Cook County Sheriff’s Police have closed their investigation into a November incident between a second-grader and his teacher at Palos West School in Palos Park.
Police said that after a “thorough investigation there was no evidence of criminal behavior and the case was closed without charging.”
School officials also announced earlier this month that Dana Swiderek was hired to replace Jennifer Tiernan in the classroom.
In a police report taken by the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, there was a brief struggle during dismissal on Nov. 5. It stated that a 7-year-old student became upset during a partner activity and stepped into the hallway. After some time outside the closed classroom door, he approached it as if to return. Tiernan, coming from inside, pushed the door open, “causing [him] to lose grip on [the] door pushing him away,” the report says.
A brief “push/pull ensued” as both held the door, followed by a “short tussle” before the child screamed and ran to the principal’s office. The officer noted the incident happened at the end of the day and that no immediate action was taken at the school level.
Tiernan, who had planned to retire at the end of the school year, was removed from the classroom and is no longer employed by District 118. No public vote related to her employment appears in board records.
At a December school board meeting, parents described what they said were months of escalating behavioral problems.
“My son was verbally and physically abused from the first week of school,” Heather Achterberch told the board. She listed threats, racial slurs and repeated injuries. “We were assured action would be taken, but we never got meaningful follow-up.”
Christina Halikas connected the communication gaps to her own childhood. “Children remember when safety protocols fail,” she said.
Carolyn Necas said daily disruption shaped her child’s fall semester. “And then the one stable person, their teacher, was suddenly gone without explanation.”
She also questioned the district’s in-school suspension practices. “If a child can make bracelets or play Minecraft during suspension, how is that a consequence?”
Parents returned again and again to the same questions. What does discipline look like here? What actually happens after the first incident? The second? Who gets notified and when? And why did two weeks pass with no communication after Tiernan stopped reporting to school?
Several parents said they often learned about incidents from their children before hearing anything from the school.
District 118 has not identified any students.
Besides safety concerns, parents were frustrated over how the district handled Tiernan’s departure.
Some of the parents praised Tiernan’s ability as a teacher and were disappointed she was no longer employed.
Ashley Hansel, whose children had Tiernan as their second-grade teacher, called her “steady, patient and responsive,” adding that she answered messages “at all hours.”
She urged the board to spend more time in classrooms and talk with teachers directly. “Teacher morale is at an all-time low,” she said.
Retired administrator Shelley Mulchrone shared that same sentiment. “She has been a role model and mentor,” Mulchrone said. “A loyal educator with a lifelong passion for helping children.”
Three speakers, Areej Malley, Lena Hussien and Nazha Farahid, addressed racist and Islamophobic comments posted online after earlier reporting about the classroom incident.
Hussien told the board she has always felt welcome in District 118. “Our kids do not see each other as outsiders,” she said. “Please do not let adults divide this community.”
Malley emphasized the harm caused by speculation. “We are talking about a 7-year-old child,” she said. “Transparency matters.”
On Dec. 10, the district posted its response online. The message was straightforward: a parent meeting is coming in January to talk through the safety, communication and teacher-support concerns raised by parents.
The district also addressed the issue of racist comments circulating online, saying it “strongly condemns” that kind of division and plans to meet with those families as well.
Parents also asked for a clearer picture of how the district handles repeated behavior incidents, who gets notified when those incidents happen, and how families are supposed to be informed when a teacher is removed or out for an extended stretch.
Several said they still didn’t understand why no information was shared immediately after the Nov. 5 incident. Board members did not respond.