 193 / SL 2025-81, supra note 19.
[26] Adam Wagner, NC Private Schools Could Soon Let Some Volunteers and Staff Carry Guns, WUNC (June 20, 2025), https://www.wunc.org/education/2025-06-20/nc-private-schools-carry-guns.
[27] Id.
[28] The Effects of Laws Allowing Armed Staff in K-12 Schools, supra note 18.
[29] Id.
[30] Id.
[31] Governor Stein Takes Action on 12 Bills, N.C. Off. of the Governor (July 9, 2025), https://governor.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2025/07/09/governor-stein-takes-action-12-bills.
[32] Id.
[33] Id.
[34] Arming Teachers and School Staff, Nat’l Sch. Safety and Sec. Servs., https://schoolsecurity.org/trends/arming-teachers-and-school-staff/ (last visited Sept. 23, 2025).
[35] Phil McCausland, Guns in Schools: Insurance Premiums Could Present Hurdle in Arming Teachers, NBC News (Apr. 2, 2018), https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/guns-schools-insurance-premiums-could-present-hurdle-arming-teachers-n859846.
[36] S. 50, 2025 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (N.C. 2025), https://ncleg.gov/Sessions/2025/Bills/Senate/PDF/S50v4.pdf.
[37] Senate Bill 50, N.C. Gen. Assemb., https://www.ncleg.gov/BillLookUp/2025/S50 (last visited Sept. 24, 2025).
[38] N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-415.12(a); Id. § 14-415.13.
[39] Id. § 14-415.16(c).
[40] LCSO Firearm FAQ’s, Lee Cnty. N.C., https://leecountync.gov/departments/sheriff_s_office/firearm_faq.php#:~:text=Effective%20March%2029%2C%202023%20The%20North%20Carolina,(NICS)%20and%20complete%20the%20ATF%20Form%204473 (last visited Sept. 24, 2025).
[41] H.R. 193, 2025 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (N.C. 2025).
[42] Caitlin Emma, In 2 Rural States That Let Teachers Carry Guns, Few Schools Take Part, POLITICO (Aug. 7, 2018), https://www.politico.com/story/2018/08/07/school-shootings-teachers-guns-726693.
