School Resource Officers

Woodland D50 has two School Resource Officers (SRO) from the Gurnee Police Department who serve our learning community. The SROs are responsible for safety and crime prevention in our schools and work closely with District administrators to maintain a safe environment for all.

The role of an SRO is to develop and nurture positive relationships with students and staff to develop a strong sense of community. School Resource Officers are focused on promoting safety, monitoring concerns, and providing feedback to district and school leaders on ways to improve our safety plans and procedures. SROs are trained to form connections with all different kinds of people so they can provide mentorship and support to our students and staff. SROs also spend time in classrooms presenting community education programs based on the needs of our students.

Meet Woodland's School Resource Officers!

Detective Kelly Hansen

Det. Hansen has been an officer with the Village of Gurnee for more than 10 years. Throughout her years of service with Gurnee, she has served in various specialty roles:

Juvenile Officer
Crisis Intervention Officer
Evidence Technician
Car Seat Safety Tech
Peer Support Team Member

Det. Hansen is also a wife and mother of two, and this helps shape her interactions with students and their families. She wants students to see her as a consistent and trusted adult in their everyday lives, so that they may feel comfortable working with her in times of need or in the event of an emergency.

Detective Konrad Otachel

Det. Konrad Otachel was born in Bilgoraj, Poland, and immigrated to Chicago in 1993. After graduating high school, he joined the U.S. Navy. During his nearly 23 years in the U.S. Navy, Officer Otachel served in many capacities and was stationed worldwide, including Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and the British Indian Ocean Territory, earning two Navy Commendation medals, six Navy and Marine Corps Achievement medals, and seven Navy Good Conduct medals.

After his military retirement in 2021, Det. Otachel joined the Gurnee Police Department. He requested the School Resource Officer assignment because he is passionate about helping our community and understands the importance of being a positive role model for others. He is excited to be a part of the Woodland family and is committed to creating and maintaining a safe learning environment while establishing strong relationships with students and faculty.

The Role of the School Resource Officer (SRO)

The SRO is not a school disciplinarian and violations of the student code of conduct or school rules that are not criminal matters are handled by school faculty and staff, not the SRO.

The SRO will not intervene unless a situation involves criminal conduct or poses an imminent threat to the health, safety, and security of a student or others.

The SRO’s responsibilities are multifaceted and typically include things like:

Meeting regularly with District administrators about school safety issues
Developing and maintaining relationships with the Woodland community to support school safety efforts
Being visible throughout the District as an agent of school safety
Participating in school safety drills
Providing educational assistance programs based on the needs of our students
Conducting home visits and student well-being checks
Participating on the District’s student safety assessment team and contributing to updates on the District’s Crisis Management Plan

Illinois Safe Gun Storage Act House Bill 2254

If you own a firearm, please review the safe storage practice which includes keeping your firearm secured in a locked container. In order to proactively support the safety and well-being of our community, please ensure all firearms are inaccessible or unusable to any person other than the owner or another lawfully authorized user at all times. Illinois Safe Gun Storage Act House Bill 2254

To confidentially report concerns about a person or situation involving gun safety, please submit an anonymous tip through Report A Concern.

Dangers of Vaping

According to the National Youth Tobacco Survey, vaping has become a pervasive problem with over 2.5 million youths admitting to using e-cigarettes/vapes in 2022. Vaping is harmful, yet millions of people use them regularly. It is important for us as a community to help youth understand the risks associated with it and why/how to avoid vaping. Learn More English / Spanish