Donald Trump board prescribes guns in schools to keep US students safe

Washington, Dec 19 (AFP) A security board set up by US President Donald Trump in the wake of numerous school shootings recommended Tuesday that schools consider arming staff, using veterans as guards and reversing Obama-era guidelines.

The Federal Commission on School Safety board, driven by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, was set up after the February slaughter in Parkland, Florida, when a former student shot dead 17 people, sparking mass gun control protests.

The commission rejected calls to increase the minimum age required for gun purchases, arguing in its 180-page report that most school shooters get their weapons from family members or friends.

Rather, it suggested arming staff - even teachers in a few conditions - "for the sake of effectively and immediately responding to violence." School districts where police reactions could be slower, such as rural districts, may benefit in particular, the commission said.

It also recommended education authorities hiring military veterans and former police officers who "can also fill in as highly effective instructors." The report pushes for an audit of disciplinary rules presented in 2014 under previous president Barack Obama, which proposed options in contrast to suspension and ejection to handle oppression dark and Latino students.

The commission's report said the measure has had "a solid negative effect on school control and security." The American Civil Liberties Union censured that suggestion.

"The Trump organization is exploiting tragedies to justify rolling back school children's civil rights protections, in spite of the absence of any evidence connecting school discipline change to acts of mass violence," it said in an announcement.

Democratic Representative Nancy Pelosi, who will be US House speaker when her party take over the chamber in January, censured the report saying Trump and DeVos "have achieved an amazing failure." "Their 'report' on school safety puts special interests and the NRA ahead of protecting America's school children. Students and guardians have had #Enough," Pelosi wrote on Twitter.

She drew a reaction from Ryan Petty, a weapon fan and school security advocate whose multi year old little girl was slaughtered in the Parkland slaughter.

"Hi @NancyPelosi, it's easy to be a critic. Harder to make. Would you take a seat with Parkland families to talk about the report?," Petty wrote on Twitter.

"We worked hard to guarantee this report addresses to top school safety needs. It's painful for us when you dismiss it without premise actually," he included.