Waubonsie Valley High School
| Waubonsie Valley High School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
| 2590 Ogden Avenue Aurora, Illinois, 60504 United States |
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| Coordinates | 41°44′18″N 88°15′06″W / 41.73839°N 88.2516396°W |
| Information | |
| School type | Public Secondary |
| Motto | Excellence in Every Endeavor |
| Opened | 1975 |
| School district | Indian Prairie S.D. 204 |
| Superintendent | Kathy Birkett[1] |
| Principal | Kristine Marchiando[2] |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Gender | coed |
| Enrollment | 3,189[3] |
| Average class size | 22.9[3] |
| Campus | suburban |
| School Colour(s) | Green Gold |
| Fight song | "We are the Warriors"[4] |
| Athletics conference | Upstate Eight |
| Mascot | Chief Waubonsie |
| Nickname | Warriors |
| Average ACT scores | 23.0[3] |
| Publication | Premier |
| Newspaper | 'The Voice' |
| Yearbook | 'Arrowhead' |
| Website | http://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. Its rival counterparts are Neuqua Valley High School, and Metea Valley High School of Indian Prairie School District 204.
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[edit] History
Indian Prairie Community Unit School District #204 (a unit district K-12) was formed in the fall of 1972.[5] In December 1972 a referendum was passed to build and equip a high school at a projected cost of $8.2 million. A separate issue also passed to add a swimming pool. Construction on Waubonsie Valley High School began in the spring of 1973. Tom Gibbs was hired as the first Principal. Since his tenure, Gary Elmen, Marilyn Weaver, Jim Schmid, and Kristine Marchiando have served as Principal.[5]
In September 1975, Waubonsie Valley opened its doors for its first school year. 293 Freshmen, Sophomores and Juniors attended the new high school.[5] In addition, 7th and 8th graders were housed in the building (using the name Granger Junior High) until Hill Junior High (now Hill Middle School) opened in the Fall of 1981. Construction delays prevented students from using the gym until May 1976 and the pool until October 1976.[5]
The school was designed as an "open" campus, with very few walls to separate classes. This quickly gave way to temporary room dividers and eventually, more permanent walls. Major construction projects over the years added three classroom wings, a field house and an auditorium, leaving just a few clues as to the original design of the building. The school was considered futuristic with a swimming pool, greenhouse, and planetarium.[6]
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. On December 10, 2008, parents received an automated telephone call from the school announcing that the school was on lockdown due to a bomb/gun threat. Gold campus was in lockdown mode until 10am and Green campus' lockdown was lifted at 12:10pm. Parents received automated telephone calls from the school notifying them of a bomb threat scribbled on the walls of a bathroom the day before. The lock down was initiated by claims of sightings of a student with a hand gun. As it turns out, an air gun was found on campus during a thorough school search.
Also, earlier that fall, the school announced that it would begin conducting random lockdown searches of the school. The school would be placed on a "soft lockdown" that allows teachers to continue teaching. While these lockdowns are in place, narcotics sniffing dogs will search the school.
The campus consisted of two buildings: a "Gold Campus" building (currently Gregory Fischer Middle School) for Freshmen (Grade 9). It has been converted from Francis Granger Middle School in 1993 to Waubonsie's Gold Campus in 2003 to Gregory Fischer Middle School since 2009. A "Green Campus" building (the original WVHS main building) was for Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors (Grades 10-12), but now houses all four grades. During the 2000s, the Indian Prairie School District converted middle schools for both Waubonsie Valley and its sister school, Neuqua Valley High School into "Gold Campus buildings", due to high enrollment numbers and classroom overcrowding. However, Waubonsie's "Gold Campus" returned to being a middle school after the opening of Metea Valley High School in 2009. As of 2010, there were 3,189 students enrolled at Waubonsie.
Waubonsie Valley's inaugural principal was Tom Gibbs who worked from 1974-1987.
[edit] Academics
Waubonsie Valley has provided exemplary academic performance since its opening. Currently it is one of the few Illinois schools to be given a ranking of 9/10 by GreatSchools.[7] In addition, in 2009, Waubonsie Valley was included in Newsweek magazine's 1,500 Top U.S. High Schools in the Nation.[8] Newsweek's list is a national ranking based on a formula that divides the number of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests taken by students into the number of graduating seniors from approximately 27,000 of the nation's public high schools. According to Newsweek, this measurement places Waubonsie Valley in the top 6 percent of schools in the country.[8] This is the third year in a row for Waubonsie Valley. In 2010, Waubonsie Valley had an average composite ACT score of 23.0, and graduated 95.9% of its senior class.[9] However, since all the demographics in Waubonsie Valley have not made equal progress, the school has not made Adequate Yearly Progress on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, a state test part of the No Child Left Behind Act.[10]
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.[11] Elaine Modine also has received the Ron Mardigian Biotechnology Teaching Award through Bio-Rad Laboratories in 2010.[12] The award honors a secondary school teacher or undergraduate college biology instructor who effectively integrates biotechnology into his or her curriculum. Mrs. Modine was the only 7-12 Science teacher in Illinois to receive the Presidential Award of Excellence in Science Teaching in 2001.[13]
The average class size is 22.9. It has 1,886 teachers with an average teaching experience of 12.4 years.[9]
[edit] Athletics
Waubonie Valley's athletic teams compete in the Upstate Eight Conference. Waubonsie Valley's mascot is the Warrior.
