Sandy Hook Promise Quotes

Fact #2: The prosecution of gun crimes under the Obama administration had dropped [30] percent. Whereas the Bush administration had made going after violent criminals who use guns a top priority, the Obama administration put far less emphasis on doing so. And the data demonstrate the consequences. Fact #3: President Obama reduced the funding for school safety by more than $300 million. That school safety funding might well have gone to providing security to prevent the crazed gunman at Sandy Hook from taking the lives of those little children. But the Obama administration had other priorities.

Delayed gratification hints that something terrible is going to happen, and then delays the resolution. It’s that interval between the promise of something awful and it actually happening, where suspense resides.

Nicole Hockley and Mark Barden founded Sandy Hook Promise to train teachers and students to recognize those who are on a pathway to violence. Hockley got the idea after an FBI official explained to the families that the Sandy Hook gunman was showing signs that are common to many mass murderers.

Sandy Hook Promise program called “Start with Hello” teaches students to reach out to peers who are ignored or bullied. Another, titled “Say Something,” trains teachers and students to speak up when they see warning signs.

Following the Sandy Hook school shooting in December 2012, the Florida Legislature proposed providing the Broward County school district with an additional $55 million for school safety.4 But, according to the Sun Sentinel, Superintendent Runcie and the school board “hated the idea because control over the money would have gone to a separate taxing district board.” School board member Ann Murray declared, “I’m not willing to give up any authority to anyone.” Her colleague Robin Bartleman worried that the state money could interfere with the soon-to-be-launched PROMISE program. Superintendent Runcie wrote a letter to the legislature saying that he didn’t want the additional money and explaining that he was already moving ahead on a host of school safety initiatives (which he never implemented).5 A