SHERRARD, Illinois-- Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti highlighted Gov. Bruce Rauner's safety package during a visit to Sherrard High School on Thursday, May 24th.
In light of the shooting at Dixon High School just a week prior, she stressed the importance of resource officers in schools.
“(The package) protects our Second Amendment rights but also protects the safety of our children in their schools," she said. "And one of our recommendations was to have these resource officers in every single school so you can see that same sort of effect. If something like that happens as it happened in Dixon, Illinois, you have a resource officer ready to act.”
The package would implement a 72-hour waiting period to buy a firearm and looks at getting counselors into schools.
"Our safety package also looks at the issue of mental health and having these counselors in the school being able to detect a child that needs support in that regard and prevent any sort of thing from happening in the future because a child did not have the mental support he or she needed," Sanguinetti said. "So that’s something the governor has put out, and we’re hopeful the General Assembly will say it’s the right thing to do.”
She said the General Assembly will have to consider the Governor's plan and determine where the funding for these recommendations will come from.
"I do think the state has prioritized safety and does make allowances for us to make sure our buildings are as safe as possible," said Alan Boucher, superintendent of the Sherrard School District.
Boucher said he was meeting with local law enforcement officials Thursday afternoon to revisit crisis plans in the area.
While at Sherrard High School, the Lieutenant Governor visited the hands-on programs the school offers, including the industrial arts and Chromebook repair classrooms.
"(The students are) going to be job ready from the moment they graduate," she said. "They have so much to offer here.”