Virginia Republicans on Thursday proposed spending paying to station more police officers at schools around the state as a way of preventing another school shooting like the one last week in Newtown, Conn.

“The tragedy in Connecticut is heartbreaking. As the Newtown community begins a healing process that will last longer than we can ever imagine, our thoughts naturally turn to our own children,” House Speaker Bill Howell said. “We must look closely at everything we can to make sure our children, schools and communities are safe. This includes evaluating school safety, our mental health laws and services, and our gun laws.”