Teachers demand safer school after repeated fights at Oak Park and River Forest High
OAK PARK, Ill. (CBS) -- Angry and upset teachers from Oak Park and River Forest High School packed a school board meeting Thursday evening, demanding more be done about a safer school.
They say fights and brawls are too common at the school.
As CBS 2's Charlie De Mar reported, the board meeting was filled with teachers who articulated a common theme that they don't feel safe inside the building. They were there to throw their support behind a new safety plan that would bring more security into the building.
All-out brawls have been captured on video more than once in the halls of Oak Park and River Forrest High School. The situation has teachers asking for help.
"So many adults – security and teachers… have been hurt, doing our jobs," said Toni Biasiello.
"I worry and I get nervous when I come into the building, thinking, what's going to happen today?" said history teacher Wilson Caraballo. "Am I going to have to break up a fight? Am I going to have to console some kids? Am I going to have to wrangle some kids in who are all jazzed up, because there's been a fight, and they want to show the video to everyone that they can?"
School administrators acknowledge an "increase in socialization struggles" leading to fights and other negative outbursts.
"For a lot of us working here, it feels like a matter of not if, but when something worse happens," Biasiello said.
This school year through March 2, there's been 480 infractions - compared to 403 at the same time last year. It amounts to an increase of 19 percent.
Hallway infractions alone are up 50 percent.
"You can't learn if you don't feel safe in the building," Caraballo said. "That is something that they drilled in us in college."
School leaders, with the support of teachers, are proposing a new safety plan. It includes:
- Hiring six full time safety positions
- Security camera monitoring
- Guards stationed near elevators/bathrooms and other problem areas
- Reassigning two evening officers to the day
The estimated cost is $288,000.
"I hope that you guys put the functioning of the inside of this building over optics or dollar signs," Caraballo told the school board.
The board unanimously supported the safety proposal during the discussion Thursday night. But since this project comes with a sizable price tag, administrators are being asked to make cuts to balance the budget.
There were also concerns from the board that hiring more people is a temporary fix and doesn't truly get to the root of the problem.
If approved, the new positions would be filled as soon as possible.
