Michigan GOP consider concealed firearms for teachers

Lansing School District spokesman Bob Kolt said the "legislation would not be welcomed" by the district. "When you put a gun in the environment, anything can happen."

Others, like Don Wortuba, the deputy director of the Michigan Association of School Boards, are not dismissing the idea. Wortuba said some of the association's members expressed interest in removing the concealed weapons ban after December's shooting. He said the fact the bill leaves the choice up to school officials is positive.

Still, he called it naive to think allowing teachers to carry weapons would prevent shootings like the one in Connecticut.

Similar debates are being waged nationwide. In Texas, some lawmakers are pushing for measures to allow guns on college campuses in the wake of the most recent shooting at Lone Star College.

But Mayes said allowing guns in schools is "a knee-jerk reaction to a much larger and complex problem." He said despite the recent wave of shootings, schools remain "the safest place for kids."