Why Des Moines schools aren’t letting teachers carry guns despite new law

Iowa's largest and most diverse school district has no plans to arm its staff despite passage of a new state law allowing that.

Neither do most of the suburban school districts surrounding it.

Des Moines Public Schools' decision not to utilize the weeks-old state law is partially because the district already employs a public safety team, officials said.

"Des Moines Public Schools does not have an interest in allowing teachers and staff to be armed in our school buildings and has no plans to opt into a new program that allows for guns to be present in schools," said Phil Roeder, the district's spokesperson.

The renewed conversation around whether school district staff should be armed came to the forefront during the 2024 legislative session following a deadly shooting at Perry High School in early January. The gunman, a 17-year-old student, killed an 11-year-old student and the high school principal before killing himself.

Iowa school officials already could arm staff under Iowa code 724.4B, but districts hit barriers in the process. Spirit Lake and Cherokee school district officials attempted to arm staff under the previous code but reversed course after insurance carrier EMC had refused to cover the districts for the 2023-24 school year if they proceeded.

The Iowa Department of Education does not collect data on which school districts approve staff to carry firearms, said Heather Doe, the department's spokesperson.

During the 2024 legislative session, Republican lawmakers introduced House File 2586, which allows school officials to arm staff and grants qualified immunity for those who are OK'd to carry a weapon on school grounds. Lawmakers said they believed giving school staff qualified immunity would ease the insurance issue.

Perry Community School District — which is still dealing with the aftermath of the shooting — has not considered whether to arm staff.

"The new law has not been discussed by the board," board President Linda Andorf said .

Around the Des Moines metro, school officials are weighing next steps.

An Iowa Poll conducted in late February showed that 60% of Iowans supported arming school staff, including teachers. More than 30 states allow schools to arm staff.

Earlier this month, Gov. Kim Reynolds signed House File 2586 into law.

Related: Iowa Poll: After Perry High shooting, most Iowans favor letting teachers have guns in school

Des Moines leaders focus on cybersecurity as well as physical safety

Des Moines schools' decision not to arm staff comes at a time when officials are focusing on overall district security and cybersecurity.

Security became a priority heading into the current 2023-24 school year, following deadly shootings at East High School in 2022 and Starts Right Here alternative school in January 2023.

The district was also closed for several days in early 2023 because of a ransomware attack. In response, the Des Moines School Board significantly increased what the district spends on overall security for the current 2023-24 school budget.

Some of the increased budget went to expanding the district's full-time public safety staff.

“We believe that the role of our teachers is to educate our students, and the role of the district is to keep our students, teachers and staff safe,” Des Moines School Board Chair Jackie Norris said.

Related: Des Moines school officials are deciding whether to keep school resource officers. What are SROs?

House File 2586 also requires larger schools to employ a school resource officer but allows school boards to opt out. Des Moines school officials have no plans to bring back school resource officers.

The district discontinued its school resource officer contract with the Des Moines Police Department in 2021 following an audit that showed Black students were more likely than their white peers to have an interaction with law enforcement at school.

The district's safety plan includes a mix of measures including campus monitors, “targeted restorative justice approaches,” which help staff handle issues as they arise, building improvements and updated technology, Norris said.

“I think our teachers are our caregivers in the classroom,” Norris said. “And I think that is the role that they want to play and have signed up to play. And quite honestly, I haven't heard from a single teacher or community member that has asked us to equip our teachers with guns at this time.”

Related: 'Enough with the prayers.' Students march on Iowa Capitol to demand action on gun violence

Metro school districts lean against allowing staff to carry guns

The Johnston School Board’s three-member policy committee met Wednesday to discuss House File 2586.

“District board policy 502.6 currently prohibits weapons on school district property,” said Lynn Meadows, Johnston Community School District’s spokesperson. The policy committee discussion focused on making edits to clarify board policy, she said.

The proposed revisions suggest district officials will continue to prohibit weapons on school district property, Meadows said.

A final decision is expected to be made by the Johnston School Board at its May 6 meeting.

Related: Gov. Kim Reynolds signs bill letting school staff obtain permit to carry guns at school

Waukee and Urbandale school districts are both planning to prohibit staff, other than law enforcement, from carrying firearms on school grounds.

Both school boards are expected to take up the issue in May.

On Feb.19, the Urbandale School Board “unanimously approved a resolution supporting greater education and awareness on the proper storage of firearms,” school board President Jason Menke said.

Officials will need to update the student handbook to include “information about adults’ legal obligations regarding the secure storage of firearms, and to provide parents with information about secure storage at student registration.”

“I don’t believe we’ll have armed teachers in Urbandale in the near future," Menke said.

Laine Buck, spokesperson for the West Des Moines Community School District, said, "We have not made any decisions regarding this decision," but the district does already have several school resource officers through the West Des Moines and Clive police departments who have been in place for several years.

At Ankeny and Dallas Center-Grimes school districts, officials are still reviewing the law with legal teams and insurance companies.

Ankeny officials are “reviewing the language of the new law to determine the policy, funding and operational implications,” said Samantha Aukes, Ankeny Community School District's spokesperson.

Officials in the North Polk district have not decided on policy while awaiting further guidance from the district's attorneys.

"There is still a lot of ambiguity surrounding this matter, and we want to ensure we do our due diligence before deciding a path forward around such a sweeping change," North Polk spokesperson Hunter Fleshner said.

Education officials and advocates said they appreciate that the new law gives school districts the opportunity to choose security measures that are right for their district.

“As a parent who sends their kid to school every day, I think I join with just about every other parent in this country that is worried about the safety of our children in a school building,” Norris said. “And it is an issue that should be at the forefront of every single school district, but it should be left up to the school district to address that issue in a way that best works for them.”

Related: SEL teaches kids to deal with their emotions. It's under attack as 'woke' indoctrination.

The Iowa State Education Association was among those who registered against the bill, said President Mike Beranek.

“We do not agree that it's appropriate to be arming our educators in our buildings when there are many other avenues which districts can utilize to ensure that our children are safe,” Beranek said. “It is incredibly important that local control is paramount in this bill.”

Editor's note: A previously published version of this story misstated information about the Des Moines Public Schools' public safety team, who are not armed.

Reporters Phillip Sitter and Chris Higgins contributed to this story.

Samantha Hernandez covers education for the Register. Reach her at (515) 851-0982 or svhernandez@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @svhernandez or Facebook at facebook.com/svhernandezreporter.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Des Moines Public Schools won't arm staff; metro schools mull options