State College Area students start campaign advocating for safe gun storage practices

State College Area School District families recently received a letter with information about secure firearm storage from a group of State High students as part of their ongoing effort to increase safety in the community.

Board president Amber Concepcion shared the letter in advance of the start of the 2022-23 school year on behalf of State High’s Students Demand Action chapter.

Students Demand Action is a national student advocacy group that campaigns against gun violence. The State College chapter was founded last year by Lily Frank, an incoming junior at the Delta Program. Frank, who uses they/them pronouns, was inspired to start the club after the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting but had to wait until high school to start the club.

Frank said they are worried about gun deaths among children and teens, especially with the impact COVID-19 has had on mental health. Firearms are a leading cause of death for children under 18 and the letter cites a study that shows most teens believe they could gain access to firearms in their homes.

Frank believes it’s vital for parents to understand and implement safe gun storage practices, including keeping weapons unloaded and locked away.

“If you don’t know that there’s a threat there, you’re not going to do anything to address it,” Frank said. “So clearing the misinformation and making sure parents know that regardless of the age of your child, this is a real threat and it’s important that they have honest conversations with their children.”

The letter lists statistics about accidental gun deaths and ways to access free gun locks through local police departments. State College, Ferguson Township and Patton Township police departments provide gun locks free of charge upon request, along with the Centre County sheriff’s office.

Frank said the support they’ve received from the school board and the county has been very encouraging. In May, the Students Demand Action chapter met with Centre County commissioners to talk about gun violence and safe storage, and in June the commissioners approved a proclamation on safe firearm storage.

“I think this was a really big accomplishment and a great way to show that we can lobby for secure gun storage and that we can advance safety in schools, in your home and in our community as a whole,” Frank said.

Amy Allison, the club’s advisor, said the students were incredibly organized and dedicated from the very start.

“They came in with a lot of momentum and maintained that momentum, which can be daunting at times,” Allison said. “When you’re dealing with a lot of different people from different walks of life who want to share their voice on this topic, you need to have the expectation that it’s going to take time.”

The group doesn’t know what their next steps are just yet but are looking forward to adding members and continuing to push for gun safety.