State Rep. Mary Gill (D-35th) is planning to introduce legislation to ensure that Chicago Local School Councils (LSC) maintain the authority to decide if Chicago Police Department (CPD) officers are assigned to their schools.

This comes after the Chicago Board of Education reported its plan to strip LSC members of their decision-making power when it comes to CPD officers in schools.

In late December 2023, Nadig Newspaper, which covers Chicago’s Northwest Side, reported that the Chicago Board of Education is considering removal of CPD school resource officers (SRO) from high schools.

The move would abandon the current policy that allows for an LSC to decide whether to have up to two CPD officers assigned to its school.

Gill, a former LSC member at the Chicago High School for Agricultural Science (CHSAS), is working to keep the power with LSC members.

“We are still in the draft phases, so nothing has been filed yet; but it is being drafted,” said Gill. “This message is very simple; it’s that local school councils should maintain the authority to decide if an SRO officer should be in their school or not. The power should remain within the LSC.”

Carisa Parker, community engagement coordinator of the CPD 22nd District Council and chair of the LSC at Morgan Park High School (MPHS), is working with Gill on the measure.

The MPHS LSC has voted unanimously during the past five years to keep SRO at the school, 1744 W. Pryor Ave.

“This decision is something that we really take to heart,” said Parker. “We are really thorough and transparent about our process. We have sent out surveys to our parents, students, teachers and community members.”

Through these surveys, MPHS LSC members were able to decide on the best option for their school.

“Parents, students, teachers and community members were able to give us their feedback on why they thought it was important to either keep or not keep the SRO in the school,” said Parker. “Overwhelming the data showed our stakeholders were comfortable having SRO in the school and really felt they were a welcome addition to our school community.”

Three out of the four high schools in the 22nd District have voted to retain their SRO in the school.

“Nobody knows a community better than community members,” said Gill. “LSC are made up of teachers, parents, community members and stakeholders; we know our communities and the power to make this decision should stay within the communities.”

Fenger Academy High School and Percy Julian High School also have school SRO. While not through the SRO program, CHSAS does hire officers with funds from its budget.

“If an LSC decides that they do not want to participate in the program, we fully respect that decision,” said Gill. “But, that decision should be made by the LSC.”

The needs of one school could be different than those of another school, which is why Gill believes the power should remain with the LSC.

“We want to make sure that this power stays with the LSC and that they are the ones that have the most impact in their schools,” said Gill. “Carisa, in particular, is elected to do what is best for Morgan Park High School, and we want to make sure that stays intact.”

At MPHS, Parker said, SRO have provided more than an extra sense of security.

“Officers, who we have been lucky enough to have at our school, have become a part of our school community,” said Parker. “They end up being mentors and coaches. We had one SRO who had an after-school program for girls.”

Parker believes SRO involvement with students can help solve some of the larger problems facing Chicago.

“As the city works towards helping bridge the relationship between officers and the public, I think the relationship between youths and police officers, especially in black and brown communities, is really super important,” said Parker. “We have an opportunity to help change some of those misconceptions around the police, and this is a program that does a really good job of that.”