By: Alyssa Rester

As we come to a close of the first month of January, we are forced to recognize the 11 school shootings that have come along with it as well. The most recent took place on the morning of January 24 at Marshall County High School in Kentucky. Sixteen students were shot and injured while another two students were fatally wounded and were later honored by the school and Marshall County.

At 8:47 on that Tuesday morning, a 15 year old male entered the building armed with a handgun. The shooting was reported to have begun in the commons area of the school and quickly sent students into a panic at the first sound of the gun being fired. Students began frantically running and making phone calls to their parents as they hid in terror. Mother Missy Houston told CNN,  “I know when he [15 year old Ethan Houston] called me, he said, ‘Mom, there’s been a shooting. I asked him if he was OK, and he said, ‘I’m running.”

Marshall County Attorney Jeff Edwards said, “To walk in, the backpacks laying around. The phones laying around, going off … it’s indescribable,” Edwards said. “I’ve been doing this for 25 years. It’s not like anything I’ve experienced in my life.” The idea of school shootings and seeing the damage that has been done to this community is not only heartbreaking, but also a wake up call to our society and our safety standards.

After hearing of the tragedy in Kentucky, many staff and students worried about what could happen at their own schools. This week, Central practiced a lock down drill and many teachers discussed and stressed the need for these drills and how we need to take them seriously. Spanish Teacher Nancy Kattoula spoke to her first hour class in depth about the seriousness of the drill. “I know we all see these drills as annoying now, but it is important to take them seriously. These things happen, as horrible as it is, we need to be prepared and able to stay safe if this was ever to happen in our school.”

The Kentucky shooting was just one of the many tragic and fatal shootings to occur this early on in the year. Schools all across the U.S. are opening their eyes and now perfecting their safety drills and taking the proper precautions to prevent anymore of these tragic events from taking place.