I’ll pull my kid if the asinine ideas about arming teachers become reality. I think that would cause lots of good teachers to quit and would be a death spiral for public schools.

Until then, I’m not considering it.

Anonymous wrote:Has there been a shooting at a private school?

At Episcopal School of Jacksonville, a former teacher shot and killed the head of school in 2012. I'm sure there are others.

But only 10% of students attend private school -- and that percentage is even smaller by high school -- so it would be reasonable to assume that the vast majority of school shootings happen where the vast majority of students go to school.

If you have girls, then an all girls school all but negates the risk of a student shooter. You can't account for outsiders but there hasn't been a female student school shooter.

Has there been a shooting at a private school?

Anonymous wrote:What’s the difference between private and UMC public districts? This is a wealthy kind of town — as were Newtown and Colombine. Weird kids can be anywhere. Come on — at your school, didn’t you think there were 1-2 real weirdos — there are at every school. And at both UMC publics and privates, these kids have cash in their pockets and can buy weaponry.

weird kids won't be let into the best privates.

i can't imagine any of these shooter types being sidwell students.

I do think privates are a lot less prone to any type of violence. They’re small enough that if someone is having issues, there will be a intervention of some sort or an expulsion. We also have a lot more security per pupil.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Private isnot any better than public, in my opinion. If you want to keep them in a bubble, you will have to home school. And not go any where for field trips.

Our private has full time security on campus.

Most public high schools do too.

Not just high schools. Our public ES and MS also have full time security, and the MS and HS have metal detectors.

Yes OP, I won't be able to act on the impulse financially but I definitely understand the feeling of wanting to protect your kids by keeping them out of school. It's heartbreaking that we have to send them to places with their life in the balance every day in this society.

I would say cars are different because even though the risk of death is higher, we accept that risk for the benefits cars bring to our lives on a daily basis, and I could personally choose to live in the city and never drive if I were truly concerned and wanted to avoid the risk. I do not accept the risk of my kid getting shot in elementary school for the benefits of gun ownership, but it doesn't matter what I think, they are at the mercy of others.

What about nightclubs, Vegas, movie theaters? Mass shooting are happening everywhere. I do feel that public schools are particularly vulnerable though.

Anonymous wrote:OK, my kids go to public school, but I would think privates would be safer-- teachers know everyone and it's kind of hard to be a total weirdo and get in. The types doing these shootings don't seem like the type that would be in the pool at Sidwell.

Agreed. There's an anonymity factor at large public schools. Although some of the students knew of the shooter, many more did not and even one of the teachers he had didn't seem to notice anything off about him.

The irony is for years I worried about my child at Sidwell because I felt the school was a target when Obama was president. I don’t delude myself that kids in private school are better adjusted or less likely to have mental illness. BUT, I do think in smaller, close-knit environments kids who are troubled might be spotted sooner. Kids who are troubled also might benefit from the smaller teacher/student ratio. So perhaps there are more protective factors when it comes to home-grown school shooters. But I don’t think money insulates. Rich kids have problems too, as do their parents.

More gun violence happens in homes than in schools.

That said, it's too much gun violence, period.

Most privates we have toured have unlocked front doors with a single, nice receptionist inside.

good god, just look at the countries that had ONE mass shooting and clamped down. Voila, no more. We have had HUNDREDS and nothing has been done.

This x100. But no, in our country , everything else must be fixed first: parenting, god, metal detectors, security guards, video gaming, mental health, and so forth. Fix all of them. Sure . Can we then finally have stricter gun laws? Or not ever? So tired of distraction and diversion. Come on!!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- That was my first thought. DC went to private K-8 and is now in public magnet 9th. I just wonder if we made the right decision.

Why? Throwing money around doesn't solve the problem. You realize this is a really well to do town, right? As were Newtown and Colombine. The parents sending kids to this district could just as easily have afforded private -- including the shooter's mom. So then he would've been disgruntled at being kicked out of his private and done the same thing. I don't get why everyone on DCUM always thinks if you spend more, it fixes everything.

+1