Police were called and a lockdown was issued at John Lewis Middle School in Waukegan after two adults forced their way into the school and attacked staff members, injuring two of them.
The Waukegan Police Department and Waukegan Fire Department responded around 7:15 a.m. Tuesday to the school, located at 600 South Lewis Avenue.
Co-Principals Molly Schaefer and Amanda Nault said in a message to parents that two adults entered the building, prompting a soft lockdown.
The two individuals, one of which is an adult family member of a student, tried to enter the school during morning arrival.
The adults were immediately met by staff, who attempted to prevent them from entering the building.
A physical altercation ensued between staff and the subjects, Nault and Schaefer said.
The two adults were able to gain entry into the building and continued to be combative with staff and a student.
Staff was eventually able to subdue them and escort them out of the building.
Two staff members were injured during the incident, the co-principals said. No students were injured.
Police responded quickly and are in the process of conducting an investigation.
School staff will be pressing charges against the individuals who entered the building. The school will remain on soft lockdown.
“We want to commend staff for their handling of today’s incident. They responded immediately upon seeing unknown individuals attempting to enter the building, and they worked to protect our students from harm,” the co-principals said in their message.
School officials said the adults came to the school in response to an altercation that previously occurred between two students. “This situation is disturbing and disappointing.”
“As a school community we expect our Lewis students to behave themselves in a respectful and responsible manner. Needless to say, we expect the same from our visiting adults as well. As adults we must do a better job of modeling appropriate behavior for our children,” the message said.
The Waukegan Police Department told Lake and McHenry County Scanner that officers have not arrested the suspects yet but are working to locate them.