School Safety

Between 2019 and 2021, in conjunction with local law enforcement, we conducted a comprehensive Physical Safety Audit of all D15 schools. Each school received feedback on their overall building safety and recommendations to continue to enhance the safety of each building. 

In addition, we have contracted with a nationally recognized school security expert to support us in identifying and implementing additional best practices in safety and security. We will continue to work on improving our safety practices based on the recommendations from our local law enforcement and our safety consultant. 

School Threats Taken Seriously: If students write or talk about injuring or killing another student, staff member, or any other person or about using weapons through any media, these statements will be taken as serious threats. All reports of such threats or statements will be fully investigated. If the information is substantiated, the student(s) involved will be disciplined as appropriate under district and/or building policies and local municipal ordinances. It is important for students to think about what they say, especially when angry or upset. Teachers, social workers, school psychologists, administrators, and services are available to assist students with behavioral or anger management issues.

Crisis Plan

• Standardized School Crisis Plan: The implementation of a Standardized School Crisis Plan, created in conjunction with representatives from police and fire departments, is designed to enable school personnel to respond appropriately to a variety of emergency and/or crisis situations that may occur on or near a school.

• District 15 Safety Committee: Safety is the shared responsibility of all members of our community. The formation of a District 15 Safety Committee that is composed of parents, teachers, administrators, and representatives from police and fire departments from Hoffman Estates, Palatine, and Rolling Meadows that meets quarterly to review and improve on district-wide safety policies and practices. Our safety partners assist us with annual safety training exercises that focus on annual drills per Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) guidelines with staff and students observed by local first responder agencies for both timely and effective implementation. They provide training and serve as members of school safety teams. Additionally, they keep us up-to-date on recommendations from industry experts.

• School Threat Assessment Teams: Each of our 20 schools has established a Threat Assessment Team that takes the lead on safety at the building level. We also have a district  Threat Assessment Team. These teams include building administration, mental health staff, and school resource officers. Our procedures and protocols were developed in alignment with the University of Virginia and are designed to help identify, investigate and respond to all threats with a multidisciplinary approach to ensure safety for all students and staff.

• Staff Training: Every member of a school helps enhance or diminish the overall safety of the school. With that in mind, our Principals and Assistant Principals play a critical role in leading the charge of a safe school. They meet monthly with their safety team, schedule drills and look for ways to improve the overall safe operations of their building. 

• CrisisGo: We utilize this digital app at all of our schools. CrisisGo allows for emergency alerts and streamlines communication between school staff and our first responders through an incident management system. 

• Mass Communications: We utilize the District’s mass communication tools, allowing communications to be sent rapidly to parents via phone, text, and/or e-mail.

• Community Partners: We have established many community partnerships for therapeutic services for students and as a support to their families, such as the Bridge and Amita Health. Additional partners are the POC and the United Palatine (UP) Coalition Wellness team, which includes multiple community agencies that provide parent education, wellness resources, and connection to community services for students and families.

Secure Buildings

District 15 has made substantial investments in the ongoing improvement of the physical security of our 20 schools and 3 ancillary buildings. Many of the improvements, however, are not “advertised” in order to to safeguard the integrity of the safety enhancement. To that end, here’s what we have in place:

• Surveillance Cameras: We have exterior and interior cameras at schools, including a 360-degree surveillance system, which also allows office staff to monitor all entrances.

• Secure Entry Vestibules: Within the last five years, each school has had a secure video entry installed in which a visitor can only enter the office when “buzzed” in by the secretary, clerical or building administrator. Visitors can speak with the office staff, drop off or pick up items from the vestibule without ever entering the school. If a visitor enters the building, they cannot gain access to the building interior without being allowed into the larger building by a member of the office staff. 

• Visitor Management System: During the 2017-18 school year, a visitor management system was added, which allows schools to screen and track visitors requesting access into our schools to attend a meeting, volunteer, etc. This system is called Raptor. Raptor screens against the Sex Offender registry, other custom databases, including those with custody orders and banned visitor status. It also flags visitors that are deemed security risks. 

• 911 and integrated intercoms: All phones have immediate access to 911 and an intercom system in which they can notify the building of any safety concerns they see or hear. 

• Silent Alarms: each school includes the installation and regular testing of silent alarms.

• Panic Buttons: All Main Offices have easily accessible panic buttons that connect directly to our local police departments. 

