CBS 2 gets results after teachers say classroom doors in Waukegan don't lock from inside, in major safety concern
WAUKEGAN, Ill. (CBS) -- Last month, we uncovered a potentially dangerous problem inside two schools in the Chicago Public Schools system – classrooms in which teachers were unable to lock their own doors.
It is a major safety concern and a violation of Illinois School Code.
On Thursday, we discovered a similar situation in Waukegan. But CBS 2's Sabrina Franza reporting led to quick action.
Holliday Gonzalez is an incoming fifth grader at Whittier Elementary School, at 901 N. Lewis Ave. in Waukegan.
She noticed the classroom had "a lock on the outside – not on the inside."
Holliday and her mom were recently talking out the horrible what-if about how well Whittier is prepared for an active-shooter situation.
With her mom's OK, Holliday herself let us in on that conversation.
"If there were locks on the inside and not on the outside, they wouldn't be able to get in without like having to break the door down," Holliday said.
A source sent us photos showing the way they say locks work at some schools in Waukegan – just like Holliday said, a lock on the outside of classrooms, but not on the inside.
This is the same problem we told you about at two CPS schools. It is, again, an Illinois School Code violation – and a major safety concern.
"In order to lock the door and keep the kids safe from the inside, we have to go out of the classroom, put the key in the door, lock it, and then shut the door while were inside of it," a Waukegan teacher said.
Waukegan school staff reached out following our first story on this issue. No one wanted to be identified, for fear they would somehow be punished.
"As we progress with the violence or the possibility of violence, nothing's changing within the classroom to keep us safer," a teacher said.
Whittier is just one of the Waukegan schools where parents and teachers have reached out to us, saying the classroom doors only lock from the outside. When we spoke with administration, they said the opposite.
"The knobs are probably the same as they were 60 years ago," a teacher said.
The Waukegan Community Unit School District told us in part: "We are not aware of any doors or hardware that are not in compliance with the Illinois School Code. These items are a part of our annual inspections with the Lake County Regional Office of Education."
The district added that some of their doors automatically shut.
"That they shut and lock us in, is not true," a teacher said.
Holliday has a wish for next school year.
"Just kind of what to go to school and not worry about that," she said.
After we started asking about the locks, Waukegan school administration identified two doors at Whittier that weren't up to code and have already put in requests to have hardware replaced.
