Classes resumed Wednesday at Highland Park High School following a lockdown Tuesday after a student brought a gun to school, leading to five students being arrested.
Highland Park Superintendent of Schools Bruce Law said that District 113 received an anonymous tip reporting a rumor of a student in possession of a gun Tuesday morning.
Highland Park High School reported the tip to law enforcement after receiving it.
The school began investigating the tip when additional students came forward to report seeing a student with a gun, Law said.
The Highland Park Police Department was already on the scene and advised school officials to go into lockdown.
“When police advised going into lockdown to facilitate their investigation, our faculty and staff sprang into action to assist students. Students remained calm. Parents and guardians, understandably anxious for the all-clear, waited patiently for a safe resolution,” Law said.
The student alleged to have a gun was then identified, Law said.
Security footage showed that he and another student had left the building.
Law enforcement conducted a sweep of the building while other police officers searched for the two students who had left the school.
Two students were arrested by police officers on the corner of Washington Avenue and Green Bay Road in Highwood, a source told Lake and McHenry County Scanner.
Three additional students were also taken into custody.
The Northern Illinois Police Alarm System (NIPAS) Emergency Services Team was dispatched to the school to assist in clearing the building.
Police cleared the school and evacuated the students after the lockdown was lifted. Students were dismissed home early for the day.
“Safety is our number one priority, and once again, it was because students who had critical information shared that information with school staff that the school and police were able to respond so quickly to the situation,” Law said.
Soft lockdowns at City of Highland Park buildings, District 112 schools, District 113 schools, the Park District of Highland Park and the Highland Park Public Library were also lifted.
City officials said there were no reported shots fired and the investigation is continuing with the Highland Park Police Department and District 113.
It is unknown yet whether the gun involved is a replica or a real gun.
Voting hours were extended to 8:35 p.m. at Braeside Elementary School, Red Oak Elementary School and Highland Park Public Library due to the incident.
All other polling locations in Highland Park closed as scheduled at 7 p.m.
The incident occurred the same morning students had planned to walk out of school to protest for gun control.
The walkout was planned for 10:14 a.m., which is when shots first rang out at the Fourth of July parade shooting in Highland Park last year,
ABC7 Chicago reported the Highland Park students were demanding a ban on “assault weapons.”
School walkouts and protests in Nashville took place Monday morning, local news outlets reported.
Monday marked one week after a gunman walked into a private school in Nashville and shot multiple students and staff members.
Three staff members and three children died in the shooting. The shooter was fatally shot by police.
“As a society, we should drop everything and figure out a solution to this problem. Until we as a country figure out how to remove this scourge that is upon all of us, we need to take care of each other – and ourselves,” Law said in a message to parents.
Classes resumed Wednesday at the high school and counselors are being made available to students who need them.