• Strobe lights: All gymnasiums and cafeteria/multi-purpose rooms have added strobe lights to alert occupants of an emergency announcement that may otherwise be hard to hear in noisy spaces such as PE and lunch.

• Signage: Interior and exterior signage to all doors within our schools to serve as a reminder to staff and students not to open exterior doors to strangers and to direct visitors to our front door – the only door that accepts visitors.

• Playgrounds: To reduce unnecessary individuals being on school property our playgrounds are closed to the community during school hours. 

• School Resource Officers: We have School Resource Officers (SROs) dedicated to D15 schools. They have offices in our junior high schools and are assigned to corresponding feeder elementary schools for support and to assist school officials in maintaining a safe, orderly, and caring educational environment for all students. The officers provide a variety of services to students, parents, and staff and serve as positive role models for all students. They meet with individual students, small groups of students, and entire classes to discuss various aspects of the law and procedures of the court system. They are available to discuss specific situations with parents and staff. The officers are also available to elementary school parents, staff, and students. 

District 15 recognizes that school personnel and emergency responders may use terms when discussing emergency and/or crisis response that might not be known to all parties. Commonly used terms in school safety, along with their definitions, are listed below. 

D15 conducts the following drills at each school on an annual basis as required by Illinois School Code: 

• Three evacuation drills. One of the three evacuation drills must be supervised by the appropriate fire department.

• One bus evacuation drill.

• One severe weather and shelter-in-place drill.

• Two law enforcement (lockdown) drills. One of the two drills must be a staff-initiated lock-down. 

Newly authorized House Bill 2400 (The School Safety Drill Act) states:

• All lockdown drills will be announced to all school personnel and students prior to the commencement of the drill.

• Schools will provide sufficient information and notification to parents/guardians in advance of any lockdown drill that involves the participation of students.

• Schools will provide parents/guardians an opportunity to exempt their child for any reason from participating in the walk-through lockdown drill.

• Schools will provide alternative safety education and instruction related to an active threat or shooter event to students who do not participate in a lockdown drill to provide them with essential information, training, and instruction through less sensorial methods.

• Building administrators will notify families of upcoming drills at least one week in advance of the drill. If you prefer your child does NOT participate in the yearly required lockdown drills, please complete this School Safety Drill Opt-Out form. Please submit one form for each of your children you are opting out.

The schools also conduct an annual drill review meeting with principals and representatives from police and fire departments to continuously improve each school’s readiness to respond to an emergency and/or crisis situation.

Although there are many safety measures in place at each school in the District, an emergency or crisis situation may still occur. Parents should consider the following actions before, during, or after an emergency or crisis situation:

• Speak regularly with your child(ren) about the importance of reporting any concern(s) that they have about safety to an adult either at school or at home so that their concern can be acted upon.

• Similarly, contact building administration to report any concerns that you have regarding school safety so that your concern(s) can be acted upon.

In the event of an emergency or crisis:

• A parent’s first instinct may be to go to the school immediately. Instead, help law enforcement and school officials to keep the parking lot clear and roadways leading to the area open so that the appropriate first responders can arrive on the scene as quickly as possible. Once onsite, the responders will require staging space for vehicles and personnel. Staying clear of the school will help ensure a swift arrival of first responders.

• Stay home or at your workplace to receive updates via text / phone / email OR wait to be informed of a location in the community where you can go to receive real-time updates from law enforcement / district officials / designated liaisons.  Each municipality with schools in District 15 (Hoffman Estates, Palatine, and Rolling Meadows) have a number of locations that can be used to provide in-person information about an emergency to parents and community members. To maintain both flexibility and to ensure security of these various sites, additional locations in each community will not be shared until the day of an incident.  

You can be prepared by:

• Making sure your emergency contact information is up-to-date in Infinite Campus and includes accurate cell phone numbers and email addresses so that there is not a delay in contacting you in the event of an emergency.

• Also make sure you list trusted adults as emergency contacts in Infinite Campus who would be able to pick up your child if you are not available.  Without exception, students will be released only to their parents, legal guardians, or emergency contacts identified in registration materials during an emergency or crisis situation.

• Social media is a powerful communication tool, but in the event of a crisis or an emergency, rely on information provided by school officials and law enforcement via phone, text, and/or email, and refrain from posting incomplete or unconfirmed details that may fuel confusion and/or fear in the community.

