Armed staff program not under consideration for Juneau schools
Published 3:30 pm Tuesday, September 22, 2026
The Juneau School District (JSD) is not considering allowing teachers or other employees to carry concealed firearms in schools, superintendent Shawn Arnold said Friday, Sept. 18, as another Alaska district moves toward implementing such a program.
Neither JSD administrators nor the Board of Education have formally introduced, scheduled or discussed the concealed-carry policy approved by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, Arnold said in a written response to the Empire.
Juneau instead relies on sworn Juneau Police Department officers, including two school resource officers who support district campuses.
“The Juneau school district is not considering adopting the Mat-Su model, and we have full confidence in our school resource officers and existing safety protocols to keep our schools secure,” Arnold said.
JSD currently authorizes no non-law-enforcement employees to carry firearms on school grounds for defensive or security purposes, according to Arnold.
Alaska law generally prohibits possession of a deadly weapon on school property without permission from the chief administrative officer of the school district, with exceptions including peace officers acting within the scope of their employment.
Mat-Su’s school board approved its concealed-carry program in June. Participating employees will be required to hold an Alaska concealed-carry permit, undergo a psychological evaluation, and complete between 24 and 40 hours of initial training. The policy also calls for annual training and a $500 stipend for participating employees.
District officials there have estimated startup costs at about $130,000 and said state and local taxpayer funding will be used while officials continue looking for outside money. Implementation details, including training standards and participant selection, were still being developed this month.
A similar proposal in Juneau would have to come before the board of education, Arnold said.
Factors the district would consider include whether existing emergency procedures leave safety or law-enforcement response gaps, potential legal ability and insurance effects, recommendations from police and emergency-management officials, and input from students, parents, employees, and other community members.
Several operational questions would also have to be resolved before JSD could consider arming non-law-enforcement employees.
Among them would be training and recurring firearms certification, background checks, psychological screening, secure firearm retention and storage, and agreements with employee bargaining units over working conditions and job responsibilities.
Coordination with police would be another concern, Arnold said, particularly during an active threat.
Any policy would need protocols allowing responding officers to distinguish an armed school employee from an assailant, he said, reducing the risk of a “friendly-fire” incident during an emergency.
JPD’s school resource officers are sworn police officers assigned to work with local schools on security and law enforcement. The department describes the schools as part of an SRO’s regular patrol responsibility.
For now, Arnold said the district sees that law-enforcement partnership as meeting its security needs.
“Because Juneau schools benefit from dedicated SRO coverage and rapid JPD response times, the district views professional law enforcement presence as the standard for campus security,” he said. “This dedicated partnership removes the operational necessity for arming educators or support staff.”
