Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program

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LCSO & LCSB begin implementing the

Coach Aaron Feds Guardian Program

BRISTOL – The Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, at the request of the Liberty County School Board, will be implementing the Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program. The Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program was established in 2018 from the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Act. Since then, lawmakers and the Florida Department of Education have pushed to have this program implemented in every school district throughout our state. It is the goal of Sheriff Money and Superintendent Peddie to have the Guardian Program in operation when school starts back in early August of 2023.

Guardians are armed personnel who aid in the prevention or abatement of active assailant incidents on school premises. They are either school employees who volunteer to serve in addition to official job duties or personnel hired for the specific purpose of serving as a school guardian. Guardians must pass psychological and drug screenings, and successfully complete a minimum of 144 hours of training.

The prospective Guardians will undergo extensive firearms training to prepare them on how to respond to a real-life incident. Guardians will be put through several tests in a state-of-the-art simulator, where they will be tested in shoot and don’t shoot scenarios. Once certified, Guardians will be required to requalify multiple times throughout the year to keep their certification. With grant funding, the Guardians will be issued top of the line equipment and will be prepared to carry out their roles on school campuses.

Currently, there have been 46 counties in the state of Florida that have implemented the Coach Aaron Feis Guardian program in their school districts.