| Peoria Notre Dame High School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
| 5105 North Sheridan Road Peoria, Illinois, 61614 United States |
|
| Information | |
| Type | Parochial, Catholic, Coeducational high school |
| Established | 1988 (1863 roots) |
| School district | Roman Catholic Diocese of Peoria |
| President | Reverend Monsignor William A. Watson |
| Principal | Mr. Charlie Roy |
| Chaplain | Reverend Father Paul Carlson |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Enrollment | 813 (2006-2007) |
| Color(s) | blue white green (trim) |
| Accreditation(s) | North Central Association of Colleges and Schools[1] |
| Publication | Gael (literary magazine) |
| Newspaper | 'Acclaim' |
| Yearbook | 'Irish Odyssey' |
| Tuition | $4,230 |
| Website | peorianotredame.com |
Peoria Notre Dame High School is a Catholic parochial high school in Peoria, Illinois. It is the largest parochial school in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Peoria with approximately 815 students and has a college preparatory curriculum. According to the school, more than 99% of students graduating in the years 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009 went on to four year colleges.[2] The school uses an academy system with a trustee committee, oversight board, pastor's board, president, and principal. The school's team name is the "Irish", like the University of Notre Dame, but uses the cloverleaf as its team symbol.
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The school traces its roots back to 1863, when Father Abram Ryan and seven Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet founded a parochial school in Peoria. Notre Dame was created at the beginning of the 1988–1989 school year by the consolidation of the two Peoria area Catholic high schools, Spalding Institute/Academy of Our Lady (itself from the 1970s consolidation of two schools with histories back to around 1900) and Bergan High School (formed in the 1960s). The Spalding Institute/Academy of Our Lady facility was closed while the Bergan facility was expanded, and both schools were consolidated together as Notre Dame at the site of the Bergan facility.
In 2006, the school's Education Commission, in conjunction with the Peoria Area Pastors' Board and the Diocesan Office of Catholic Schools, hired The Reid Group of Bellevue, Washington, to develop and conduct a campus location study. In June 2008, it was announced that the Reid Group had advised the Commission to build a new school, an athletic facility/pool, and new sports fields on a 40-acre (160,000 m2) campus north of the present Peoria Academy near the intersection of Willow Knolls Road and Allen Road in outlying Peoria.[3] The estimated $60 million required would be funded largely through a capital campaign and private donations, the diocese, and potentially other parishes in nearby counties. As of November 2009, no definitive timeline was in place for construction of the new school.
Beginning in the 2010-2011 school year many changes were implemented to enhance the schools academic curriculum. A trimester schedule was implemented,along with house system, and a one to one laptop program. The trimester system lowers the number of students the average teacher sees to around 80 a semester from the usual average of 130-150. Longer class periods enable a more engaged approach to education with more time for labs and project based instruction. Every freshman and sophomore student will be required to purchase and use a Macintosh laptop; payments will be spread out over three or four years until graduation. Peoria Notre Dame High School is the first high school in the state of Illinois to partner with Apple in implementing a one to one laptop environment. More course content, including AP and college-credit courses and computer coursework, will be done on-line and in a dual online/lecture form. More electives will be offered, and the school intends to eventually offer dual credit courses.[4]
In the winter of 2010 the school was the first high school in the country to offer an online learning day in lieu of a typical weather related closure garnering local, regional, and national attention.[5]
The Peoria Notre Dame High School Fighting Irish were the Illinois State Class 2A Champions in men's soccer and women's cross country at the state finals at North Central College in Naperville and Detwiller Park. Notre Dame's teams are members of the Mid-State 6 Conference.