I have told this story a thousand times so if you have read it, I apologize. I just want to make sure the word gets out.
A neighbor of mine who was a close friend was a "mover and shaker" in the Phoenix social scene. One evening, a year or so after 9-11, a group at a party was gathered around the recently retired head of one of the Arizona law enforcement agencies. This retired officer was recounting a conference hastily assembled by the new Department of Homeland Security at a conference center in Spokane, WA. The topic of the conference was terror threats against our nation.
One of the threats uncovered immediately following 9-11 was a Chechen-styled attack on American schools. Only instead of one school, the plot involved several schools. The idea was to take over a half dozen schools on the same day and then herd all the kids to the lunchroom which would be wired with explosives (as was done in Chechnya) and then, all at a predetermined hour, most likely while on TV, they would detonate all the schools. The plan was to kill 3000-5000 American school children in one day.
Today, after years of completely unattended borders, the likelihood of combatants inside our country in great numbers is very likely. In fact, on national news media, I have heard estimates as high as 4-5000 Jihadi fighters, already inside our borders, waiting to activate. Only a thousand of these guys would be needed to take over 100 schools in our country. The results would be horrific.
Can teachers take on Jihadi warriors bent on killing? Perhaps that is a stretch but some defense is better than no defense. We know what will happen to those kids if the attackers achieve their end result.
The instances of armed school principals stopping violence by one student is already compelling enough to warrant arming those who meet guidelines and pass training. As someone who worked armed for a decade, with training, both initial and recurrent, carrying a firearm is extremely safe. History has shown us in agonizing detail how the lack of any means of protection only ensures mass casualties.
One need only look at the track record of the locations where teachers and, in the case of colleges, students, have been allowed to attend class armed and the risk is proven to be very low.
Call me weird but, if my kid were still in school, I would take comfort in knowing that a few of the teachers were able to provide a defense if called upon.