Dear President,

Being a high school student in today’s society is very stressful, not just because of the homework, but because there are so many crazy situations happening. I’m a junior at Salem High School, and the other day, we received word that someone had threatened to come and shoot kids at our school. Hearing this made me sick to my stomach. I’d heard about all the other school shootings, but I never imagined that my school would be someone’s target. It was extremely scary, because we didn’t know if it was a hoax or not. Our attendance was cut in half that day, many students were too afraid to come, and many parents wouldn’t let them anyways. I didn’t attend school that day, but I was praying that nothing bad happened to the kids that went. I’m grateful for the way my school and local law enforcement handled this matter. Even though nothing happened it was still a very frightening event, which tampered with our education.

In 2013, Everytown began tracking gunfire in schools and on campuses. Over the next 3 years there were 160 qualifying incidents. With these incidents, there have been 59 deaths and 124 non-fatal gunshot injuries. Numerous of these incidents were caused by a confrontation or argument that intensified. In these cases, if it is a student, they have generally obtained the gun from home. This is due to the lack of responsibility of the parents, and not keeping the guns stored properly and unloaded. I’m not saying that people shouldn’t be able to own firearms, but parents need to learn to store firearms in a safe and secure location. While many shootings have happened on college campuses, 53% have happened at K-12 schools. I hate to suggest this, because to some students school already feels like a prison, but something needs to happen. So my suggestion is to put metal detectors in the entrances to schools all around the United States. I get this will be very expensive, but it will help with many shootings that have and will take place. Many parents may not approve of this, because of how expensive it is, but I think it will help out in the long run.

So President, I’m leaving it up to you to decide if this can be done. If not this, then something else needs to happen soon. School is supposed to be a safe place, where kids can learn and hang out with friends. Yet in today’s world, many students have to worry if their school will be the next target. Schools need to take drills at their school very seriously, and have more drills often. Students need to know what to do to be prepared in an event like this. If schools and students are prepared, it could mean the difference between being a survivor and being a statistic.

Congratulations on your Presidency,

Garrett