On Oct. 17, the Tamaqua Area School District became the first in the state to enact a policy that would allow the arming of teachers and other staff members. Despite this, school board President Larry Wittig said that the decision is not cast in stone.

This is a major step beyond arming school security officers. The goal would be to have three or four volunteer armed staff members in each of the district’s four schools at any one time. As part of the security protocol, the public and others would not know the identity of who is armed when.

Of course, controversy immediately followed disclosure, and an organization quickly formed to oppose the policy and to try to enlist the public’s help to get the board to reconsider its decision.

The Tamaqua Citizens for Safe Schools is sponsoring a question-and-answer session at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at the Tamaqua Area Middle School’s large group instruction room in conjunction with a special meeting of the school board to address provisions of the new policy.

In a statement on its Facebook page, the group says, “While we are not against guns being in our schools to protect our children, we want those weapons to only be handled by trained professionals, not our children’s teachers.”

The group said that it has set up the Facebook page to share information, ideas and alternatives to board policy 705.

“At the end of the day, this board is committed to the safety of its children,” Wittig said at a recent meeting, “ but the public, taxpayers, parents and students need to understand that we’re doing this gingerly.”

Arming teachers and staff has the approval of President Donald Trump, who sees it as a significant deterrence. Trump has previously called “gun-free’’ schools a “magnet for bad people,’’ and allowing qualified teachers to carry guns in the classroom would cost less than hiring guards and could be a powerful deterrent to prevent mass shootings.

“Highly trained, gun-adept, teachers/coaches would solve the problem instantly, before police arrive,’’ the president tweeted. “GREAT DETERRENT.” On another occasions, he tweeted, “If a potential sicko shooter knows that a school has a large number of very weapons-talented teachers (and others), who will be instantly shooting, the sicko will NEVER attack that school. Cowards won’t go there … problem solved. Must be offensive, defense alone won’t work!”

In a separate vote, the Tamaqua board passed an incentive policy providing for an annual $2,000 stipend and $250,000 insurance for those who sign up. Frank Wenzel, head of the Tamaqua Area Education Association, said some teachers are opposed but others favor the policy. The board emphasizes that any employee has the option to pursue training and get qualified to carry a firearm on the schools’ premises. It is not mandatory. Those who do, however, will have to qualify under Act 235, which requires firearms training, fingerprinting, a psychological evaluation and a background check.

Wenzel’s personal opposition is supported by the president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association, Dolores McCracken, formerly of the Council Rock School District in Bucks County, who said that arming teachers would make students less safe because of the presence of more firearms in the schools.

Having been in the classroom on and off for the last 57 years, I want no part of being an armed instructor, but several of my much younger colleagues are all in on the idea.

School security has become top of mind awareness after the high-profile Valentine’s Day shooting earlier this year at a high school in Parkland, Florida, and numerous other school shootings stretching back to Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999.

Pennsylvania has approved $60 million to help districts increase security. Some districts have hired trained armed guards, but none until now has adopted a policy to arm professional and support staff.

At least eight states allow nonsecurity personnel to carry guns, according to a report issued by the Education Commission of the States. Although legislation was crafted during the last session of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, it passed the Senate but died in the House of Representatives. It is expected to be resurrected in 2019.

Although there is no law enabling nonsecurity personnel to be armed on school premises, there also is no law that prohibits it.

Under the title “Standard Operating Procedures for Persons Authorized to Use Weapons,” the 10-page Tamaqua policy lays out specific authorizations, training requirements, reporting mandates, enforcement and other specifics as to how this touchy issue will be implemented and conducted. Many residents have weighed in on both sides of the issue. I strongly recommend that you make your views known at Wednesday’s meeting and forum.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com