Students have been a prominent voice in the gun discussion following the high profile shootings in Parkland and in Santa Fe, Texas last month. And this was the first time the public had an opportunity to offer suggestions to the commission on how to make schools safer.
Michael Yin, another Montgomery Country student said that school shootings are "not unthinkable, they're expected."
"We students feel and we know that something is very, very wrong in our schools," Yin said.
He urged the panel to listen to the voices in the school, not those calling for more guns in school.
"Politicians have come up with some good ideas, but if we really want to end these tragedies, we need to listen to the people closest to the school system. One idea that is a little worrying though is arming school staff," Yin said.
Amanda Fitzgerald the Director of Public Policy at the American School Counselor Association agrees.
"We strongly oppose any effort to arm educators in our schools or any proposal that would offer financial incentives for educators to carry firearms," Fitzgerald said.
Pamela Champion, who lost her son, Robert Champion, a drum major at Florida A&M University, to hazing incident on a band bus said she is "all too aware about the safety and the impact of violence within our schools."
She said the commission should not only focus on the role of guns but the environment within schools, too.
"We should expand and clarify what is deemed as school safety. What does school safety look like for various communities?" Champion asked.
She said that school safety should not be measured just by the absence of violence but how well schools can build emotional and social tolerance.
The commission has held a number of closed-door sessions in recent weeks, including one with survivors of the Parkland and the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. And Last week it held a field hearing in Hanover, Maryland.
The Federal Commission on School Safety is expected to issue its recommendations by the end of the year.