This petition is in response to the numerous lockdowns at Old Quarry Middle School (OQMS). On November 20, 2013, OQMS was again put on a lockdown. Albeit a soft lockdown, it is unacceptable for this to continue. Action is needed to prevent these threats from continuing and to find and punish those involved in making the threats. Our children’s education is being disrupted and their safety compromised.  

We are three months into the school year and we have had three threats.  In the second half of last year, we had two threats. This number of threats to a school is unacceptable. This is no longer conducive to learning.  We need to stop waiting to catch someone and prevent these kids from continuing with this type of behavior.  

We need to find funds in the budget, whether it is from renting out Central School, or other allocated funds to install cameras or have staff responsible for monitoring.  Our children deserve a safe environment to learn in – it is their right.

The parents of Old Quarry Middle School students would really appreciate some follow up on the following matters:

1.  Have any of the individuals responsible for any of the threats been caught, and what was the punishment?     

2. What preventative measures have been put in place to stop this from happening?

3. In what way will parents be kept informed of future updates in regards to these matters? Creating a petition to get answers we are entitled to is unacceptable.

We thank the school staff, board, and the Lemont Police Department for their prompt action and attentiveness.