KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Most schools in Tennessee follow a "run, hide, fight" model for how to respond in active shooter situations. The model says people should run or escape the building if possible, and hide if no escape is available. It says people should only fight as a last resort, focusing on overwhelming a shooter.
A few years ago, Matt Estridge proposed an alternative approach to safety — the L.I.V.E. Program. He is a former Department of Homeland Security Counter-Terrorism Federal Law Enforcement Agent. He is also a Federal Law Enforcement Training Center Certified Active Shooter Threat Countermeasures Instructor, and Homeland Security Lead Active Shooter Countermeasures Instructor.
Now, Estridge is applying his skillsets to solve active shooter scenarios in schools. He does this through the non-profit Safe Schools- which will help fund the L.I.V.E training program.
The acronym stands for:
- L: Lock. Faculty or students should lock classroom doors, and they should have two locking mechanisms.
- I: Instruct. Identify a person in the situation who has the authority to quickly instruct others.
- V: Vantage point. Identify the vantage point in the room.
- E: Engage. Know how to engage a shooter.
"It's intuitive, it's easy to understand but it's unprecedented," he said. "It tells you what to do in every environment, and it lends life skills to go into a mall, home Invasion defense, a theater, a festival or walk into your car from a college campus. All these skills that are in this program blend in and lend to all those, because they're fundamentals in life."
Estridge said the LIVE program is a three-day training module for schools, businesses, or organizations. It includes a security assessment for the entire building — both the interior and exterior.
"It spits out a colored report that tells them the top 25 layers of security that are the most important to them. That way, schools can be fiscally responsible," Estridge said.
Furthermore, the training would extend from the school leaders to the teachers, students and all other faculty.
"Everyone in the building would know what to do, how to escape, when to escape if it's a good situation, when not to, what to do if we're caught in the middle of it," he said.
For the past three years, Estridge said he asked Tennessee lawmakers for a $10 million grant, which would be used to implement the program in schools across the state. It would be a one-time payment.
According to Estridge, the cost is about the price of one textbook per student in Tennessee. Governor Bill Lee's state budget allocated $5.6 Billion to K-12 education and around $2.3 billion for higher education. The $10 million would come from those allocations
Representative Debra Moody (R - Covington) has maintained her support for the LIVE training over the years. Additionally, she proposed several bills to try and appropriate the funding for Safe Schools.
A testimonial she gave about the training is available below.
"We are constantly surrounded by this threat. We don't have control over intention or capacity, but we do have control over the opportunity and ability to defend yourself. And so, we call this 'intentional readiness."
Estridge said they plan to bring the funding bill back up this legislative session.
"She has an appropriations bill. It's going before the house in a couple of weeks again, in Tennessee. It's our third time to attempt it," Estridge said. "It will be the second time the governor has seen this full presentation."
However, Estridge said he is getting frustrated. He said he never gets a concrete reason for why the state decides against allocating the funds. Now, Tennessee is the latest state to experience a mass school shooting.
"They cannot give me one response to tell me why it shouldn't be done. Not one," Estridge said. "I'm fed up with hearing, 'My prayers are out to you.' Because guess what? Those parents' lives are changed forever, and will never be the same again. And the fact of the matter is, when people find this program more, they're gonna say they would have had a chance."
Other organizations have gone through Estridge's training, including participants from the University of Tennessee and Tennessee Wesleyan University. Several supporters left testimonials of their experience going through the training.
"The question is Governor Lee going to be the governor in history that helps find the solution? Governor Lee has an opportunity," Estridge said.