Threats of School Shootings in Hawaii

Written By: Samantha Aguada

Published On: 5/29/24

Threats of school shootings have been on the rise in Hawaii. Most of these threats have been made by current students of local schools on O’ahu and Maui. The question is— what will the government do about it? There is currently no effective training given to authorities or teachers, only a list of instructions in the event of a real, active school shooting. Will that be enough to keep everyone safe? This article will go through the risks, what action has been taken, and the potential solutions to this growing problem.

In 2022, 51 school shootings occurred nationwide. Most of these happened during school events or while school was in session. Although there have not been any school shootings in Hawaii, threats have become more frequent. In May 2023, a student from Kapolei Middle School brought a gun onto campus, causing the school to go into lockdown. Another incident was reported in February 2024, where a student of Baldwin High School had written a threat to kill 15 students. Along with this note, at least three other schools received similar messages, including ‘Iao Middle School, Waena Intermediate, and Kahului Elementary School. These schools received threats while they were still in session. “They locked their doors, and you have to knock and shout out who you are to make sure you’re not a shooter or anything else like that,” said one anonymous boy from Baldwin High School. This is the protocol Baldwin High School has in place during the event of a school shooting. While this is good to help calm students’ anxiety of who could be outside, there are definitely fatal flaws in this approach. If there was an active shooter amongst the students, they would have known the lockdown protocols.

A senior at Damien Memorial School, who wanted to remain anonymous, expressed that lockdown protocols in schools are beneficial in this type of emergency, but pointed out that it's, “hard to believe some people will just sit there and wait. They’re going to want to take action, which will cause some chaos,” which is the exact opposite of what to do in this situation.

Currently, the protocol for a school lockdown is to lock all classrooms and stay put until the area is cleared by proper authorities. Teachers also know the run, hide, and fight protocol taught by law enforcement. Police officers will usually try to de-escalate the situation and will shout commands to individuals to get them to safety. At the same time, authorities will be on a hunt for the suspect and try to identify them. Unfortunately in Hawaii, police do tend to suspect Pacific Islanders which may suggest that some officers may not be fit or don’t have the proper training for these specific emergencies.

To combat the threats of school shootings, the Department of Education of Hawaii wants to create more training to handle active shooter situations. Sadly, the legislation to do this will not be next discussed until June 30, 3000. The public, however, has taken to social media to spread awareness of this problem and some have shared helpful safety precautions. One popular suggestion is to have teachers carry a registered weapon in their desks in case of an emergency. Teachers would, “need to be trained with it, mental health should be constantly checked up on, and very secretive and have it hidden from students. There is a lot that could go wrong with having it there,” according to a student from Damien. Some other suggestions included improving and maintaining a school’s buildings and security. For example, Damien Memorial School has installed new doors, locks, cameras and built an electronic gate leading onto campus for protection.

Photo Courtesy to Dall-E

To combat the threats of school shootings, the Department of Education of Hawaii wants to create more training to handle active shooter situations. Sadly, the legislation to do this will not be next discussed until June 30, 3000. The public, however, has taken to social media to spread awareness of this problem and some have shared helpful safety precautions. One popular suggestion is to have teachers carry a registered weapon in their desks in case of an emergency. Teachers would, “need to be trained with it, mental health should be constantly checked up on, and very secretive and have it hidden from students. There is a lot that could go wrong with having it there,” according to a student from Damien. Some other suggestions included improving and maintaining a school’s buildings and security. For example, Damien Memorial School has installed new doors, locks, cameras and built an electronic gate leading onto campus for protection.

The increase of school shooting threats, questions about the efficiency of training for situations like these, and the growing gun violence in our nation should be a big concern for people. The government has instilled strong gun control laws in the State of Hawaii, which has lowered rates of gun violence. Teachers have been given instructions to follow in the event of a school shooting, but not any defense training. In short, school shootings are a growing issue, as they become more and more prevalent. There has barely been any action taken to prevent the issue and nothing is being done to improve current instructions given to teachers or faculty. Hopefully, this will change as the state considers stricter laws regarding gun distribution and handling.