High-school bound students get ballistic shields: 'These are the times we live in'

Fifteen 8th-grade students received an unusual graduation gift on Monday: ballistic shields.

The students received the shields during a graduation ceremony at St. Cornelius Catholic School in Chadds Ford, Pa.

Ballistic shields are typically used by military and law enforcement for protection against gunfire.

Unequal Technologies Company donated 40 SafeShield products in total, 15 to graduating students and 25 to faculty, according Jim Caldwell, executive vice president for the company.

The daughter of Robert Vito, Unequal's CEO, is an 8th-grader at the school, Caldwell said.

Caldwell told USA TODAY that Unequal's ballistic shield is designed to be "kid friendly" — the shield can be slipped into a backpack to fortify it against gunfire. He said the shield works whether it's inserted front or back first.

“These are the times we live in," Caldwell told USA TODAY. “We just hope a kid never has to use (the shield).”

In February — following a horrific, deadly school shooting in Parkland, Fla. — sales of products similar to Unequal's surged. 

The SafeShield will not protect against gunfire from an AR-15, but has been shown to stop handgun bullets and shotgun shells, said Vito, according to the New York Times.

Video captured by Fox 29 of the graduation ceremony shows the moment students received their gift — which retail for about $150.

Read:Hoax SWAT call to David Hogg's house prompts school lockdown

Read:'Active Shooter' is pulled after school shooting criticism

Many turned the shields — which from a distance look like a thin laptop — around and around. Some scratched their heads.

They appeared "unsure just what to make of their 'welcome to high school' gifts," said FOX 29’s Bruce Gordon.

“I never thought I would need this,” graduating 8th-grader Jacob Nicosia told the station.

Some advocates have been critical of products like the SafeShield.

“I think (a bulletproof backpack) creates a false sense of security for the student and the school itself," Curtis Lavarello, the executive director of the School Safety Advocacy Council, told the New York Times.