St. Charles North High School
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| Motto | Leadership, Integrity, Respect. |
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| Established | 2000 |
| Type | Public secondary |
| Principal | Mrs. Zupec |
| Faculty | 108 |
| Students | 2,172 |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | 255 Red Gate Road St. Charles, Illinois, USA |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Colors | Blue, Black, and Silver |
| Nickname | North Stars |
| Mascot | (Polar Bear) |
| Yearbook | Polaris |
| Newspaper | Stargazer |
| Website | [1] |
Saint Charles North High School is a public four-year high school, located in St. Charles, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Community Unit School District 303 which also includes Saint Charles East High School.
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[edit] History
Originally, the main campus was built in 1995 by Hestrup & Associates as Wredling Middle School with a capacity of 1300. It was expanded and converted into a high school in 2000 at a cost of $41,500,000.
In the spring of 2001, a serious mold problem was discovered at St. Charles East and was determined to be the source of some student illnesses[1]. As a result, East students received an extra two weeks of spring break while school board officials decided on the best recourse. For the rest of the 2000-2001 school year, St. Charles East shared a split-schedule with St. Charles North. East students attended class at the North campus during the morning while North students had class during the afternoon. After repairs, which totaled nearly $30 million dollars[2], classes resumed their normal locations and schedules the following school year.
The inaugural Class of 2003 was lead by an executive student council committee of Todd Hewell, Morgan Darrah, Matt Kling, Amanda Zaferopulos, Matt Cameron and Alissa DePue, who served as Executive President, Vice-President, Corresponding Secretary, Recording Secretary, Treasurer and Parliamentarian, respectively. Hewell, Cameron and DePue served in these capacities for three years. The class advisor for all four years was Dr. Natalie Nelson. [2]
In February 2005 a fight in Plato Township involved as many as 50 people, many of them students or graduates from St. Charles North, and nearby Burlington Central high schools.According to the Kane County state's attorney's office, the hostility stemmed from harassing phone calls exchanged by the two sides over a relationship between a young woman from St. Charles and a young man from Burlington. Several of the participants were subsequently arrested and convicted for their part in the brawl which unfortunalely led to the death of a 20 year old Man from Elgin.
In November of 2005 the St. Charles North Boys Cross Country team finished third in the state of Illinois. This success continued into the track season, when Matt De Silva and Michael McDonnell finished fifth and third respectively in the 3200m run at the state finals. Additionally, the 4x800m relay team finished ninth in what was considered one of the fastest 4x800m relays in Illinois track and field history. These performances brought them to Greensboro, North Carolina for the Nike Outdoor Nationals track meet, where the 4x1600m team finished fourth and the 4x800m team finished ninth. The following year, under the helm of a new coach and with a nearly entirely new varsity team, the cross country team finished second in the state. The success continued once again into track season, as runners qualified for the state meet in the 400, 800, 1600, 3200, and 4x800m relay. Two athletes gained all-state status: Chris DeSilva (1600m - 9th) and Max Clink (800m - 8th). The team once again continued its season at Nike Outdoor Nationals, placing eleventh in the 4x800m relay and twelfth in the 4x1 mile relay. St. Charles North again qualified for the state cross country meet in the fall of 2007 after placing third in the notorious Schaumburg Sectional. The North Stars added another impressive finish to their list by placing sixth in the state. It was also the first time in school history that the North Stars had two all-state runners in cross country: Chris DeSilva (9th) and Mike Strasser (16th). In late May, the North Stars 4x800 meter relay won prelims, and then finals at the state track and field meet in Charleston. Their combined time of 7:45 was a school record and top 10 in the nation.
On March 24th 2006 there was a large bomb threat and students were locked in their classrooms for three hours until area police and bomb squads determined no bomb was found.
In November 2006, the Boys Soccer team bowed out of the State Tournament after reaching the Elite Eight. This was the best finish in school history.
A suspicious device was found by a teacher in an open courtyard on the south side of the school building on May 25th 2007. Areas near the courtyard were evacuated and the school was placed under lockdown from 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. before classes resumed. Bomb Squad technicians from the Kane County Sheriff's Office dismantled the device and determined it to be harmless. James Pniewski, a 17-year old junior, was arrested in connection with the device and charged with one count of disorderly conduct after questioning[3].
On September 13th 2007, St Charles North's electronic welcome sign at the main entrance along Red Gate Road was blown up using M-80's. Also, the school's popular spirit rock was buried that was near the school's football field since opening of the school in spring 2000. On that same night the school tennis courts and the neighborhood across Red Gate Road was vandalized with the words "GO SAINTS." The Saints are the mascots of crosstown rival St Charles East High School.
On January 29th 2008, there was a note found in one of the schools bathrooms stating that on January 31st 2008 there would be a school shooting. On Jan. 31st there was a lot of uncertainty with the students. Many of the students were taken home by their parents during the day because of the nature of the note. On that day there was a large increase in emergency services at the school, there were St Charles Police, Kane County Sheriff, Bomb Squad, and other emergency services. The school resumed its regular operations the next week.
