A Florida school is offering parents bulletproof panels for their children’s rucksacks.
The school has never had a shooting incident.
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“The teachers are trained to instruct the students to use their backpacks as a shield to protect themselves,” Gulla told CNN in an email.
Parents can order the ballistic panels for $120 (£90) on the school’s website, under a section also promoting the school’s red T-shirts and winter wear for students.
Gulla reportedly has employed a number of other security measures at the school, including sound-enabled surveillance cameras and uniformed security guards. He's also held active-shooter drills in which students are told to hold their backpacks close to their chests as a protective layer.
The panels are produced by Applied Fiber Concepts – a body-armour company founded by Alex Cejas, a parent at the school. Last year, Cejas attended one of Gulla's active-shooter drills, which led to his company offering to make custom plates for students.
“While books and stuff in your backpack may stop a bullet, they're not designed to,” Cejas told the Miami Herald. “I wouldn't bet my life on it.”
Gun violence in the US “has come under a sharper focus following the recent mass shootings at a Las Vegas open-air concert and a Texas church,” says the Daily Telegraph.
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