• Please view A Parent’s Role in an Emergency Situation presentation and slideshow (English / Ukrainian / Spanish / Japanese), sponsored by the PTA/PTSA and Palatine Police Department.

District 15’s Bullying/Safety Tip Line provides parents and students with an additional option to report bullying and/or other safety concerns within their schools. Similar to making a report in person or over the phone, when making an online report, please include as much detailed information as possible because doing so will greatly assist administrators in investigating and addressing the concern(s). 

Although it is usually best to speak directly with an administrator when making a report about bullying and/or other safety concerns at your school, sometimes students and parents are not comfortable doing so. Toward that end, this tool also allows for anonymous reporting.

Please keep in mind that online reports received outside of school hours will not be reviewed and acted upon until school is back in session. With that said, if your concern(s) require(s) immediate attention, please contact local law enforcement.

Bullying/Safety Tip Line

In order to maintain order and security in the schools, school authorities are authorized to conduct reasonable searches of school property and equipment, as well as of students and their personal effects. “School authorities” includes school resource officers.

School Property and Equipment as well as Personal Effects Left There by Students

School authorities may inspect and search school property and equipment owned or controlled by the school (such as lockers, desks, and parking lots), as well as personal effects left there by a student, without notice to or the consent of the student. Students have no reasonable expectation of privacy in these places or areas or in their personal effects left there.

The Superintendent may request the assistance of law enforcement officials to conduct inspections and searches of lockers, desks, parking lots, and other school property or equipment for illegal drugs, weapons, or other illegal or dangerous substances or materials, including searches conducted through the use of specially trained dogs.

Students

School authorities may search a student and/or the student's personal effects in the student's possession (such as purses, wallets, knapsacks, book bags, lunch boxes, etc.) when there is a reasonable ground for suspecting that the search will produce evidence the particular student has violated or is violating either the law or the district's student conduct rules. The search itself must be conducted in a manner which is reasonably related to its objectives and not excessively intrusive in light of the student's age and sex, and the nature of the infraction.

When feasible, the search should be conducted as follows:

Immediately following a search, a written report shall be made by the school authority who conducted the search, and given to the Superintendent. 

Seizure of Property

If a search produces evidence that the student has violated or is violating either the law or the District's policies or rule, such evidence may be seized and impounded by school authorities, and disciplinary action may be taken. When appropriate, such evidence may be transferred to law enforcement authorities.

Notification Regarding Student Accounts or Profiles on Social Networking Websites

The Superintendent or designee shall notify students and their parents/guardians of each of the following in accordance with the Right to Privacy in the School Setting Act, 105 ILCS 75/:

Canine Searches

Creating and maintaining a safe environment for our students and staff is one of the most important tasks educators have. It is with this in mind that each junior high school in Community Consolidated School District 15 partners with local law enforcement to conduct up to two (2) unannounced canine searches each year for illegal drugs.

All canine searches are limited in scope to lockers and other common areas (e.g., gym lockers, library, etc.) with building administration being present throughout the exercise. When a canine search is being conducted, the school is placed into a Secure and Teach (previously called a soft lockdown). A Secure and Teach requires students and staff to remain in their classroom where instruction continues to take place.

In the event that illegal drugs are found during a canine search, building administration conducts a full investigation that would most likely involve the participation of our school resource officer and appropriate school-based and legal consequences would be issued.

School administration will inform parents and staff of each canine search after it has taken place.

Additional information about searches in Community Consolidated School District 15 can be found in Policy 7:140 Search and Seizure.

• Outside the view of others, including students;
• In the presence of a school administrator or adult witness; and
• By a certificated employee or police liaison officer of the same sex as the student.

1. School officials may not request or require a student or his or her parent/guardian to provide a password or other related account information to gain access to the student’s account or profile on a social networking website.
2. School officials may conduct an investigation or require a student to cooperate in an investigation if there is specific information about activity on the student’s account on a social networking website that violates a school disciplinary rule or policy. In the course of an investigation, the student may be required to share the content that is reported in order to allow school officials to make a factual determination.

Mental Health issues can play a role in school and community safety. That said, District 15 has invested significantly in mental health and social-emotional wellness programs, services and associated staffing. We have steadily, over the last four years, layered even more offerings at our schools. 

