School Safety and Security Training This week, I hosted a series of safety training events at Arkansas State University. Public school educators and administrators received threat management and active shooter preparedness, while private and public sector security professionals attended a course in Improvised Explosive Device (IED) search procedures.   One event was structured for educators and presented by the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (DHS/CISA). The purpose of this event was to provide school officials and employees the opportunity to receive firsthand expertise, situational awareness, and additional information that DHS/CISA provides for school safety preparedness efforts. More than 100 people representing 23 school districts and three two-year colleges attended the event. The School Safety and Security Workshop included three presentations from intelligence agency officials and concluded with a Q & A panel.   CISA also hosted two IED Search Procedures Courses. These courses are for public safety officers, emergency managers, security officers, law enforcement officers, critical infrastructure owners and operators, and private sector security professionals.    As a former Army EOD officer, I know full well the capabilities our front-line military bomb squads possess and the extensive training they receive. But I am also keenly aware of the threats of improvised explosive devices and other dangers on the home front, especially in our schools. One of the many lessons decision-makers must learn from the horrendous recent events in Uvalde, Texas is that training must be ongoing and focused on anticipating threats, rather than relying on the ad hoc response we see when law enforcement has not been prepared adequately. We must discuss and continue to advocate for the priority that all of us, as parents, share: the safety of our children at school. Our children should not have to live in a country where they may one day confront an active shooter or discover an IED, and it is our goal as policymakers, to work with federal officials, law enforcement, and school administrators to mitigate any future violence and loss of life.

No votes this week. The House will be in session on  Friday, August 12, 2022.

Also this week, I visited Riggs' Catt in Jonesboro to tour the facility and hear from their leaders about staffing shortages, supply chain issues, and their views on various pieces of legislation.

Jonesboro Sun Educating the Educators U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford, R-1st, speaks at the School Safety and Security Workshop for educators and school resource officers, which was presented by the Department of Homeland Security-Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency on Wednesday at the First National Bank Arena on the Arkansas State University campus. The purpose of this event was to provide school officials and employees the opportunity to receive firsthand expertise, situational awareness and counter improvised explosive risk management, as well as active shooter preparedness. More than 30 school districts attended the event. Agri-Pulse House Ag Republicans ask for hearing with Regan Eight GOP members of the House Agriculture Committee are calling for a hearing with the head of the Environmental Protection Agency to discuss the nation’s pesticide law.