2021 Conference: Missy Smith Presents “I Choose to Be Happy”

Missy Smith was one of eight students shot at Heath High School in Paducah, KY in 1997. The fourteen-year-old shooter left three girls dead and Missy paralyzed from the chest down. Despite her injury, Missy immediately forgave the shooter and took back her life. Over the course of the next several years she graduated from Heath, earned a degree in social work from Murray State University, worked as a counselor for troubled teens, and got married. In addition to raising two children, Missy continues to share her story with audiences, which she has done for over twenty years. Missy will candidly share her memories of the shooting, how she faced her fears, and how she overcame countless physical and emotional obstacles to achieve her goals. She addresses the issue of bullying and how it contributed to the shooting as well as the emotional toll the shooting took on first responders.

Education Administrators, Teachers, School Psychologists/Guidance Counselors, School Resource Officers (SROs), Law Enforcement, Local/State Emergency Managers, Fusion Center Analysts, Crisis Intervention Units, Counselors & Mental Health Specialists, School Social Workers, School Safety Professionals, and other school safety stakeholders interested in attending Missy Smith’s presentation should register for the July 2021 MCSS School Safety Summer Conference at http://conference2021.safeschoolsmd.org/.