Western Mass. schools taking additional precautions after Texas shooting

SPRINGFIELD, MA (WGGB/WSHM) - On Wednesday, teachers in western Massachusetts joined others around the state and took a stand against gun violence following the school shooting in Texas which claimed the lives of 19 students and two teachers. Schools across western Massachusetts are now taking additional safety precautions and calling for change.

“We have excellent counselors and the vice principals create a dialogue and we try to give the message that we are all one family and, as a family, we’re going to take care of each other and make sure that we are safe,” said Roberto Christian, a school counselor at Putnam Vocational Technical Academy.

Today, schools across the Bay State stood in solidarity with the community of Uvalde as part of the Massachusetts Teachers Association’s ‘Day of Rage, Mourning, and Action’ following the deadly school shooting in Texas on May 24. Western Mass News spoke with Christian to find out what safety measures they have to make their community feel safe.

“My counselor team, we talk about keeping communication and identify children that are in need or families that are in need and be proactive…We even had a training on how to identify people that are having self-harm. We had a bunch of teachers participating,” Christian explained.

We also spoke with the president of the Springfield Education Association and board member of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, Tracy Little-Sasanecki. She told us why they decided to hold Wednesday’s event.

“We had a Zoom call this week to come up with an action plan…a call to action and we were asking for our local schools to do an action, so whether that was all of us wear black shirts, walk-in together, walk-out together. Some schools put 21 chairs out in remembrance to those students and staff that lost their lives,” Little-Sasanecki explained.

As for what extra steps are being taken to keep students and staff safe in the Springfield district, Little-Sasanecki added, “The superintendent is asking folks to just remember and recall and go over those safety plans with our students like finding a safe place…It’s devastating to have to have these conversations with our students over and over again, to have to practice safety drills, to just be aware of our surroundings because you just never what’s going to happen.”

Other local communities are also discussing additional steps for enhanced safety in schools. The Amherst school committee addressed gun safety measures in their elementary schools on Tuesday night. The Easthampton city council is also scheduled to meet tonight and on their agenda of items to discuss is a gun violence resolution.