Oak Park and River Forest High School will transition to a new lock system for the school’s gym lockers by Friday after it was discovered last week that a student was in possession of a copy of a master key that provides access to current gym locks, according to an Oct. 14 letter from school officials.
Oak Park Deputy Police Chief Anthony Ambrose said the police department was continuing to investigate Monday and could not say how many thefts had occurred or how long they had been going on.
“That’s what we’re trying to determine,” Ambrose said, adding the department is working with the school to see how many thefts they’ve had and if they can be connected.
To his knowledge, no one has been charged.
According to a police summary report sent by the department Monday, an unknown person broke into a locked gym locker at the school, Oct. 7, and took a silver iPod Touch with a black screen. The loss was estimated at $300. It is unclear if this is related to the broader investigation.
A reported theft from a gym locker Thursday led to the discovery, the letter from Supt. Steven Isoye and Principal Nathaniel Rouse said. School officials have recovered the copied key and students began exchanging olds locks for new ones on Monday. By Friday, remaining blue or red locks on gym lockers will be removed. The school will provide additional security in locker room areas until the transition is complete.
Kay Foran, communications coordinator for the school, said Tuesday morning that about 2,000 locks had been replaced on the majority of the gym lockers.
All athletic department locks will also be replaced after the gym lock transition is complete.
Foran said there is nothing at this point indicating a similar issue with the lockers in the school’s main hallways. She said one student so far was victimized by theft in this incident.
“We are relieved — if saddened — to discover what we believe is the cause of one aspect of a theft issue we have spent so much time and effort investigating,” the letter said.
Letter from OPRF
October 14, 2011
Dear OPRFHS Parents:
Due to our growing concerns about personal property thefts at OPRF – particularly in the Physical Education locker room area — we had planned to overhaul and enhance our entire gym locker lock system at the end of this month when students would be registering for their 2nd quarter PE classes.
We are writing to let you know that we have decided to immediately transition to the new system next week due to an incident that occurred Thursday. A reported theft from a PE locker led to the discovery that an OPRF student was in possession of a copy of a master key that provides access to current PE locks. No more details can be shared by the school at this time due to student confidentiality. The matter is under criminal investigation by the Oak Park Police Department.
Though we have recovered the copied key, this incident requires us to expedite the change to the new lock system starting Monday. Parents, please help us remind your students currently enrolled in a PE class to go directly to the Field House at the start of their regularly assigned PE period. Their teachers will provide instructions on how to exchange their current lock for a new one. Students who are absent Monday will be able to exchange their locks later in the week. Any students who do not have a current lock will be given a new lock, and a $5 lock charge will be added to their obligations. By next Friday, Oct. 21, any remaining blue or red locks left on PE lockers will be removed. We will provide additional security in locker room areas until the transition is complete.
Though little prevents thefts using a master key copy, this incident provides an opportunity to remind students about these basic practices to follow once new locks are distributed:
- Never share lockers and locks with each other;
- Always check to make sure locks are truly locked and turned before leaving an area;
- Keep all property locked and secured;
- Remember – and never share – your lock combinations;
- Report suspicious activity – and all thefts – to security.
We will also begin replacing all Athletic Department locks as soon as we have completed the PE transition. At this time, we have no reason to believe that our hallway locks are similarly compromised, although we will monitor this issue throughout the year and assess whether replacement is warranted there, too.
We are relieved — if saddened — to discover what we believe is the cause of one aspect of a theft issue we have spent so much time and effort investigating. We hope this new lock system will bring a greater sense of security to our students and help significantly curtail thefts in the building.
Most important, we hope this incident will allow all of us adults to reinforce to our students the basic responsibility they have to respect each other and each other’s property and to respect themselves by always doing the right thing. Theft undermines trust, and without trust, it’s hard to build a true sense of community.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
Dr. Steve Isoye
Superintendent
Nathaniel Rouse
Principal
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