SARATOGA SPRINGS — After weeks of debate, the Saratoga Springs City School District board of education voted 5 to 4 on Tuesday, October 9, to end the practice of school hallway monitors carrying firearms. In a public forum in the beginning of the meeting, several community members, parents and students alike, came out in favor of voting no, while another community member and teacher urged the board to vote yes to keep the guns.
The people who spoke out against the guns reasoned that the school has not done enough research on the matter, commenting that there was “no task force, no committee, no public forums, no question-and-answer periods.”
Michelle King, a member of Saratoga Conservative Chicks, was in favor of a yes vote, explaining that the hallway monitors are there to protect their children and “they can’t do it without the tools.” Superintendent Michael Patton reminded those in attendance that the district’s main concern is the safety of the students and staff.