Nineteen students were killed in a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The suspected shooter, an 18-year-old high school student, is also dead.

On the heels of the mass shooting at a Buffalo grocery store, the school shooting has devastated the small, tight-knit community and the tragic loss of life, especially of so many innocent children, is being felt around the country.

“Our public schools should be one of the safest places for students and educators – but gunshots shattered the physical safety of the school community in Uvalde – and as it stands, we lost 15 lives, including 14 children and a teacher.

“The National Education Association and the Texas State Teachers Association are devastated by the loss of lives, and we stand together during this difficult moment, sending love and healing thoughts to the victims, their families and the entire Uvalde community. We are ready to work together to ensure students and educators get the emotional and physical support they need to begin the healing process.,” said Texas State Teachers Association Ovidia Molina and National Education Association President Becky Pringle in a joint statement.

“This tragedy once again underscores the very real dangers of a culture in which gun violence has become too much the norm and is too often the first way to resolve an argument or a grievance.

“We pray for the victims and their families, and we once again demand that state and federal policymakers take action to keep firearms out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them, whether that requires enacting new laws or better enforcing our existing laws.”

The news of the shooting will be difficult to avoid, but there are steps parents and educators can take to talk to children about the traumatic event.

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