Office of the Superintendent

INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM

DATE: March 19, 2018

TO: All Principals

FROM: Pat Skorkowsky, Superintendent of Schools

SUBJECT: NRS 202.265 and Requests to Carry Firearms on Campus

You might have seen recent media accounts about Nevada Revised Statute 202.265, which
created a provision for individuals to carry a weapon on school property.

Some principals have asked us for guidance as to how to process a request to carry or possess a
weapon on their school campus. We publicly stated that we are working on administrative
guidance.

For now, if you receive a request from an employee to carry a weapon on campus, you must
contact your School Associate Superintendent and School Police before granting that request.

I want to let you know that this procedure could take some time to develop. We are
considering many factors, including:

• What type of weapons can a person carry on campus? NRS 202.265 does not specify.
Obviously, it would not be appropriate for an employee to carry a rifle on campus. The
District needs to outline which weapons would be allowed.

• What type of background checks should a person go through before being allowed to
carry on campus? All employees currently go through a basic FBI background check to
ensure they have not been arrested for or convicted of felonies or crimes against
children. We currently also background check volunteers. The current background
check does not report mental health concerns.

• What type of training should a person demonstrate before being allowed to carry on
campus? The law does not state that a person needs to be trained before carrying on
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March 19, 2018

campus. The law does not even state that the person needs a Concealed Carry Weapon
(CCW) permit. An employee open carrying a gun in our schools could cause alarm
among students and staff. The District must decide whether to require a CCW or allow
open-carry and what type of training, such as how to handle active shooter situations,
to require as minimum criteria.
•
What kind of liability should a school take on when a principal allows an employee to
carry on campus? We have seen several cases in the past few weeks of educators
misusing guns on campus, including one who accidentally discharged the weapon and
injured a student and another who barricaded himself in a classroom and fired a shot
from his handgun. Having more guns on our campuses will significantly increase our
liability as a District, and we need to determine who pays for that additional insurance
and damages and other costs from lawsuits. .

These are just some of the questions that we are considering now and will discuss in the future
with our Board of Trustees on this topic, along with our School Police Department.

Again, for now, if you receive a request from an employee to carry a weapon on campus, you
must contact your School Associate Superintendent and School Police before granting that
request.

I will keep you posted on this issue.

c: Board of School Trustees

Central Services Executive Team
Superintendency