Beth Hoffman thinks it’s important to take a day out of class each semester to prepare students for the worst possible situation.

The speech communication professor has all of her classes participate in the college’s active-shooter training program.

Considering all the gun violence that’s happened in churches, theaters and schools, everyone should be prepared for the worst.

“If I have 24 students who come to three classes this semester, then we have 72 students who know what to do,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman said she has learned many valuable lessons from participating in the training.

“The first thing I do to ensure my students safety is lock the door,” she said. “Locked doors save lives.”

While everyone hopes this is training that they never need to use, learning these skills can alleviate stress about school safety.

“I feel like if there was an active shooter, I would know what to do,” said Hannah Travis, a student who experienced the training in Hoffman’s class. “I would be calmer and able to help somebody else.”

Since 2014, Lincoln Land police have trained 792 people in the active-shooter program.

“It is very beneficial to know these things,” said LLCC Police Sgt. Michael Hanson.

Hanson said those interested in the training can contact him through the LLCC department website, police.llcc.edu. There is also an active-shooter training video can be found on the LLCC website.

The video and training highlight that one should “run, hide and fight.” They also teach how to appropriately use each of these techniques to remain safe, and if absolutely necessary, how to disarm an attacker. 

Hanson encouraged students if you see something, say something.

“Even if it seems harmless, or they say it as a joke, it’s better to contact one of the police officers at LLCC,” he said. “There are always officers on campus and driving around in the parking lots.” 

Annie Staley can be reached at [email protected].