School Board to Clarify Policy to Ban Guns at Meetings

The Council Rock School Board will review district policy to include language that restricts anyone from bringing a gun to the Chancellor Center, where the board meetings are held.

Guns are already prohibited at district schools. However, some board members said they felt it should be clear that firearms are also not permitted at the Chancellor Center, a district-owned property. In addition to being the site of the meetings, the Chancellor Center is home to district administrative offices. 

“For the last year, I have felt unsafe sitting at this dais,” board member Bernadette Heenan said. She initially asked that the board meetings be transferred to a school building so as to ensure no firearms would be present. 

“I will not come back to another board meeting unless the venue is changed immediately,” Heenan said. She added the measure is needed to protect the welfare of the students who often attend the board meetings.

Following Heenan’s comments, the board took an executive session, which is closed to the public, to discuss matters of litigation regarding the issue. When the meeting resumed, the board agreed unanimously to direct its solicitor to craft language that clarifies district policy on meetings to make it clear that no guns are permitted on the Chancellor Center property. 

The policy will be reviewed at the next board meeting, scheduled for Oct. 18 at 7:30 p.m.