Following Sandy Hook Shooting Massacre, Schools Around The Country Look To Protect Their Students

Schools around the country cautiously began the first school day back following the horrific school shooting on Friday that left 27 dead, many of them young children, at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut. While school districts across the U.S. increased security on campuses, one district in Western Pennsylvania took it a bit farther and sought a court order to arm its officers at each of its schools on Monday.

The initial vote to begin a months-long process to arm Butler Area School District police came on December 10, just days before 20-year-old Adam Lanza barged into Sandy Hook Elementary, killing 20 young students and six staff members before shooting himself. However, on Sunday the district received a court order to begin arming its officers on Monday.

The Associated Press reported that Butler County President Judge Thomas Doerr issued a court order affect Butler Area School District as well as the South Butler County School District. Butler Area Superintendent Michael Strutt told the AP, "The shooting is absolutely tragic. I can barely contain my emotions every time I think about those children and what happened to them. The tragedy just expedited the process in our school district."

According to the court order, officers working for the two districts are now allowed to "carry their own weapons on the job until such a time as the school district purchases weapons for them," the superintendent said.

While Strutt acknowledges the move will be costly, he believes it serves an important purpose. "It's an additional strain on the budget when the budget's already tight," he told the AP. "But you have to establish your priorities and keeping the children safe is the number one priority."

Meanwhile, in several schools in different states were reported on lockdown on Monday following reports of suspicious activity. According to ABC News, three schools in Ohio were on alert after threatening messages were left on Facebook and Twitter. In Ridgefield, Conn., a report of a suspicious man, possibly carrying a rifle, caused the elementary school to go into lockdown.

ABC News also reported that police in Philadelphia and Tampa reported to two incidents that caused some concern. Other schools were plagued by decision regarding acknowledging and explaining the shootings to students, especially younger students.