5049: Firearms and Weapons

Weapons. No student may possess, handle, or transmit any weapon while on ESU grounds or at any ESU activity or event off ESU grounds except as permitted by this policy. No visitor under the age of 18 may possess, handle, or transmit any weapon while on ESU grounds or at any ESU activity or event off ESU grounds except as permitted by this policy. Definition of Weapon. The term “weapon” means any object, device, instrument, material, or substance which is capable of causing injury in the manner it is used or intended to be used.

Firearms. No person may bring, possess, handle or transmit a firearm on ESU grounds, in an ESU owned vehicle, or at an ESU activity or event off ESU grounds, except as permitted by this policy. Definition of Firearm. The term “firearm, as defined in 18 U.S.C. 921, means any weapon (including a starter gun) which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive, the frame or receiver of any such weapon, any firearm muffler or firearm silencer, or any destructive device (excluding an antique firearm).

Exceptions Regarding Firearms. The prohibition against firearms does not apply to:

  1. The issuance of firearms to or possession by members of the armed forces of the United States, active or reserve, National Guard of this State, or Reserve Officers Training Corps or peace officers or other duly authorized law enforcement officers when on duty or training; or
  2. Firearms that may lawfully be possessed by a person who is receiving instruction at the ESU under the immediate supervision of an adult instructor;
  3. Firearms which may lawfully be possessed by a person for the purpose of using them, with the approval of the ESU, in a historical reenactment, in a hunter education program, or as part of an honor guard;
  4. Firearms contained within a private vehicle operated by a nonstudent adult that are not loaded and are encased or are in a locked firearm rack that is on a motor vehicle; or
  5. A handgun carried as a concealed handgun by a nonstudent adult who holds a valid permit issued under the Concealed Handgun Permit Act in a vehicle or on his or her person while riding in or on a vehicle into or onto any parking area, which is open to the public and used by the ESU if, prior to exiting the vehicle, the handgun is locked inside the glove box, trunk, or other compartment of the vehicle, a storage box securely attached to the vehicle, or, if the vehicle is a motorcycle, a hardened compartment securely attached to the motorcycle while the vehicle is in or on such parking area, except as prohibited by federal law.

    Definition of Encased. The term “encased” means enclosed in a case that is expressly made for the purpose of containing a firearm and that is completely zipped, snapped, buckled, tied, or otherwise fastened with no part of the firearm exposed.

Exceptions for Students. The only exceptions for a student to bring or possess a weapon, including a firearm, are as follows:

  1. The firearm or weapon has been brought to ESU grounds or to an activity or event off ESU grounds for some educational purpose;
  2. The person bringing the firearm or weapon has requested and received the prior approval of both the instructor and the building principal to do so; and
  3. All arrangements to use and store the firearm or weapon safely while it is on ESU premises have been agreed to and carried out.

Consequences – Firearm or Weapon. Any student who brings a firearm, as that term is defined in 18 United States Code 921, or weapon to the ESU will subject to any discipline allowed by law and/or as otherwise provided in the ESU’s student discipline policy.

Confiscation of Firearms. Administrative and teaching personnel will confiscate any firearm possessed in violation of this policy and deliver it to a peace officer as soon as practicable. Such firearms are subject to being destroyed by law enforcement authorities.

Report to Law Enforcement Authorities. All ESU personnel are required to report any violation of this policy to the administrator and to appropriate law enforcement authorities.

Adopted on: June 8, 2009
Revised on: May 13, 2019
Reviewed on: January 9, 2012