MAY 2014
NEWS FROM LOCKPORT TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
Group Interp Wins Sectionals Story on page 4
UPCOMING EVENTS May
LTHS AGAIN RANKS IN TOP 9% Lockport Township High School District 205 once again ranks in the Top 9 Percent of all high schools in the nation, according to the Washington Post. LTHS, which is the only Will County high school to make the list, is ranked 62nd in the state of Illinois and 1,974 out of nearly 22,000 high schools nationwide for effectively preparing students for college. The ranking makes LTHS one of America’s Most Challenging High Schools, according to the Washington Post. “(A school’s) appearance on this list means that you are trying much harder than most schools to expose your students to the demands of college,” said Jay Mathews, reporter for the Washington Post who compiled the rankings.
Since 1998, Newsweek Magazine has ranked public high schools. Three years ago, The Washington Post took over the ranking, using a similar formula of measurement: Divide the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or other college-level tests a school gives by the number of graduating seniors. The Washington Post also added private schools to the rankings. “This index serves as a measure of the rigorous curriculum offered within the school, which impacts the entire school environment,” said Assistant Superintendent Brett Gould. “Michelle Conway, our AP coordinator, does a remarkable job supporting the program, students and teachers, who are the core of our success.”
“Our high rank in the state of Illinois reflects the dedicated work to give the best opportunities to our students, And without the efforts of our faculty, feeder schools and families, we wouldn’t be so successful.” - Assistant Superintendent Brett Gould
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Lockport Township High School District 205 has continually ranked on the list. The district consistently has outranked most Illinois school districts, including magnet schools that draw from a large student population not limited to residential boundaries. “Our high rank in the state of Illinois reflects the dedicated work to give the best opportunities to our students,” Gould said. “And without the efforts of our faculty, feeder schools and families, we wouldn’t be so successful.”
SCHLOTTER NAMED TEACHER OF THE YEAR Evon Schlotter, a PE teacher and girls’ cross country and track coach at Lockport Township High School, was chosen as the 2014 William and Mildred Jackson Teacher Award recipient. Schlotter will be honored at District 205’s annual awards night, which will be held May 8 in the East campus auditorium. She was chosen by a committee of administrators, teachers and students after nominations were submitted and ranked. “Evon has a contagious spirit and approaches all of life’s setbacks with a positive attitude, searching for the lesson life is trying to teach her. She is a true role model for her athletes and her students,” said Erin Truesdale, one of the award nominators. Truesdale serves as the LTHS girls’ cross country
and track assistant coach. “The same dedication Evon brings to the track and cross country programs extends to the classroom. I constantly hear students talk about how Ms. Schlotter
knows how to make learning fun. She truly deserves this recognition and epitomizes what it means to be a Porter.” The award comes with a certificate and $5,000 check, thanks to the generosity of Jackson family . The William and Mildred Jackson Teacher Recognition Award annually honors a LTHS teacher who has exhibited special skills in the art and science of teaching. The recipient must serve as a role model and display compassion for students as well as his/ her peers. LTHS alumni Robert and Jill Carr donated the annual award, which is named after Jill Carr’s late parents. William Jackson was a very respected and beloved science teacher as well as a golf and track coach from 1958 to 1982.
WALKING IN SUNSHINE
BEST BUDDIES RAISE FUNDS FOR NEW CHAPTERS The Lockport Township High School Best Buddies club raised more than $3,200 for Best Buddies Illinois by participating in the Friendship Walk April 5 at Loyola University in Chicago. The money will be used to start new Best Buddies chapters, as well as placing individuals with disabilities in job positions. The LTHS Best Buddies group included co-presidents Gabby Daley and Brian Bellair, as well as members Ashley Pepsnik and Brenna Schultz.
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GROUP INTERP WINS SECTIONALS Lockport Township High School’s Group Interp team recently won sectionals when all 13 members earned All-Sectional medals! The LTHS Group Interp team, “The Fighting Sullivans”, then moved on to the state competition, where they placed first in the preliminary round and fourth in the final round on Saturday. In addition, eight team members were awarded individual state medals. Thanks to their success, an encore performance was held at on April 4 at the East Campus auditorium, with cake following in the cafeteria. Special guests at the encore performance included a U.S. Navy veteran, who served on the first tour of the newly-named navy ship the USS The Sullivan, and his wife. They gifted the members of Group Interp with a framed artistic rendering of the Sullivans and an invitation to perform in June for the Sullivans’ only surviving granddaughter.
