District 308 High School Students Work with Oswego Police to Stop Crime

Say you’re a student at one of Oswego 308's high schools and you witness someone taking a wallet from an unattended desk. What do you do?

The Student Advisory Board would recommend that you use the Student Tip Hotline that will connect you anonymously with the Oswego Police Department.

The student advisory board – made up of four students of each grade level from Oswego High School and Oswego East High School – address problems within their schools with the Oswego Police and work to find a solution.

“It allows both schools direct access to the chief of police,” said Captain Jeff Burgner. “It encourages a very open dialogue and with their input it’s really taken off.”

The Student Advisory Board meets at the police station twice a semester to discuss projects or ideas that are important to them. Several past topics have included drunk driving and curfew. Right now they are focused on the student tip hotline to encourage students to report crimes they see anonymously and even be eligible for a reward if the information leads to an arrest or charge.

“It gives them an avenue where they can do the right thing. I’ve noticed with high school culture it is pretty much taboo to tell on somebody,” said Brian Nehring, the Oswego High School police liaison.

“It’s a big thing,” said OHS senior Stanly Natonek. “No one wants other kids to be mad at them. If they report anonymously they can kind of hide behind that.”

“You’re more likely to tell if no one knows it’s you,” added OEHS sophomore Becca Karry.

Theft or drug use have been the number one tips called in, although OEHS senior Karrighan Quick said thefts have dropped with the decision to lock the gym locker rooms this year.

“Now there’s the 5 minute intervals you need to be dressed and get out,” she explained. If a student arrives late to gym they need to get a dean’s assistant to open the locker room. “So even if some silly person leaves their locker unlocked they should be good.”

Burgner said the payout for an arrest is $50, but that even if an arrest is made some students don’t come in to claim it. “Some people just want to give the information. It’s not just a money driven program.”

The tip hotline is completely anonymous, said Burgner. Students call in and leave the information with the police front desk. They are then given a number and can check with the police department once a week if their information lead to an arrest.  If yes, they can then claim their reward with the number. Their names are never taken.

“A lot of [students] aren’t comfortable doing this,” said OEHS freshman James Kidd. “I tell them it’s completely anonymous. That reassurance makes them more comfortable doing it.”

All of the students on the advisory committee said they or friends have been affected by theft at some point during their high school years.

In 2011, the year the hotline started, the tip hotline received 28 tips – 13 at OEHS and 15 at OHS – of which six were eligible for payouts. Five of the six tips were for possession of cannabis arrests and the other one was for a theft. 

Right now the schools are working to promote the tip line, through posters and skits on their morning television programming.

“It’s all about the awareness,” said Natonek.

Students can all the tip hotline at any time at 630-551-7300.