Florida School Guardian Requirements: Screening and 144-Hour Training

To serve as an armed school guardian in Florida, you must be a school district, charter school, or newly hired employee who holds a valid Florida concealed-weapon license, pass a psychological evaluation and drug testing, complete 144 hours of sheriff-run training with an 85 percent firearms qualification score, receive certification from the county sheriff, and then be appointed by your superintendent or school head. Florida school guardian requirements and training are set out in state statute and administered by each participating county sheriff under the Chris Hixon, Coach Aaron Feis, and Coach Scott Beigel Guardian Program.

Who Qualifies to Become a Guardian

Any school district employee, charter school employee, or person hired specifically for the guardian role can apply.¹ Classroom teachers were excluded when the program launched in 2018, but the Legislature removed that restriction in 2019. Participation is voluntary. No employee can be forced into the role.

Every candidate must hold a valid Florida concealed-weapon license or otherwise be eligible to carry a concealed firearm under Chapter 790.²

One shortcut exists. Individuals already certified and in good standing under the Florida Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission can skip the 144-hour training. They still have to pass the psychological evaluation, drug testing, and annual requalification.

Screening You Must Pass Before Training

Three gates stand between an application and the classroom seat for training. Failing any one of them ends the process.²

Psychological evaluation. Administered by a psychologist licensed under Chapter 490 and designated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. You do not choose the evaluator; FDLE does.
Drug testing. An initial test up front, followed by random testing throughout your time as a guardian.
Concealed-weapon eligibility. A valid Florida concealed-weapon license or equivalent eligibility. That license itself requires a background check through FDLE and the FBI.

These are statutory requirements. A sheriff cannot waive them.

The 144-Hour Training Curriculum

Guardians complete 144 hours of training before they can carry a firearm on campus. The curriculum is standardized statewide and delivered by instructors certified through the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission, not by school staff or private companies. Hours break down as follows:³

Firearms instruction: 80 hours, based on the CJSTC Law Enforcement Academy model, with 10 to 20 percent more rounds fired than a typical police academy course.
Precision pistol: 16 hours of focused marksmanship beyond the basic firearms block.
Discretionary shooting with simulators: 8 hours of scenario-based shoot/don’t-shoot exercises.
Active shooter scenarios: 16 hours of realistic response training in a school environment.
Defensive tactics: 8 hours of physical response techniques for situations that do not call for lethal force.
Legal issues: 4 hours covering use-of-force law, liability, and the legal boundaries of guardian authority.
De-escalation and incident response: 12 hours on managing confrontations and campus incidents without force.

The firearms qualification standard is 85 percent. That is a higher score than many states require of armed security personnel, and the curriculum reflects the reality that a guardian would be firing inside a building full of students if a shooting happened.

Certification and Appointment

The county sheriff runs the entire pipeline. Once a school board votes to participate, the sheriff in that county is required to establish the program.² The sheriff’s office handles candidate screening, arranges or delivers the training, certifies guardians who pass, and maintains all training and qualification records. A sheriff without the capacity to run the program directly can contract with another sheriff’s office that already has one.

Sheriffs must consult with FDLE on program guidelines, report upcoming training schedules quarterly, and notify FDLE within 30 days of issuing any guardian certificate.

Certification alone does not put you on campus. After the sheriff certifies you, your school district superintendent, charter school principal, or private school head of school has to separately appoint you before you can serve as a guardian. That appointment can be withdrawn at any time.

Ongoing Requirements to Keep the Certification

Guardian status is not a one-time achievement. To stay certified, you must requalify at least annually, which includes weapon inspections and additional training.² Random drug tests continue throughout your service. Failing any of these can result in revocation of your certification.

What Guardians Can and Cannot Do

This is where candidates most often misunderstand the role. Guardians are not law enforcement officers. They have no arrest powers and no general policing authority. The statute limits guardian authority to a single narrow purpose: preventing or stopping an active assailant incident on school grounds.² Outside that specific scenario, a guardian carrying a firearm on campus has no more legal authority than any other school employee.

Guardians must follow state law and their school district’s policies on when and how force can be used. Reasonable force principles apply, meaning any response must be proportional to the threat. Firing when there is no active threat exposes the guardian to the same civil liability or criminal prosecution any other person would face for unjustified use of a firearm.

1
Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 1006.12 – Safe-School Officers at Each Public School
2
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 30.15 – Powers, Duties, and Obligations
3
Florida Department of Education. Chris Hixon, Coach Aaron Feis, and Coach Scott Beigel Guardian Program