Waubonsie Valley High School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Waubonsie Valley High School |
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| Established | 1975 |
| Type | Public secondary |
| Principal | Jim Schmid |
| Students | 3,324 |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | 2590 Ogden Avenue Aurora, Illinois USA |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Colors | Green and Gold |
| Mascot | Warriors |
| Yearbook | Arrowhead |
| Newspaper | The Voice |
| Website | wvhs.ipsd.org/ |
Waubonsie Valley High School, or WVHS, is a public four-year high school located at the corner of Ogden Avenue and Eola Road in Aurora, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is the counterpart to Neuqua Valley High School of Indian Prairie School District 204.
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[edit] History
Ground was broken for Waubonsie Valley High School in the spring of 1973, at a cost of $8.2 million. The school officially opened its doors in 1975 for 293 students. Major construction projects have added three classroom wings, a field house and an auditorium. During the summer of 2006, the school was renovated and various improvements were made. The atrium received a "face lift" in the form of a new style around the pillars and floor tile. In the hallways, the school was repainted with different shades of green and a wooden oak trim. The school also repaved the 12 tennis courts and rebuilt the rubber track. This renovation cost approximately $7.5 million. However some areas were not renovated such as the weight lifting room (which still has some old rusted, weights and unpainted walls), the fitness room (which is actually a cage-like room with treadmills and fitness bikes) and another room opposite of the Fitness Room which is basically just mats. The stairs on both sides in the Main Gym lead to the two different areas.
The campus officially consists of two buildings: a "Gold Campus" building (in the converted Francis Granger Middle School) for Freshmen (Grade 9) which opened in 2003. And a "Green Campus" building (the original WVHS main building) for Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors (Grades 10-12). Both Waubonsie Valley and its sister school, Neuqua Valley High School opened a separate "Gold Campus" due to high enrollment numbers and classroom overcrowding.
Waubonsie Valley's inaugural principal was Tom Gibbs. The inaugural department chairs were: Howard Ulin, Bob Stephens, Bill Hill, Bob Smith and Dick Kerner.
When the District's third high school located near 75th Street and Illinois Route 59 opens in 2009, the Gold Campus may be reconverted back into a middle school.
[edit] Academics
In 2005, Waubonsie Valley had an average composite ACT score of 22.1, and graduated 98.9% of its senior class. Waubonsie Valley has not made Adequate Yearly Progress on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, a state test part of the No Child Left Behind Act.[1]
Students at Waubonsie Valley have the opportunity to participate in the High School Human Genome Project run for several years by Elaine Modine. Waubonsie Valley is currently the only school in the state of Illinois contributing to this historic project. [2]
The average class size is 24.1.
[edit] Athletics
Waubonie Valley's athletic teams compete in the Upstate Eight Conference. Waubonsie Valley's mascot is the Warriors.
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Girls Sports
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Boys Sports
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[edit] Activities
The WVHS marching band participated in a New Year's Day parade in London on 1 January 2006. There are 2 longstanding acappella groups, one male and one female that are student led, Cloud 9 and Pink Notes respectively. The WVHS Marching Warriors took fifth place overall at the Illinois State University High School Marching Band Championships in 2006 and placed third in thier class. The Warriors finaled at the Lake Park High School Marching Band Competition placing seventh.
[edit] Music Program
WVHS has been recognized as having one of the premiere music programs in the United States, through recognition by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. WVHS was named a GRAMMY Association's Signature School in 2004, 2005, and 2006.
[edit] Notable Alumni
- Mike Bowden, 2005, professional baseball player, Boston Red Sox[3]
- Jon Burgstone, Silicon Valley entrepreneur and professor
- Paul Konrad, 1983, WGN Morning News Reporter
- Fabian Bowens, A special teams and wide receiver for the Chicago Bears in the late 90's
[edit] References
[edit] External links
| Upstate Eight Conference |
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| Bartlett • East Aurora • Elgin • Lake Park • Larkin • Neuqua Valley • St. Charles East • St. Charles North • South Elgin • Streamwood • Waubonsie Valley |
