Examining the Erasure of Disabled Students from K-12 School Shooting Responses

Abstract

Imagine an active shooter on a campus. You likely picture a sea of children lying flat on the ground with the doors to the classrooms barricaded. All of the children are tucked away except for one. A fifteen-year-old female (at the time) in a wheelchair sticking out as a lone target above the other students. This is the story of Anja Herrman who came to me and P3 Technology with the question, What happens when I'm the only one left out sitting four feet higher than anyone else? What happens when they come for me? It turns out many teachers and administrators do not have an answer for that. Anja, Abby, Christine and myself all have worked to discover current procedures, thoughts and sentiments around this not talked about crisis. The following paper was presented to Congress by Anja Herrman in July of 2022.

Keywords: Accessibility, DEI, Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, School Shooter