This program can only be thought of as a positive. ALL youth should be given an introductory course in the the care, feeding, correct methods of handling and proper respect for the potential that is inherent in all firearms.
The purpose of this course should be to identify and help weed out those who have poor attitudes about what a handgun should be used for, and those of such habitual carelessness, that these two general groups should NEVER be given access to a handgun while unsupervised.
Then there shall still be a group of unknown size, who for whatever superstitious reason, cannot bring themselves to learn even the rudiments of proper gun handling. For them, teaching in how to avoid, evade, escape or confront a bearer of a weapon carried with malice intent would be a compulsory course, and in addition, they should have their name and Social Security number tattooed on their bodies for easier identification after falling victim to such an assault.
Yep. I was peripherally involved in that sad process. It was a perfect storm: increased regulation in terms of ventilation and lead exposure meant costly upgrades to existing indoor ranges, the expense of the sport in general (competition smallbore rifles ain't cheap, as well as the jackets and the ammunition) meant that it was first on the chopping block when Title IX mandated a large-scale reallocation of school sports funds, and shortage of qualified instructors; all of these together served to shut down our local school range. Even college teams felt the pressure.
Our team went over to the Junior NRA to find competition space, and the funding was supplied by donors and the customary car wash / bake sale black market economy. Not everyone had parents that dedicated, and the school involvement simply withered away altogether, or pretty much so. Soon, no more school teams to shoot against.
The problem as I see it was that competition wasn't really the point in all this, and the article appears to agree, it was merely a means to promote the activity. So was the continuation of an American heritage. But the real value was in safety education, which is a need that has never gone away. This is going to be a tough sale in the face of the virulently anti-gun teachers' unions and professional administrators.