Agua Dulce warns 'staff may be armed'

Teachers in Agua Dulce "are willing to use whatever force is necessary to protect students," a sign outside the high school reads.

Similar signs are posted throughout Agua Dulce ISD to deter people from plotting against schools, said Superintendent Wayne Kelly. They are an extension of a new district policy that permits select teachers and staff to carry concealed weapons throughout the school day.

"We're rural, we're vulnerable and we want to do all we can to protect our children," Kelly said.

Teachers and staff have to undergo a psychiatric evaluation and 80 hours of training by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement to carry a weapon at district campuses, Kelly said, adding each petition to carry also has to be approved by the school board.

"It's pretty extensive," Kelly said of the process. "Not everyone is authorized."

The number of Agua Dulce ISD faculty who have been authorized to carry is confidential and so is the number of school districts the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement is providing training, said commission spokeswoman Gretchen Grigsby.

Grigsby said the 80-hour training covers physical security, improving the security of a campus, use of force, active shooter response and weapon proficiency.

Texas school districts can choose between two plans — the Guardian Plan and the Marshal Plan — to authorize employees to carry a firearm on school property.

The 2013 approval for the Protection of Texas Children Act gave districts the option to arm and train one school employee, or “school marshal,” for every four hundred students. But long before the law, the Harrold Independent School District pioneered the Guardian Plan, which permitted select teachers and staff to carry concealed weapons.

Agua Dulce opted for the Guardian Plan because "it's a little bit more flexible" on several fronts, Kelly said. The Agua Dulce ISD board of trustees approved the implementation of the Agua Dulce School Guardian Program during an Oct. 24 meeting and public hearing. Unlike stipulations for the Marshal Plan, "guardians" are not licensed by the commission. But Kelly said Agua Dulce staff is expected to undergo the same training.

Kelly said among other factors, allowing staff to be armed is the most cost-effective way to improve student safety. The district pays about $300 per psychological evaluation and much of the training has been funded by a grant from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement, Kelly said, adding staff is to acquire their own weapon but the district provides ammo.

The district of about 350 students operates on an about $4 million budget. Kelly said Agua Dulce ISD can't afford to hire a campus security officer — which would cost between $40,000 - $50,000 annually — and response to an emergency by local law enforcement can be spotty. Agua Dulce has a population of about 830 and does not have a city police department. Nueces County constables can sometimes take up to an hour to respond to an emergency in Agua Dulce, depending on where they are when the call comes in, Kelly said.

“Allowing staff to be armed is the most cost-effective way to improve student safety, but it's also the most effective research-based way of protecting students in an active shooter scenario,” Kelly said.