Educators for Gun Safety
Alarmed by an extraordinary rise in the number of children suffering wounds or death from gun violence and accidental shootings, St. Louis educators from public, charter, private, and parochial schools across the City, joined together in spring 2022 to raise awareness around gun safety and take proactive steps to help save the lives of our students.
On a recent Wednesday afternoon in St. Louis, a three-year old was critically injured while playing with a gun. He shot himself in the head. This is just the latest traumatic, needless event that could have been prevented — and another family and community that could have been spared the pain of such a tragedy — had proper gun safety precautions been taken. In the first four months of 2022, at least 35 St. Louis area children had been shot and seven were killed.
After launching Educators for Gun Safety (EGS) in April 2022, several free gun lock distribution events were hosted by Saint Louis Public Schools (SLPS) and Confluence Academies. EGS is one component of a wider community effort including the Office of the Mayor, the St. Louis Board of Mental Health, St. Louis Metropolitan Police, and Women’s Voices Raised for Social Justice.
“Every adult in St. Louis, from educators to parents to neighbors, has a role to play in the epidemic of gun violence that’s killing our children. As educators, we can help parents in our city know how to safely lock and store guns, and how to talk to their children about guns. Our kids’ lives are on the line and the timing is urgent."
Dr. Candice Carter-Oliver, Confluence Academies CEO
“We have become a gun-inundated society. One consequence of that is that our children are dying in increasingly frequent and completely preventable shootings. Ideally, we would like to remove guns from the equation altogether, but that's not the reality we live in."
Dr. Kelvin Adams, Saint Louis Public Schools Superintendent
Media
KSDK April 28, 2022 | St. Louis educators team up to launch a gun safety initiative to reduce accidental child injury and death from unsecured guns.
KMOV August 31, 2022 | Confluence Academies launches phase two of their gun safety initiative with classroom education, community outreach, and more gun lock giveaway events.
KSDK October 19, 2022 | St. Louis Public Schools, Confluence Academies to add gun safety lessons to curriculums
FOX 2 Now October 20, 2022 | Gun safety education begins next week for some St. Louis schools
School Leaders Make New Moves to Stop Child Killings
Family Resources
