$140,000 Bid For Bullet-Resistant Glass Approved By D-225 Board

GLENVIEW, IL — Students at Glenbrook high schools will begin the next school year with improved security on campus, as all buildings in the district are undergoing security and safety enhancements following recommendations resulting from an independent assessment conducted earlier this year. Planned upgrades include main entrances hardened with bullet-resistant glazing, according to a memo from District 225 staff.

The district opened up bidding for glazing and electrical work last Tuesday and received low bids of $6,200 for electrical improvements and $139,630 for the glazing work, according to district staff.

The board voted 5-0 to approve the bid at its Monday meeting, Pioneer Press reported. District officials told the paper work on the glass would start as soon as September and take about two weeks.

A team from a Washington, D.C.-based facilities management company was hired to carry out a physical security assessment of the buildings and campuses of Glenbrook North, Glenbrook South, Glenbrook Off-Campus and Evening High School and the district administrative building. The review was carried out in March.

One of the firm's recommendations was to improve the security of the main entrances. After reviewing various options for ways to enhance security, district staff recommended adding bullet-resistant glass around receptionists, impact-resistant film to interior doors and a consistent visitor check-in system, according to a memo last month from district staff.

District staff have also begun interviewing candidates for director of safety and security, a newly created administrative position, according to the Glenview Announcements. The director's job responsibilities would include training and assessing staff, and the position will be the subject of further discussions in closed session at a special meeting set for July 9.

Last year, a security staffer at Glenbrook North was fired after he was arrested and accused of impersonating a police officer to avoid getting in trouble for bringing a handgun onto campus. Steven Schulhof, a private investigator who spent 17 years working for the district, is due back in court July 17 in connection with felony firearm and false personation charges, according to court records.