Latest news with #U-46
Chicago Tribune
03-06-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
U-46 plans to cover cost of high school juniors taking the ACT in fall
School District U-46 will pay for high school juniors to take the ACT test in the fall in an effort to familiarize students with the exam, meet dual-credit application requirements and potentially boost scores. The standardized tests will cost $121,862 according to a proposal endorsed Monday by the U-46 school board and to be formally approved June 16. 'This is a new initiative to stay in alignment with the Illinois State Assessment for 11th-graders,' said U-46 Assessment Director Matthew Raimondi, who spoke about the plan prior to the meeting. The state requires all 11th-grade students and any untested 12th-grade students take the ACT with Writing exam as part of the spring state assessment in order to graduate. That test features a 40-minute written essay session, according to the ACT website. 'For many years previously, the SAT was part of the graduation requirement in Illinois,' Raimondi said. 'Now, by offering the ACT to juniors in the fall, it provides students the opportunity to get familiar with the format before the mandatory ACT in the spring.' The district had considered offering the PreACT to juniors in the fall but opted against it because Elgin Community College and other community colleges do not accept its scores for admitting qualifying dual-credit students, he said. PreACT scores also aren't considered for scholarship opportunities, such as those offered by the National Merit Scholarship Corp. 'The actual ACT does count for dual credit, directly aligns to the state test, is college reportable and allows for students to submit a 'Super Score,'' Raimondi said. A Super Score lets students to submit their highest score from each test subject from different test dates when applying to college, he said. According to a memo provided as part of the Monday meeting agenda, 'a student who performs best in English and reading in the fall and in math and science in the spring may submit an ACT superscore combining their top section scores for college admissions.' After taking the ACT test in the fall, based on their performance, students will have access to targeted activities to build their subject skills in preparation for taking the mandatory ACT in the spring, the memorandum said. 'We are excited to offer this new opportunity for our students and help them prepare for the spring test,' Raimondi said prior to the meeting. The district has been providing the PSAT, which aligns with the state test, and offers dual-credit opportunities, both of which can lead to scholarship opportunities through the National Merit program, he said. 'We are planning to continue to offer the PSAT to 10th-graders and 11th-graders in the fall,' Raimondi said. With the state and the federal government requiring high school students to take so many tests, Superintendent Suzanne Johnson said staff would provide school board members with a calendar of when during the 2025-26 school year U-46 will be offering the various assessments.
Chicago Tribune
22-05-2025
- Chicago Tribune
Three U-46 teachers on leave after district learns of Chicago Public Schools ‘grooming' probe
School District U-46 is conducting an internal review of three teachers hired while under investigation for grooming and misconduct by Chicago Public Schools. A months-long investigation by NBC Chicago into allegations involving seven teachers previously employed at Little Village Lawndale High School found that three of them are now working for Elgin-based U-46. 'We care very deeply for our students, and our fundamental commitment is to their well-being,' said Kristine Rogowski, director of communications and community relations. 'We believe that fostering a culture of safety is necessary for student learning and development so we have taken immediate action. 'The individuals (Charles Smith, Michael Abeja and Hans Krueger) identified in the report as being employed by our school district are on leave pending an internal review,' Rogowski said. Chicago Public Schools has been investigating allegations against the seven teachers for three years, with the final report expected to be done in June. The probe is looking at allegations made between 2009 and 2019 by former students in which it was alleged the teachers groomed teens and then started relationships with them after graduation, NBC Chicago reported. CPS was not required to disclose that information to U-46 or that the teachers were on their 'Do Not Hire' list, the news station reported. Rogowski said U-46 will reach out to CPS as well as state, county and law enforcement officials as part of their own review. Parents, guardians and students with information or concerns are asked to contact their building principal, she said. An internal records review showed that no formal complaints have been filed in regard to the three teachers during their time with the U-46, Rogowski said. 