Over the last three years, nearly 1,500 Missoula schoolteachers and administrators have undergone what is called 'Active Resistance Training', to prepare for a possible active shooter situation in a public school. 
Lieutenant Dave Conway with the Missoula Sheriff's Office said the training, originally introduced by Safariland International, was implemented following the school shootings in Sandy Hook.

Personnel at the community center where the shootings took place in San Bernadino were said to have received active resistance training much the same as provided to MCPS teachers and administrators.

"In an active shooter situation, before law enforcement can arrive is a critical time, particularly in the county, where response time can be from five to seven minutes," Conway said. "In a situation where there is a shooter, we know statistically, that every fifteen seconds, someone is shot. Safariland sent several of their personnel to instruct Missoula law enforcement in these techniques, and we invited teachers and administrators, because they know the layout of the schools. So, now we have this mix of instructors who are law enforcement officers, teachers and administrators that have been teaching this armed intruder class."

Conway said one of the most important parts of the training is to be so well-prepared, that a teacher will react immediately when an active shooter situation begins.

"If they use all the techniques correctly that we teach them throughout the day, it is a very, very high likelihood of success."

The MCPS active resistance training is scheduled to continue through the summer of 2016.

 

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