The following will give you a sense of how seriously we take the health and wellness of our students:

• A Director of Comprehensive Mental Health was created in 2019 to help oversee the expansion of mental health services within District 15. Additionally, we hired a trauma-informed coordinator and increased social work training and support by moving the role of social work coordinator from part to full-time.  

• Dedicated social workers, counselors, and/or psychologists are available at each school. Beginning a few years ago, we began to greatly increase the number of mental health professionals at our schools. We moved to a staffing based on need model to ensure students receive the support they need. 

• We have an online bullying and safety reporting center that allows students, parents, staff, and community members to report concerns either by name or anonymously.

• We are registered with Safe2Help, a free 24/7 confidential school safety program that allows students the ability to report school safety issues, provides resources if a student needs help, and encourages students to help others.  

• Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is implemented at each school in the District, designed to teach, model, and reinforce desired student behaviors. PBIS also provides supports to students who are struggling behaviorally. 

• All district-issued chromebooks have Go Guardian software which screens internet activity and allows us to see all sites students visit while on a D15 device. Go Guardian also allows us to limit access to unsafe and/or inappropriate sites for school-age children. 

• Social-emotional learning curriculum and resources have been standardized K-8.

• A universal social-emotional learning screener is administered to students in grades 3-8. This screener identifies students at increased risk of mental health concerns in order to connect them with a mental health professional or to monitor students who may be in need of future support.

• In alternating years, students in eighth grade participate in the optional Illinois Youth Survey, which helps identify students’ health and social indicator data.

• PREPaRE crisis intervention training is provided for all building administrators and clinicians. PREPaRE helps teams “prepare” and respond to a crisis situation in a consistent and trauma-informed manner. 

• De-escalation and student distress / mental health training through Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI) and Life Space Crisis Intervention (LSCI) training is provided for all clinicians and administrators.

• We offer a mental health awareness program that includes depression awareness and suicide prevention using Erika's Lighthouse as the curricular resource.

• Morning classroom meetings utilizing mindfulness, community circles, and restorative practices have been established over the last few years. 

Public Act 096-1524, known as Erin’s Law, amends the school code to address the prevention of child sexual abuse. In partnership with parents and families, the District is committed to raising awareness and providing resources to further community prevention efforts.

Visit the District 15 website Erin's Law - Child Sexual Abuse Prevention & Personal Safety for additional resources for parents.

State law requires schools to notify parent/guardians during school registration or parent-teacher conferences that information about sex offenders and violent offenders against youth is available to the public on the Ill. Dept. of State Police (ISP) website.  

• Illinois Sex Offender Registry, https://isp.illinois.gov/Sor/Disclaimer
• Illinois Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Registry, https://isp.illinois.gov/MVOAY/Disclaimer
• Frequently Asked Questions Concerning Sex Offenders, https://isp.illinois.gov/Sor/FAQs

Starting July 1, 2023, a new law took effect for all Illinois schools. Faith's Law is named after a prevention advocate and child sexual abuse survivor from Illinois who pushed for change to state laws related to educator sexual misconduct in K-12 schools. 

Sexual misconduct is defined as:

Any act, including, but not limited to, any verbal, nonverbal, written, or electronic communication or physical activity, by an employee or agent of the school district, charter school or nonpublic school with direct contact with a student that is directed toward or with a student to establish a romantic or sexual relationship with the student. Such an act includes, but is not limited to, any of the following:

1. A sexual or romantic invitation. 
2. Dating or soliciting a date. 
3. Engaging in sexualized or romantic dialog.
4. Making sexually suggestive comments that are directed toward or with a student.
5. Self-disclosure or physical exposure of a sexual, romantic, or erotic nature.
6. A sexual, indecent, romantic, or erotic contact with a student

Faith’s Law Resource Guide

ISBE has developed and maintains the Faith’s Law Resource Guide that includes guidance for pupils, parents/guardians, and teachers about sexual abuse responses and prevention resources available in their community, including the contact information of entities that provide services for victims of child sexual abuse and their families. This resource guide is also available on D15's Faith’s Law webpage. 

D15 Employee Code of Professional Conduct Policy

School District 15 has developed and implemented an employee code of professional conduct policy, 5:120 Employee Ethics; Code of Professional Conduct; and Conflict of Interest in compliance with Faith’s Law.

For more information about Faith’s Law, please visit ISBE’s Faith’s Law webpage.