At-a-Glance: Lake County high school districts ready for new school year

We asked some of our high school districts to share their highlights for the new school year with our readers.

Warren Township High School District 121 (starts Aug. 18)

This year, District 121 proudly celebrates its centennial anniversary with a variety of activities throughout the year in the schools and in the community.

The district’s 100th commencement ceremony will be held at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates on May 21, as Northwestern University is going to be unavailable due to renovations.

This year at the Almond campus, seniors will have the opportunity to be exempt from final exams second semester if they have an 80 percent or higher and five or less excused absences for any given class.

Students at both the Almond and O’Plaine campuses will be given instruction and support in the area of digital citizenship.

“As a learning community, we want our students to make informed, appropriate decisions and develop strong study skills in this digital age,” said Almond Principal Patrick Keeley.

Both campuses will also continue to offer a resource room in core subjects throughout the school day. This will allow students to receive free tutoring from math, English, social studies and science teachers during the lunch hours.

Almond will host a fall open house on Aug. 25 for parents to meet their student’s teachers and experience a condensed school day. O’Plaine will host its open house on Sept. 1.

O'Plaine students were welcomed back with a newly remodeled cafeteria and freshly 
painted and carpeted library.

“In the coming months, they will see new carpet in many of our classrooms and new furniture in the library as well as changes in some of the older locker rooms,” said O’Plaine Principal Gregory Meyer.

Round Lake High School (starts Aug. 22)

Thanks to passage of a $29 million building bond referendum by voters in Nov. 2014, Round Lake High School students are starting the new school year with fully remodeled spaces and an 80,000 square foot addition.

A ribbon cutting will be held at 5 p.m. on Aug. 29.

“The facility itself is beautiful and amazing. It’s literally going to change not just the type of environment the kids and staff are in, but more importantly the manner in which we deliver education,” said Dr. Donn Mendoza, deputy superintendent and principal.

The extensive construction and remodeling project includes the addition of a business incubator lab; Project Lead the Way design lab; new science labs; four STEM labs; 24 new classrooms; more hallway space and common areas; a new auxiliary gym; upgraded cafeteria; enhanced security features and a courtyard teaching space.

The business incubator lab is a state-of-the-art facility and instructional program with readily available technology. At the end of the school year, students will have the opportunity to make “Shark Tank” style pitch on a business they spent the year developing.

The construction of new classrooms, which feature enhanced technology and flexible furniture, has resulted in all but one of the school’s mobile units being removed.

“There were four to five times a day when a third of our student population was going outside to get from one class to another. That is completely gone,” Mendoza said.

Additional common areas are sprinkled throughout the building for collegiate-style gatherings and instruction. Expanded hallway space will alleviate crowding.

Security upgrades include a vestibule area at the main entrance where visitors will have to be buzzed in, and more security cameras. Ellis School, which is also part of Round Lake District 116, has also undergone building renovations that include enhanced security.

Grayslake Community High School District 127 (started Aug. 15) Supt. Catherine Finger

District 127 has a host of exciting new initiatives underway for the new school year, including the launching of the Northern Lake County Conference (NLCC), formed this summer to provide more competition opportunities for students involved in athletics and extracurricular activities. Participating high schools include Grayslake Central and North, Antioch, Grant, Lakes, North Chicago, Round Lake and Wauconda. Grayslake’s first event will be a student leadership conference on Aug, 18.

Just in time for the new school year, the district launched an updated website platform designed to make communications with the community easier, faster and more flexible.

Approximately 9,000 solar panels will soon be installed on the rooftops of both high schools in addition to a ground mount installation spanning approximately two acres of district property adjacent to Grayslake North High School.

“This transition to natural energy will reduce the district’s energy expenditures and generate a positive cash flow over time, a win-win-win for the district and our families,” Supt. Catherine Finger said.

New courses this year include AP World History, AP Computer Science, Advanced Mathematical Decision Making and the launch of a German language program.

All freshmen and sophomore students also started the year with Chromebooks in the classroom.

Community High School District 128 (started Aug. 15)

New courses at Libertyville High School include AP Human Geography, AP World History and AP Computer Science Principles. Students are also initiating a new prevention and wellness program based on Illinois SEL standards called "Life of a Wildcat.”

“Our Athletic teams are also looking forward to playing in the new NSC conference which welcomes Waukegan High School,” said Principal Marina Scott.

Vernon Hills High School has introduced AP Human Geography, AP World History and 
AP Computer Science Principles. Over the three courses there are 14 sections and 293  
students enrolled.

VHHS will also start playing in the Central Suburban League (CSL) after 15 years of 
successful competition in the NSC's Prairie Division.

Mundelein High School District 120 (started Aug. 9)

Mundelein High School students were welcomed back to school with a new $23.7 million building addition that provides an additional 25 classrooms, a free-standing STEM lab, Project Lead the Way instruction, a business incubator lab and flexible classrooms for various types of learning.

A ribbon cutting and tours will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Sept.10, during homecoming weekend.

"The reactions of both students and staff have been overwhelmingly positive and the campus improvements will greatly affect current and future generations of students for years to come," said Supt. Dr. Kevin Myers.

Along with the new facilities, MHS has rebranded itself with new logos and seal, returning to the original traditions of the school. The new look is evident on athletic and activity uniforms, in offices and open spaces throughout the campus, on the press box, score boards and more.

"We're proud of the facilities and programs that we offer our students and we are a strong, vibrant and forward-looking district,” Myers said.