Police study confirms Glenwood too easy to enter

It is pretty easy for someone to enter and walk around in Glenwood Elementary School, something Greenfield school officials should address in the coming months.

That was one of the conclusions from the Greenfield Police Department’s security analysis of Glenwood School, presented to the Greenfield School Board on Dec. 15 by Greenfield police Deputy Inspector Brad Wentlandt. The board requested the study after parents and neighbors expressed concerns.

Wentlandt said his findings don’t necessarily represent “problems,” but rather concerns the school district has an opportunity to address.

He was struck by the ease in which he was able to walk into the school and move around the building, he said. He entered unannounced, went upstairs and into classrooms and hallways before going back downstairs.

The easy accessibility could make the building too attractive to ne’er-do-wells, he said.

“You don’t want to make it so easy for someone to come in that it becomes an easy target,” he said.

He also said vehicles can too easily drive or park on play areas, such as the school’s basketball courts, and the district may need to examine its policies regarding use of facilities by nonschool groups.

Parents have brought up those same concerns over the last few months in questioning the security of the school, 3550 S. 51st St., and its neighborhood, near the Milwaukee border on the city’s northeast side.

Residents said at a meeting in November that they were concerned about people playing on school grounds after the school day or on the weekends.

They have complained of vandalism, loitering, smoking and drinking in the area and have asked for no-trespassing signs and more lighting in the area.

Board member Linda Lubotsky, who asked for the security analysis, said the Police Department’s findings show more problems than first realized. The school district would do well to do a security study every year for all of its schools, she said.

“Certainly when you have children, the top priority should be making sure children and doors are secured,” Lubotsky said.

The district should also be careful that any action it takes does not go too far, Wentlandt said.

“You can certainly secure schools, but you could also make them prisons or castles,” he said. “So you really have to find a happy medium between safety and security and accessibility.”

Mark Schaaf can be reached at (262) 446-6605.