Carmel High School (Mundelein, Illinois)
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| Motto | Values for a Better Life |
|---|---|
| Established | 1962 |
| Type | Private |
| President | Dr. Judith Mucheck, B.S., M.S.Ed., Ph.D. |
| Principal | Mrs. Lynne Strutzel |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | Mundelein, Illinois, USA |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Colors | Brown and Gold |
| Mascot | Corsair |
| Yearbook | 'Spirit' |
| Newspaper | 'Crossroads' |
| Website | School Website |
Carmel Catholic High School is a co-ed Catholic high school run jointly by the priests and brothers of the Order of Carmelites and the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Located in Mundelein, Illinois, Carmel serves all of Lake County. An institution of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, Carmel Catholic is one of three Carmelite-run high schools in the Chicago area, the others being Joliet Catholic High School and Mount Carmel High School.
The school bases its mission on the missions of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the Order of Carmelites. Carmel is primarily a college preparatory school.
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[edit] Awards and recognition
In 1985, 1996, 2002, and 2007, Carmel Catholic High School was recognized with the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education[1], the highest award an American school can receive.[2][3]
As of 2007, the school was one of only five schools nationwide to be honored as a Blue Ribbon School on four separate occasions.[4]
[edit] Community service
The school emphasizes an awareness of community as its most important aspect, and as such encourages students to become involved in extracurricular activities and requires students to perform 40 hours per year of external community service.
Some of the major Key Service Projects in 2007 include:
Annual Walk-A-Thon—Carmel students raised over $76,000. The money was donated to the school’s general fund.
Glass Slipper Project—Carmel students donated gently used prom dresses and formal wear for the benefit of those less fortunate.
Operation Rice Bowl—Donated over $8,300 to this humanitarian effort.
Football Team Service Project—The CCHS Varsity football team assisted with furniture moving and placement for Lakeshore Catholic Academy in Waukegan. The CCHS Varsity Cheerleaders visited nursing homes over the Christmas season to cheer residents.
Powder Puff Football Game and Mr. CHS Contest—$2,000 in event proceeds to the American Cancer Society.
Hosted one school-wide food drive—Two tons or 4,000 pounds of food was donated to Catholic Charities in Waukegan.
Hosted two school-wide blood drives—212 units of blood collected in total.
Hosted two dances- with donations accepted at the door in exchange for a reduced admission price to the dance. Collected winter coats at one dance and canned foods at the other.
[edit] History
Early in 1960, the Archdiocese requested that these two religious groups build a co-institutional Catholic High School in Lake County. In September 1962, Carmel High School for Boys had it's first class of 175 students. In September 1963, Carmel High School for Girls opened. In August 1988, the two religious groups decided to bring the two schools together. Classrooms for the Boys and Girls schools occupied separate wings of the same building, with shared library and cafeteria facilities. From 1962 until 1989, the two schools had operated co-institutionally, with independent administrations and faculties. Today, the school operates at near capacity with over 1,400 students.
[edit] Athletics
Carmel's mascot is the Corsair, and the school's colors are brown and gold. Carmel competes in the East Suburban Catholic Conference in its interscholastic athletics program.
In 2003 the football team won the Class 6A IHSA state title.
The school also claimed state titles in girls gymnastics in 1992, 1993, and 2007.
Carmel has a fan base stretching throughout Lake County, with its main support coming from the Mundelein and Libertyville area.
Carmel offers the following sports:
Boys’ Sports: Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Hockey, Soccer, Tennis, Track and Field, Volleyball and Wrestling
Girls’ Sports: Basketball, Cheerleading, Cross Country, Golf, Gymnastics, Pom Pons, Soccer, Softball, Tennis, Track and Field, and Volleyball.
[edit] Fine Arts
Carmel Catholic's fine arts program includes chorus, band, drama, and visual arts. The drama program produces one play and one musical per year. The play for the 2007-08 season is Every Family Has One, and the musical is Kiss Me, Kate. The school's current long-range strategic plan includes the construction of a new fine arts wing by 2012. In the band program there are many different groups: The Jazz Band, Jazz Ensemble, Concert Band and Wind Esnemble. During the football season, the Marching Band plays at all home games and at as many playoff games they can get to.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Al Salvi (1978) — 1996 Republican U.S. Senate nominee and former Illinois state legislator[5][6]
- Rick Santorum (1976) — Former United States Senator (R-PA)[5]
- Scott Stahoviak (1988) — former Major League Baseball first baseman: first round draft pick for the Minnesota Twins in 1991[7][8]
- Mike Wagner (1967) — former Pittsburgh Steelers safety[9]
- Jeff Zgonina (1988) — current NFL player (Houston Texans); namesake of Jeffrey M. Zgonina Foundation for pancreas cancer research at Johns Hopkins University[10]
[edit] References
- ^ U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 2003 through 2007 (PDF), United States Department of Education. Accessed November 1, 2007.
- ^ CIBA cited as one of the best by Education Department, Journal Inquirer, November 16, 2006. "The Blue Ribbon award is given only to schools that reach the top 10 percent of their state's testing scores over several years or show significant gains in student achievement. It is considered the highest honor a school can achieve."
- ^ Viers Mill School Wins Blue Ribbon; School Scored High on Statewide Test; The Washington Post. September 29, 2005 "For their accomplishments, all three schools this month earned the status of Blue Ribbon School, the highest honor the U.S. Education Department can bestow upon a school."
- ^ Berger, Susan. "School gets 4th Blue Ribbon: Carmel Catholic is only one in state honored this year", Chicago Tribune, October 10, 2007. Accessed November 1, 2007. "Carmel also received the Blue Ribbon Award in 1985, 1996 and 2002. Only four other high schools nationwide have won the award four times."
- ^ a b Marshall, Jon. "Politics comes home to Carmel as two well-known alumni visit", Daily Herald, October 26, 1996.
- ^ Scifo, Tony. "Carmel's political alumni return for chat with students Carmel High School", Daily Herald, November 5, 1996.
- ^ MBL Draft of 1988
- ^ MBL Draft of 1991
- ^ Scalf, Abby. "Lake County sports stars to be inducted into hall of fame", Daily Herald, October 13, 2002.
- ^ LaGere, Bob. "Rams' Zgonina would be good candidate for 'Survivor'", Daily Herald, January 31, 2002.