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Girls Sports
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Boys Sports
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In the spring of 2007, the Girls Soccer team took home the Illinois State Championship. They were ranked #1 in the country. The Girls Soccer team took home the championship trophy again in 2008 and 2010. Also, the Boys Rugby team won the 2009 Tier II Illinois State Championship. In 2009, the Girls Golf Team won the Illinois State Championship.
Also at WVHS, Special Olympics is another highly valued and appreciated athletic program. It allows students with special needs to participate in sports such as basketball, swimming, track & field, as well as bowling. Special Olympics is an important aspect of the athletics department.
Waubonsie Valley has won numerous other State Championships. The entire list can be found here.
[edit] Activities
The school sponsors numerous extracurricular clubs and organizations ranging from arts and academic to cultural and special interest. While an entire list can be found here, the following are the most notable in terms of being chapters of a larger national movement:
- Business Professionals of America (BPA)
- Best Buddies
- Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA)
- Model United Nations
- Operation Snowball
- Vocational Industrial Clubs of America/Skills USA (VICA)
- YMCA Youth and Government
- Science Olympiad
- Future Educators Association (FEA)
- Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA)
- GAYstraight alliance (GSA)
- Math League
- Spanish National Honor Society
- Key Club
Waubonsie also offers 30+ other in-school clubs and activities. These activities are designed to accommodate the wide interests of the diverse student body. Waubonsie prides itself in its vast variety of activities and the success they have achieved. Some of the most popular are listed below:
- Chamber Singers
- Cloud Nine
[edit] Music Program
The Waubonsie Valley Music Program has received a GRAMMY Award six times in total. WVHS was named a GRAMMY Association's Signature School in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2011 through the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. In 2007, WVHS was one of two schools in the nation to receive the honor of the GRAMMY Association's Signature GOLD School.[14] In 2006, the Waubonsie Valley choirs traveled to Branson, MO and in 2008, to Italy, performing around the country including a short performance during a Wednesday night Mass at the Vatican.[14]
Waubonsie bands also make regular trips, over the past few years the band has traveled to Walt Disney World, London, Hawaii, New York, and most recently Rome, Florence, and Siena Italy. In addition, the Orchestra frequently makes international trips, including over the past several years Germany, Austria, Mexico, and Prague.[14] The band and orchestra program consists of 5 different bands, one of which is for freshman only and four of which require auditions. The band program also offers extracurricular ensembles such as, steel pan band, percussion ensemble, and jazz ensemble. The choir program offers seven choirs and several extracurricular ensembles, most notably two show choirs. The top level mixed show choir "Sound Check" is award-winning and for the 2009 season, it finished the year ranked 1st in the nation by the Show Choir Rating System.[15]
The WVHS marching band participated in a New Year's Day Parade in London on 1 January 1997 and 1 January 2006.[16] The WVHS Marching Warriors took fifth place overall at the Illinois State University High School Marching Band Championships in 2006 and placed third in their class.[17] There are 2 long-standing cappella groups, one male and one female. They are called Cloud 9 and Pink Notes.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Michael Bowden, 2005-Current, professional baseball player, Boston Red Sox[18]
- Fabien Bownes was an NFL wide receiver and kickoff returner (1995–2001) for the Seattle Seahawks.[19]
- Parvesh Cheena (1997) - actor known for role as Gupta in the NBC series, Outsourced. He has also appeared in the TV shows ER, Sons of Tucson, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, along with many more. He was also in the two movies in the Barbershop series.
- Chris Schuler, 2009-Current, professional soccer player, Real Salt Lake
[edit] Notable staff
- Dan Schatzeder (physical education teacher) was a Major League Baseball pitcher (1977—91). He was a member of the 1987 World Series Champion Minnesota Twins.
- Angelo DiBernardo (Spanish teacher) is a retired soccer player who played professionally in the North American Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League. He also represented the United States at the 1984 Summer Olympics. DiBernardo played alongside soccer legend Pelé during his time at New York Cosmos.
[edit] References
- ^ District 204 Administration; accessed 20 April 2009
- ^ [1]
- ^ a b c [2]
- ^ [3]
- ^ a b c d http://wvhs.ipsd.org/Subpage.aspx?id=139
- ^ http://planetarium.ipsd.org
- ^ GreatSchools Ranking
- ^ a b Newsweek Ranking
- ^ a b 2010 Ill School Report Card
- ^ 2006 Illinois School Report Card
- ^ High School Human Genome Project page at the University of Washington
- ^ http://www.nabt.org/websites/institution/index.php?p=634
- ^ Presidential Award
- ^ a b c [4]
- ^ Show Choir Rating System
- ^ [5]
- ^ [6]
- ^ Michael Bowden | SoxProspects.com
- ^ "Fabien Bownes". statistics and biograpic data. databasefootball.com. http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=BOWNEFAB01. Retrieved 27 August 2009.
[edit] External links
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