School News

Community High School District 155 was named best school district in McHenry County by Niche. Rankings are based on data from the Department of Education, the US Census, and multiple reviews from parents and students. D155 earned the top spot out of 15. 

A senior who wrote a review said, “District 155 cultivates students to be great, and consistently demonstrates excellence. All of the staff are amazing, they always encourage students to do our best.”

Nationally, the district ranked in the top nine percent for best school districts, and placed in the top four percent for the best teachers. In the state of Illinois, D155 ranked eighth out of 638 schools for having the best teachers and placed in the top three percent for the best district. 

One parent review said, “The districts fundamental approach to the student’s education is constantly challenging the teachers and staff to put forth our ideas and experiences to better the way education is presented.” 

Every month, millions of people use Niche to choose the right schools or neighborhoods. Niche has report cards, rankings and reviews that are calculated from public sources along with reviews from parents, students, and residents.  

All District 155 high schools earned a spot in the top 100 of Illinois’s Best Public High Schools for 2019. The annual list conducted by U.S. News and World Report is determined based on six factors, including how well students performed on state exams and college preparedness.

Cary-Grove earned the no. 41 spot, Prairie Ridge landed at no. 59 in the state, Crystal Lake South sits at no. 62, and Crystal Lake Central is at no. 70 in Illinois rankings. More than six-hundred schools in Illinois were evaluated for the 2019 list.

“We are proud to have all schools represented on this list,” said Steve Olson, D155 Superintendent, “The results reflect the passion of our teachers and staff as well as the dedication of our students. We hope to continue to instill valuable skills into our students so they can enter our schools with promise and leave with purpose.”

To view the Illinois’ Best Public High Schools list, and further detailed results of D155 high schools, please click here.

Twenty-three District 155 students earned $2,732,272 in scholarships from various art schools and the Illinois High School Art Exhibition (IHSAE). Fourteen Cary-Grove students were awarded $1,848,916, five Crystal Lake South students received $$471,120, and three Crystal Lake Central students received $412,236 in scholarships. The sixth annual IHSAE featured the best student artists from more than 125 Illinois high schools.

“Receiving scholarships has given me the ability to think about going to different schools and choose the best one for me, not just settling for one I can afford. I can now invest more studying art, increasing my skill, and preparing for my career,” said Avery Eskildsen, a Cary-Grove senior.

She plans to attend the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design this fall.

Cary-Grove is one of only 25 schools that had scholarships total over one million dollars in scholarships. Kelsey Anderson, Mickey Dotson, Avery Eskildsen, Quintin Gilbert, Hannah Harvey, Alexandra Kasch, Holly Kopacek, Carlyn Krautsak, Stephanie Kretschmer, Hayden O'Mahoney, Calea Sowell, Ann Talerico, Aislinn Tuminaro, and Constance Ulaszek were selected to showcase artwork at Bridgeport’s Zhou B Art Center and Bridgeport Art Center from February 11 - March 8. Calea Sowell earned an Honorable Mention for her work in the show.

“The positive reaction I got by being a part of both the general exhibition and awarded scholarships through the senior scholarship program has given me more confidence. Attending art school has been a goal of mine, and my family would have found a way to make it happen, but having financial help motivated me,” said Hayden O'Mahoney, a Cary-Grove senior.

Crystal Lake South students Allyn Barnett, Nia-Maya Donka, Hallei Jensen, Lindsey Klotz, and Wilhemina Voegeli from Crystal Lake South High School had artwork featured in show.

Nicole Costantini, Shail Patel, and Elena Starcher from Crystal Lake Central High School were selected to have their art featured in one of eight categories in the exhibit.

Four thousand students, teachers, college representatives and school district administrators attended the state’s largest high school student art exhibition. The Illinois High School Art Exhibition is a not-for-profit corporation with a mission to advance visual arts education through exhibition. It was developed by teachers for students in 2014 and the organization is run by full-time art educators who collaborate with corporate sponsors, art colleges and universities and high school students.

Registration is now open for summer school courses. The deadline to register for semester one is April 26 and the second semester registration deadline is May 31. With the exception of driver’s education courses, all summer school courses will be held at Crystal Lake South High School located at 1200 S. McHenry Ave, Crystal Lake, IL 60014. The main office number is (815) 455-3860. Driver’s education courses meet at the student’s home school.

For a full list of courses and registration information, please download the 2019 Summer School packet.

Unless otherwise noted, a ½-credit may be earned from successful completion of each semester of summer school coursework. Students may repeat courses they have previously passed, with the higher of the two grades entered on their permanent record. However, the student will only receive credit for the course once. Regardless of the course, all students must be present for the final exams.

The schedule for summer school is as follows, first semester begins Monday, June 3 and concludes Friday, June 21. Second semester begins Monday, June 24 and concludes Tuesday, July 16. Classes meet Monday through Friday. School will not be in session on July 4 or July 5. A daily class time schedule can be found below.

Daily Class Time Schedule
Period 1 . . . . . . 7:30 - 8:20 a.m.
Period 2 . . . . . . 8:25 - 9:20 a.m.
Period 3 . . . . . . 9:25 - 10:20 a.m.
Period 4 . . . . . . 10:25 - 11:20 a.m.
Period 5 . . . . . . 11:25 a.m. - 12:20 p.m.

D155 will host its 11^th Annual Parent University on Saturday, February 16 at Prairie Ridge High School from 8:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Click here to download the Parent University Packet & Registration Form.

Schedule

Walk-in Registration              8:00 - 8:30 a.m.

Schedule Pick-Up                  8:15 - 8:30 a.m.

Keynote Address:                 8:30 - 9:30 a.m.

Breakout Session A               9:40 - 10:30 a.m.

Breakout Session B               10:40 - 11:30 a.m.

Breakout Session C               11:40 - 12:30 p.m.

About the Keynote Presentation

We are responsible for raising a future generation of healthy, resilient adults.  Developing confidence, problem solving strategies, distress tolerance and communication skills are fundamentals that are imperative for our children to learn before launching into adulthood.  We also want our children to have confidence that they can handle difficult situations, overcome adversity, and even bravely face failure.  In doing this, we prepare our youth to move beyond their physical and emotional boundaries, recognize their capabilities, know their strengths and weaknesses, and learn that failure is just as important as success.

About the Keynote Presenters

Jacqueline A. Rhew, LCPC and Dr. Robin Choquette have combined over 35 years working with professionals and parents clinically and have provided over 400 trainings both locally and nationally on a wide array of topics relating to parenting strategies and raising resilient children through goal directed parenting. Their approach

of purposeful parenting has helped hundreds of parents develop plans unique to their families, and gain confidence in their parenting strategies to help raise healthy and successful young people.