Safety staff warn board that proposed 5% cuts would stretch coverage at Oak Park High School

Security and safety staff told the Oak Park - River Forest SD 200 board on March 26 that a proposed 5% reduction to campus safety budgets and overtime would create gaps in supervision across the district’s large high‑school campus.

Speakers at the public‑comment period described operational staffing levels and examples of how coverage drops at key times. One commenter who identified herself as a safety officer and chief union steward said staffing is already stretched and asked whether the district currently has enough coverage “to meet the demands of this building during the school day and beyond.” She described the campus as a roughly 1,000,000‑square‑foot facility and said gaps occur when staff leave posts to respond to incidents.

Another safety officer described daily shift patterns: the board heard that the day shift begins with about 24 safety and support staff, with six assigned to stationary posts and roughly 18 available for mobile coverage; during midmorning and other periods the number available to move across floors can drop to about 10. A second‑shift officer, who identified himself as Antonio Lopez, told the board evenings are staffed at a baseline of about eight officers—sometimes just three in the late‑night period—and that staff rely heavily on overtime to ensure larger events are covered. “Cutting back on things like overtime staffing or the hiring of more staffing in general will only have a negative impact when it comes to protecting students,” he said.

Speakers repeatedly framed overtime as essential to safe operations during after‑school activities, athletics and community uses of school facilities. Several commenters urged the board to consider alternatives to a cash contribution for community requests and to weigh operational realities before approving any cuts.

Board members did not take an immediate vote on staffing levels or enact a change in policy at the meeting. Members asked administration to provide a comprehensive safety update at a future meeting, and several trustees signaled interest in receiving enrollment and budget projections and the EDF subcommittee report to inform any decisions on resource allocation.

The board approved the meeting’s consent agenda and a separate resolution on nonreemployment of a teacher under a temporary contract during the same session; discussion on safety funding and overtime will return to the board later in the budget cycle.