A deadly school shooting in Minneapolis on Wednesday, Aug. 27 left two children dead and 17 others injured, renewing calls for school safety measures that extend beyond locked doors and cameras.
While Minnesota grieves, Arizona leaders say the state is working to prevent tragedies by putting people at the center of school safety.
“The school shooting in Minnesota is an incredible tragedy,” said Superintendent Tom Horne. “My heart goes out to the victims and their families. Avoiding this happening in Arizona is why I have increased the number of police officers in our schools from 190 to 563. Earlier this year, one of those police officers, who had been in place for just two weeks, arrested a man who had entered a school with a gun and a knife saying that he was going to kill students to make them famous.”
Expanding the school safety program
House Bill 2074, signed into law May 6, 2025, broadened the state’s School Safety Program under ARS 15-154. The measure allows retired police officers to serve as school safety officers and funds counselors and social workers alongside school resource officers…