Senior drill team member Lauren Laman collapsed during drill team practice on February 8, 2008 and was pronounced dead at 5:37 p.m. at Delnor-Community Hospital in Geneva. The Kane County coroner's office's autopsy revealed that she died from a mitral valve prolapse, a common and usually harmless heart condition. Although Laman's family knew about the condition, her family doctor had cleared her to participate in athletics. Grief counselors were provided the following Monday for students struggling with Laman's death [4].
[edit] Referendums
In recent years many referendums have been presented to residents of Community Unit School District 303. As can been seen on their site the D303 operates on a budget of 134 million dollars. Referendums for this school had been ongoing since March 2002[3] when at the time superintendent Francis J. Kostel proposed with the school board a series of referendums to raise tax money. In 2004, the school board posted a list that even showed the programs that could no longer be paid for by the school district if a referendum wasn't passed. This lead to a student rally on the St. Charles bridge with signs in support of the 2004 referendum. Of the four referendums since 2002 only one has passed. dur
[edit] Amenities
The 345,000 square-foot school is equipped with:[5]
- 6 general computer labs, 2 sound media labs.
- A 880-seat auditorium with a sound area, sound-proof light room, set building room, tool room, two cat-walks, an orchestra pit and a fly-rail.
- 2 elevators which require a key to use.
- Band, choir, and orchestra rehearsal rooms.
- A driver's education range.
- A driver's education simulation lab.
- 3 sets of locker rooms (physical education, natatorium, and athletic).
- An automotive shop with two hydraulic lifts.
- A Dimension BST 768 three-dimensional design printer valued at $18,900.
- A natatorium with an eight-lane pool with two boards and seating for 470.
- An auxiliary gym.
- A main gym with a seating capacity of 2,530.
- A multipurpose mezzanine above the main gym.
- A fully equipped weight room.
- A wrestling room.
- A football field enclosed by a 400m rubber running track.
- A fully enclosed courtyard with benches and walkways amidst flora.
- 8 hard-surface tennis courts.
- A main commons
- A Learning Resource Center (LRC), more commonly known as the library.
- Multiple Baseball/Softball fields in back of school
- A new state of the art baseball facility.(Construction to begin in summer 2008 and end in spring 2009)
- A state-of-the-art field house (Construction to begin in late 2008 and end in 2010)
[edit] Academics
In 2006, Saint Charles North had an average composite ACT score of 22.6 and graduated 100% of its senior class[6]. Saint Charles North has made Adequate Yearly Progress on the Prairie State Achievement Examination, a state test which is mandatory under the No Child Left Behind Act.
St. Charles North High School offers the following Advanced Placement Program courses:
Currently, St. Charles North is undergoing curriculum renewal and redesign in partnership with the Illinois Math and Science Academy along with Brown University. The average class size is 22.8.[6]
In the 2007 National Merit Scholarship Program, St. Charles North was represented by two finalists: Alison J. Conn and Raymond H. Hsu[7]. Hsu, the valedictorian[3] for the Class of 2007, went on to win one of 2,500 National Merit Scholarships awarded nationwide[8]. The following year, St. Charles North once again boasted two finalists (Patrick Eschenfeldt and Katharine Fragoso)[9] and one winner (Eschenfeldt)[10].
For the second consecutive year, St. Charles North High School’s music department has been designated as a GRAMMY Signature School for its balanced music program.[11] More than 500 students at SCN are enrolled in at least one of the music courses, which include six concert bands, five choirs, two orchestras, five jazz ensembles, vocal jazz, and music theory.[12]
[edit] Athletics
Saint Charles North has 33 athletic teams, of which 16 are for boys and 17 are for girls, which compete in the Upstate Eight Conference of the Illinois High School Association. Saint Charles North's teams are dubbed the "North Stars".
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Boys' Sports |
Girls' Sports |
[edit] Activities
Saint Charles North offers over fifty clubs & activities.
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[edit] School Song
Here's to our stars
We'll say it loud
We are the St. Charles North Stars
Proven to shine in every way
Fighting, winning,
Seizing every single day
The victory is for the stars
Say loud and clear
The blue and black silver stars
We know we’ll always have the victory!
[edit] Notable alumni
- Kaylee Jamison - University of Minnesota swimmer and National Winner of the 2006 Wendy's High School Heisman award.[13].
[edit] References
- ^ School Districts Scramble to Rid Buildings of Mold
- ^ BBC News: Fighting mould(sic) the US way
- ^ a b The Examiner of St. Charles
- ^ St. Charles drill team dancer died of heart condition
- ^ School Designs
- ^ a b Illinois School Report Card
- ^ Chicago Sun-Times: Semifinalists vie for scholarships
- ^ Chicago Sun-Times: National merit scholars' names
- ^ Student Scholars Excel on National Level
- ^ National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners announced
- ^ 2007 GRAMMY Signature Schools Finalists
- ^ Course Offering Book 2006-2007
- ^ Wendy's High School Heisman
[edit] External links
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