'When the Illinois State Board of Education takes action on a teacher's teaching license, the action is listed on the teacher's record in the licensing portal,' she said. 'We review all teaching licenses prior to hiring. As of today, there continues to be no notation on the licenses of the three teachers.' U-46 administrators learned about the investigation through the televised report, which aired this week. In response, the district sent letters to parents about its internal review and identified the teachers. Smith is an assistant principal at Abbott Middle School in Elgin. He was a principal at the Little Village Lawndale campus until being removed in February 2023, according to NBC Chicago. He resigned a few months later while being investigated, the TV news report said. He became assistant principal at Abbott Middle School in the 2022-23 school year, according to the school's website. Smith is a Loyola University Chicago graduate and earned a master's degree from National Louis University. His attorney told the TV station that Smith is confident he will be cleared of any alleged wrongdoing. NBC Chicago reported CPS's Office of Inspector General substantiated misconduct allegations against Abeja but did not go into further details. Abeja was born and raised in the Little Village neighborhood in Chicago. He received a bachelor's degree in art education from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He taught eight years at CPS and two years at U-46, according to his bio. A third teacher, Hans Krueger, is part of CPS's ongoing investigation. He left the school system in 2017 and became a music teacher at U-46 in July 2020. Krueger works at the district's Dream Academy, an alternative education program in Elgin, as a music recording and production teacher.
Chicago Tribune
29-04-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
U-46 to increase of weekly physical education classes for elementary school students
U-46 elementary school students would go from having one physical education class a week to two and kindergarten students from two classes to three under a proposed state waiver request. A public hearing on the proposal was held Monday night by the school board, which is expected to approve the application for submission to the state at its May 5 meeting. If the adjustment is authorized by the state, kindergarten students will be in compliance with state law, which requires a minimum of three PE classes be held per week. Elementary students will receive one day less than the minimum. State rules allow school districts to request waivers to the class requirements for extenuating circumstances. U-46 secured such a waiver previously when wanting to reduce the number of classes from three to one for first- through sixth-grade students and from three to two for kindergarteners. The district might be able to meet the state requirements for more elementary school students in the future as plans to move sixth-graders into middle schools proceed, Student Wellness Curriculum Coordinator Tracey Jakaitis said at the board meeting. 'We would love to have three days for everybody,' she said. 'We looked at those numbers and analyzed what type of impact that would have in terms of safety, instruction, facilities, and we came up with kindergarten having the three and 1 through 6 having the two.' The plan is to have 75% of U-46 elementary schools holding two PE classes for the same grade simultaneously in the main gym and a third PE class being held in the cafeteria or multipurpose room per day to accommodate the twice-a-week schedule, Jakaitis said. Were they to try to conduct classes three days a week with sixth-graders still part of the elementary schools, some classes would have as many as 90 students, she said. 'At that point, it's just too many. It's not safe, and we're not really able to teach the curriculum and assess our students,' Jakaitis said. In addition to the public hearing, the school board Monday also tentatively approved the following proposals, which are to be formally approved May 5: Award 26 contracts for more than $67.4 million in work on the new middle school being built on Rohrssen Road in Elgin. Tariffs could affect those costs and the plan to open the school in August 2027, something Deputy Superintendent of Operations Ann Williams said she would report back to the board on once projections are known. Award a $600,000 contract to Pala Supply Co. to provide 8,027 classroom supply kits for the 2025-26 school year for students in kindergarten through sixth grade enrolled in Title 1 schools. Schools that surpass the Title 1 income qualifications will design their own supply kits, which families will have to purchase, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Annette Acevedo said. Award GameTime/Cunningham Recreation a $174,000 contract for a picnic pavilion to be installed at Elgin High School's Memorial Field. It will include two ADA accessible and six standard picnic tables, Executive Director of Facilities Sheila Downs said. Similar structures are also planned for Larkin High School in Elgin and South Elgin High School, she said.
