TOLEDO, Ohio — Concern in schools over House Bill 99 continued after it passed in both the Ohio House and Senate.
The only thing standing in the way of it becoming law is Gov. Mike DeWine's signature.
The bill would allow school employees to carry guns if they decide to opt in.
"Is this where we've come now where incidents happen and the answer is 'we'll just give them the ability to arm themselves and respond that way?'" Perrysburg superintendent, Tom Hosler, said. "We're treating a symptom and I think there's a much deeper issue."
The bill has raised concern with school leaders in the wake of mass shootings that have happened across the nation in the last couple of weeks.
"We're asking people to form young men and women and then also possibly use lethal force against them. It just doesn't ring consistent," St. Francis de Sales' president, Fr. Geoff Rose, said.
For this bill to be implemented in schools, it would need to be brought forward and approved by the school's board of education.
Fr. Rose said since the bill was reintroduced St. Francis has been in contact with a group called the Educators School Safety Network to get their input on this bill.
He said it's not something they are looking to implement.
"It feels very incongruent to us in terms of being educators, whose mission and vocation in life is to be formators of young people. To put them into a secondary role feels not just counterintuitive, but counterproductive," Rose said.
Both school leaders agree the bill could be useful in some districts, but our area police departments have quick response times and there are school resource officers.
Hosler said the issues we've seen with gun violence aren't just in schools.
"Are we getting to a point where now nurses are going to be the ones armed, our priests and clergy are going to be the ones armed at events? The baggers at the grocery stores going to be the ones armed? This isn't a school issue, I think it becomes a much larger question of society," Hosler said.
They also feel that arming teachers and custodians may do more harm than good, especially when the new bill has modifications that would lessen the number of training hours to be approved to carry a gun.
"I just think, you can't be doing less training for a group where it's already not their primary vocation. That's a recipe for disaster," Rose said.
Some community members have commented on WTOL 11's Facebook page about the bill.
Walter Herzel posted this comment: "I'd rather have an untrained teacher that's willing to defend children than a cop that's 'too afraid' to protect children."
Viewer Donovan Barry responded with a question: "If teachers can be allowed to arm themselves what's the point in having a resource officer in schools then?"
Meanwhile, Hosler said the best way to keep violence out of school is by connecting with students and having support for students and families who need it.
"We want teachers who are going to be able to connect with students in a meaningful way. Arming teachers begin to change that dynamic," Hosler said.