I'm so old that I remember one of my classmates bringing his deer rifle into the high school. The principal noticed, and asked him why. The answer was that the student was leaving for the deer hunt right after school, the locks on is pickup were broken, and he wanted to keep the rifle safe in his locker. The principal allowed that that made sense, and asked if he could keep it in the office instead. And that's what they did.
Nobody thought much about it, and nobody was the least bit worried about being shot.
Parents could stroll in to bring forgotten sack lunches or books, and students often went off campus for lunch. As long as they were back in time for class, no problem.
That was in Idaho, and a long time ago.