Chicago Tribune
06-02-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
With welders in short supply, Blue Collar Tour makes pitch to students with stop at Elgin High School
Wyoming-based Western Welding Academy's Blue Collar Tour made a stop at Elgin High School Wednesday, offering demonstrations, hands-on learning experiences and motivational talks to spark student interest in the trades. 'We hope the tour inspires students to pursue blue collar trades,' said Quacy Wilson, the academy's director of student selection. 'They're the backbone of our country and are important.' Wilson said the tour was making its way through 32 high schools across the country in 60 days. With an estimated shortage of about 400,000 welders nationally, getting students to take up the profession is imperative, he said. More than 200 students attended the event — about 100 from Elgin-based School District U-46 and another 100 or so from Hampshire, Burlington Central and Lockport Township high schools. Students involved with Elgin High School's 'Maroon Buzz' YouTube channel documented the proceedings. Myka Kennedy, U-46 assistant director of post-secondary success, said they have about 100 students from its five high schools taking part in the welding program at Elgin High School. The tour making a stop in Elgin was a first-of-its-kind offering for the district, Kennedy and Elgin High Assistant Principal Jeremy Burnham said. Their hope is it inspires students to check out the profession while drawing attention to their efforts to offer trades training, they said. 'It's nice to drive a specialty like this (tour) here,' Burnham said. U-46 is committed to getting students to think about what they want to do after high school by introducing them to a variety of professions, including those in the trades. To that enrollment, eight buses of U-46 students recently toured a variety of local workplaces, Kennedy said, and last summer the district partnered with nonprofit Alignment for Collaborative Education and local businesses to offer 100 paid internships in various fields, including manufacturing and the trades. They hope to offer 200 internships this summer, Kennedy said. Having students from other district high schools participate was a good way to demonstrate that U-46 can work with other districts on such programming, she said. U-46 welding program students Ryan Reyes and Robert Capuzi said the tour stop gave them a chance to pick up pointers and build their skills. Reyes, 18, of Hanover Park, is a senior at Bartlett High School and Capuzi, 17, of Elgin, is a senior at Elgin High. Capuzi said he likes that welding classes are active and don't require him to sit in a chair to learn. He plans to study engineering at a four-year college in the fall but will keep up his welding skills either as a hobby or a way to help pay for his education, he said. Reyes said he wants to secure a union apprenticeship in welding so he can work locally or possibly as a pipeline welder, which would require a lot of travel. 'I like that welding is about how-to-do, hands-on and not a typical 9-to-5 job,' he said. Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
Chicago Tribune
30-01-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
District U-46 to add 20 minutes to the class day for elementary school students
Elgin-based District U-46 will be extending its elementary school day by 20 minutes in the 2025-26 academic year, according to an email sent to parents this week. Class days will start 10 minutes earlier and end 10 minutes later than they currently do when the fall session begins Monday, Aug. 11, the email said. Under the schedule change, half of the district's 38 elementary schools will begin their day at 7:50 a.m. and end at 2:10 p.m. while the other half will start at 8:20 a.m. and end at 2:40 p.m. The change is being made because U-46 — the state's largest school district outside of Chicago — currently has the shortest elementary school day of all districts in Illinois, the email said. 'Extending the elementary school day by 20 minutes will allow us to offer increased high-quality instruction and improve student learning — providing an additional 100 minutes of instruction per week and approximately 60 hours per school year,' the memo said. At Monday night's School Board meeting, Deputy Superintendent of Instruction Lela Majstorovic said the adjustment is addressed in the four-year collective bargaining agreement approved by the district and the Elgin Teachers Association in February 2024. The additional time will give students access to special classes, including art, music, physical education, science, health and digital literacy, officials said. But it also means that students next year will have earlier bus pick-up times in the morning and later drop-off times in the afternoon. The district plans to have the transportation schedules available online via its Infinite Campus system in August, the email said. More details and information will be shared directly by each elementary school over the coming months, the message said. In the meantime, available information is posted online at To offer feedback or ask questions, go to Let's Talk, which can be accessed from the site.
