Statement on the Mass Shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville

Jerome D. Steele, Ed.D., director of the Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung Center for the Promotion of Mental Health and School Safety at Russell Sage College issued the following statement in response to the mass shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville:

According to a recent article in the Washington Post, there have been 376 school shootings since Columbine — affecting 348,000 students and their families. This has become such a common occurrence that we tend to forget the names of where these shootings have taken place. The 10 most deadly are the following indicating the number killed: Sandy Hook, 2012, 26; Marysville, 2014, 4; Aztec, 2017, 2; Parkland, 2018, 17; Santa Fe, 2018, 10; Benton, 2018, 2; Santa Clarita, 2019, 2; Oxford, 2021, 4; St. Louis, 2022, 2; and Uvalde, 2022, 21.

Since the beginning of 2023, there have been 13 school shootings, which is essentially one school shooting per week. We are a broken nation when it comes to protecting the lives of innocent children. No other nation in the world has as much gun violence as does the United States. In Nashville on Monday, March 27, three children, age nine, and three adults died as a result of this violence. Lives were cut short. Parents who brought their children to school will never see them again and their lives have been changed forever.

In the wake of the tragedy in Uvalde in which 19 children and two of their teachers died, the federal government passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act with bipartisan support. This was signed into law by President Biden in June 2022 . Although this legislation was the first major gun law in almost 30 years, it does not address many issues related to gun accessibility as well as gun violence.

More than ten years ago, in the aftermath of Sandy Hook where 20 children and 6 adults died, many believed that the time was ripe for reinstituting the Assault Weapons Ban. That never happened. Then in 2018, when 17 students were murdered and 17 more were injured at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, the students organized, calling for greater gun control at the state and federal level. Yet again, little to no legislation was enacted.

There is a mindset in the United States that the Second Amendment is sacrosanct, and that gun ownership should not be regulated. The National Rifle Association’s influence and power obstructing common sense gun reform measures has led to this continued violence. Universal background checks, red flag laws, and an assault weapons ban must be put on the table to ensure that guns do not fall into the hands of individuals who should not have them.

Unfortunately, many states have open carry laws and unless a crime is committed, anyone carrying an assault rifle or handgun may not be stopped.

In 2013, the Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung Center for the Promotion of Mental Health and School Safety was created at Russell Sage College as a legacy to the principal of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Dawn was a doctoral candidate in Educational Leadership at Sage. Every time one of these incidents occurs, it reminds us at Russell Sage College of the promise of this young principal who gave her life to protect her students.

It is a moral imperative that these tragedies should jolt our conscience that more needs to be done to protect our children. How many Sandy Hooks, Parklands, Uvaldes, and Nashvilles must occur before we ensure that when our children go to school, they will come home to us?

Thoughts and prayers are not enough. It is time to commit ourselves to take action and ensure the future of our children.

Jerome D. Steele, Ed.D.
Assistant Professor and Director, Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung Center for the Promotion of
Mental Health and School Safety, Russell Sage College

Spring 2023 Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung Center Webinar Series

Beyond the Horizon: The Power of Community Solutions

CTLE credit is available for all educators; registration and additional details will be coming in early January 2023.

Jan. 25, 2023: “Framing the Issue”: Watch here

IMPLEMENTATION OF MENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL INTERVENTIONS AND SUPPORTS AS COMPONENTS OF EXISTING MULTI-TIERED SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT (MTSS) 

• Daina Sisk, Doctoral Candidate, Russell Sage College Educational Leadership Department

AN EXPLORATION OF LEADERSHIP IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OKANAGAN CHARTER: AN INTERNATIONAL CHARTER FOR HEALTH PROMOTING UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES 

• Sarah Brockway, Doctoral Candidate, Russell Sage College Educational Leadership Department, Hochsprung Fellowship Award Recipient, 2022
• Dr. Asheena Baez, Well-being Consultant for the New York City DOE

Feb. 8, 2023: School Level View with Lansingburgh Central School District: Watch Here

• Antonio Abitabile, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, Lansingburgh CSD
• Matthew Hickling, District Medical Director, Lansingburgh CSD
• Tammy Pate, Ed.D. Community Superintendent District 28, NYCDOE

March 15, 2023: Community Level View: Watch Here 

• Renee Rodriguez-Goodemote, MD, FAAFP, Chair, Department of Ambulatory Medicine, Director, Saratoga Community Health Center, Saratoga Hospital
• Mark Stratton, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, Corinth CSD

April 19, 2023:  Regional Level View with Albany Medical Center: Watch here

• Albany Medical Center – Barbara Ostrov, MD Professor and Chair of Service, Department of Pediatrics, Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital, Albany Medical Center
• Melissa Doyle, Ph.D., LCSW, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Chief, Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital, Albany Medical Center

May 10, 2023: Final Presentation and Panel Discussion: Watch Here

• Panel Discussion with Presenters facilitated by Lawrence Bo Wright, Superintendent of the Geneva City School District