By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – With the new school year approaching, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department is bringing its annual active shooter preparedness workshop directly to school campuses across Pima County.
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They will train school staff and participating students ages 12 to 20.
13 News got a look inside the program Thursday at Tortolita Middle, where participants practiced the “Run, Hide, Fight” model during an active shooter scenario.
The PCSD said the training evolves every year, shaped by real incidents and lessons learned nationwide. The workshops have rotated through different schools over the past three weeks, making it easier for school communities to take part without traveling far.
The PCSD program is a multi-agency collaboration, involving the Oro Valley, Marana, Sahuarita, and Pima Community College police departments, as well as U.S. Border Patrol BORSTAR.
“This is the ninth year that we’ve put this active shooter workshop on,” said Lt. Devin Houston with PCSD. “Over the years, we’ve had over 2,500 administrators or school professionals go through this training.”
The PCSD said the instruction is spread across a three-week series: three days of eight-hour classroom training followed by a one-day, eight-hour advanced active shooter class where participants take part in scenario-based simulations.
Steven Lathen, the Director of Student Services for the Continental School District, said he’s participated in the trainings for the past five years — initially joining when he was tasked with improving his school’s safety protocols.
“School safety and teaching our kids how to respond is just putting on that seatbelt, and it’s second nature for our kids at our district,” Lathen said. “It’s not something that they’re scared of; they embrace it, they know the why, just like putting on a seatbelt.”
Lathen said while the topic is frightening, it’s a reality educators and staff have to be prepared for. He said he believes training early makes a difference for students of all ages.
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“We have had great success at our district, even with our kindergarteners, who are five years old. They can block and barricade a door, they can hide, and they can go quiet,” Lathen said. “Seeing this with my own eyes, they just embrace what we learn here today.”
The training also underscores the role of school resource officers — an issue Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne has pushed.
Last month, Horne directed the use of $53 million in school safety funding to help secure funding for armed school resource officers.
“This helps people to know what they should do in case of an emergency, but it’s no substitute for having a police officer there,” Horne said. “We owe it to the students and the teachers and the staff to protect them.”
The PCSD said participation continues to grow, with 221 people last year and 233 already taking part this year.
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