Teachers at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke are challenging Fairfax County Public Schools over an assignment they say doesn't belong in their job description: operating weapons scanners.

The Fairfax County Federation of Teachers (FCFT) has filed a formal grievance against FCPS on behalf of staff ordered to run OpenGate weapons detection systems at the school, FFXnow first reported on Sept. 30. Two teachers refused the duty. Both were formally reprimanded.

One of them is Bill McCabe, an English teacher and FCFT shop steward who has taught at Lake Braddock for 30 years. McCabe said he was called "unprofessional" and "insubordinate" after he declined.

"It's bargain-basement security for the students in Fairfax County," McCabe said. "And I'm not qualified to do it."

The dispute centers on how the duty was classified. FCPS assigned weapons screening as an "instructional and professional responsibility," or IPR. Teachers argue the task is neither instructional nor related to their professional role. Lake Braddock has six security professionals on staff, and teachers questioned why those employees were not assigned to the scanners instead.

FCPS installed OpenGate systems in every middle and high school in the fall of 2025, funded through one-time year-end money and settlement funds from a class action lawsuit against a vaping company. That includes Vienna-area schools such as James Madison High School, Oakton High School and Thoreau Middle School. The district's weapons detection FAQ says "school-based staff and security personnel" will manage the screening process.

Staff members gathered more than 80 signatures on an internal petition, protested outside the school on Back to School night, spoke at school board meetings and launched a public petition that collected more than 3,000 signatures.

Both sides testified before a hearings officer at a Sept. 23 public hearing. The officer will recommend a resolution to the Fairfax County School Board, which will make the final decision.

Sonja Curry-Johnson, an English teacher at Lake Braddock and union steward, said a witness at the hearing described how Fairfax High School handled the duty differently. Staff there were surveyed on whether they wanted to volunteer, and those who did received a stipend.

FCFT President Emily VanDerhoff said the union wants an opt-in system. She said the grievance is also about setting limits on what principals can assign to teachers.

An FCPS spokesperson declined to comment, citing the ongoing grievance process.

The school board will issue the final ruling on the grievance. No date has been announced.