St. Charles North High School

St. Charles North High School
Location
255 Red Gate Road
St. Charles, Illinois 60175
USA
Information
Type Public Secondary
Principal Audra Christenson
Teaching staff 420
Grades 9-12
Gender Coed
Enrollment (2000- (present))[1]
Color(s) Blue, Silver, Black               
Mascot Polaris, the polar bear
Nickname North Stars
Rival St Charles East
Newspaper Stargazer
Website

Saint Charles North (SCN) 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.

History

Originally, the main campus was built in 1995 by Hestrup & Associates as Wredling Middle School with a capacity of expanded and converted into a high school in 2000 at a cost of $41,600,000.

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.[2] 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,[3] classes resumed their normal locations and schedules the following school year.

In November 2010, St. Charles North was featured in newspapers and newscasts nationwide after at least three students at the school demonstrated their own view on homosexuality by wearing t-shirts that said “Straight Pride” on the front and referencing a Biblical verse from Leviticus on the back. The verse advocates death as punishment for homosexual activity.[4]

Referendums

In recent years many referendums have been presented to residents of Community Unit School District 303. As can be seen on their site the D303 operates on a budget of $134,000,000. Referendums for this school had been ongoing since March 2002 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 led to a student rally on the St. Charles bridge with signs in support of the 2004 referendum. Of the four referendums presented since 2002, only one has passed.

Amenities

The 345,000-square-foot (32,100 m2) school is equipped with:[5]

  • 6 general computer labs, 2 sound media labs.
  • An 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 SST 1200 ES three-dimensional design printer, along with many other smaller printers including but not limited to an Ultimaker 2, and a Makerbot replicator.
  • 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 2,540.
  • 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

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]

Fifty St. Charles North students were recently named AP Scholars for their exceptional performance on the AP tests administered in May 2006.[7]

In the 2007 National Merit Scholarship Program, St. Charles North was represented by two finalists: Alison J. Conn and Raymond H. Hsu.[8] Hsu, the valedictorian[9] for the Class of 2007, and Conn went on to win National Merit Scholarships.[10] The following year, St. Charles North once again boasted two finalists (Patrick Eschenfeldt and Katharine Fragoso)[11] and one winner (Eschenfeldt).[12]

Athletics

Saint Charles North has 35 athletic teams, of which 18 are for boys and 17 are for girls, which compete in the DuKane Conference of the Illinois High School Association.

In 2010, St. Charles North was awarded a Blue Ribbon, which honors schools that have achieved high levels of performance or significant improvements with emphasis on schools serving disadvantaged students.

Activities

Saint Charles North offers over fifty clubs & activities.

Mock Trial

A sign outside the school commemorating the state champion mock trial teams.

St. Charles North’s mock trial team has had notable success at the state and national level since first placing in the top eight at the ISBA High School Mock Trial Invitational in 2011. Some of the team’s recent accomplishments include:

Notable alumni

References

  1. ↑ "St Charles North High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
  2. ↑ School Districts Scramble to Rid Buildings of Mold
  3. ↑ BBC News: Fighting mould(sic) the US way
  4. ↑ Fuller, James (11 November 2010). "'Straight Pride' shirts become free speech fight at St. Charles North". Daily Herald. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  5. ↑ School Designs
  6. 1 2 In 2010, St. Charles North High School was nominated for the blue ribbon award; an educational award given to outstanding schools. Illinois School Report Card
  7. ↑ Eighty-one D303 high school students earn AP Scholars honors
  8. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times: Semifinalists vie for scholarships
  9. ↑ The Examiner of St. Charles
  10. ↑ Chicago Sun-Times: National merit scholars' names
  11. ↑ Student Scholars Excel on National Level
  12. ↑ National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners announced
  13. 1 2 ISBA.org Mock Trial Past Winners
  14. ↑ National High School Mock Trial 2014 Championship Results
  15. ↑ 2016 Empire New York
  16. ↑ 2017 Empire New York
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