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WRESTLING WINNERS Four LTHS wrestlers were recognized at the April 22 Board of Education meeting for their placement in the IHSA state wrestling competition held in February at the University of Illinois. Brian Rossi, Tyler Johnson, Shayne Oster and Vince Dietz were each honored for the success they experienced during the 2013-2014 season. Brian Rossi took first place in the
113-pound weight class at state, after placing first at sectionals and regionals in the same weight class. Tyler Johnson took second place at state in the 195-pound weight class. He earned first place in the same class at sectionals and regionals earlier in the season. Shayne Oster earned third place at state in the 126-pound weight class after taking first in the same class at
sectionals and regionals. Vince Dietz took fifth place in the 160-pound weight class at state. He also earned first place in same weight class at sectionals and regionals. The wrestlers are coached by Josh Oster, Matt Bartley, Drake Rossi, Nate Roth, Jared McCarthy, Josh Zimmerman, Doug Chesna, David Mackey, Nick Clancy, Joe Williams, George Brechheisen and Curtis Fornier.
RUNNING TOWARDS SUCCESS Freshman Morgan Bollinger, who is a member of the LTHS girls’ cross country team, was recognized by the District 205 Board of Education on April 22 for her exemplary 2013-2014 running season. Bollinger placed 8th in the IHSA Girls’ Cross Country Competition in November, after coming in second at the sectional competition earlier that month at Katherine Legge Park in Hinsdale.
Bollinger qualified for sectionals after placing first in the IHSA regional competition on Oct. 26 at Hammell Woods, Joliet. Bollinger is coached by LTHS staff members Evon Schlotter, Erin Truesdale and Rachel Turner. Caption: Bollinger and Board of Education President John Lukasik at monthly board meeting April 22 in Maroon Room at East Campus.
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LOST IN TRANSLATION?
TWO LTHS STUDENTS ACE WORLD LANGUAGE COMPETITION Junior Jessie Uhrenbacher and senior Eric Cuevas participated in the 2014 Translation Day at Illinois: Celebrating Languages on March 31 at the University of Illinois after winning the Illinois High School Translation Competition in European Union languages. In February, Uhrenbacher competed in German and Cuevas in French. After being deemed the two bet samples from student entries, they were chosen to represent LTHS at the event. For the competition, students were
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required to translate a text from a popular novel from an official EU language into English. Teachers then selected two winners per school based on appropriate terminology, use of idiomatic expressions, and overall accuracy. Accompanied by their teachers, students from several Illinois high schools spent the day on the UI campus learning about translation and interpreting as professions, as well as how the European Union functions
with 24 official languages. The Illinois High School Translation Competition and 2014 Translation Day are organized by the European Union Center—a U.S. Department of Education Title VI National Resource Center and European Union Center of Excellence—and the Center for Translation Studies in the School of Literatures, Cultures and Linguistics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
2014 WORLD LANGUAGE/CULTURES
HONOR SOCIETY More than 120 Lockport Township High School students were inducted into the World Languages and Cultures Honor Society on April 24 at a ceremony in the East Campus auditorium. “I never thought that I would pursue Spanish as far as I have. From high school to a Spanish major in college, an opportunity to study abroad, utilizing it all of my jobs and landing a career with the FBI.” explained the evening’s guest speaker, Special Agent Jennifer Peterson. She added that she gained great confidence in being challenged to “leave her comfort zone to embrace a foreign culture.” Before an audience of parents and family members, five students were inducted into the German Honor Society, nine into the Japanese National Honor Society, 35 into the French National Honor Society and 75 students were inducted into the Spanish National Honor Society for their excellence in their language studies. German Honor Society: Louis Austin, Jacob Barrett, Drew Doubleday, Stephen Jordan Henderson, and Karol Styrczula
Japanese Honor Society: Niki Calegan, Cheyenne King, Kathryn Clark, Krystal Lee, Miranda Gort, Gloria Maru, Paige Gragasin, Eric Rivera, and Sharlene Solis. French Honor Society: Yasmeen Amor, Igneta Kubiliute, Sarah Regotti, Alyssa Aoyagi, Adam Kula, Sally Rigoni, Yulissa Arambula, Joseph Layman, Edgar Rodriguez, Rainah Basile, Jade Layug, Crystal Salas, Madison Bohlin, Jeffrey Martin, Alexandra Salcik, Yaser Bustami, Ashley Mathius, Lauren Stoch, Kayla Donovan, Olivia Maty, Matthew Robert Tague, Ernesto Espinosa, Melissa Meeder, Hunter P. Thompson, Kevin Giroux, Jessica Miller, Heather Worth, Halle Hollatz, Morgan Lynn Miller, Allison Yates, Luke Kroll, Christopher Murino, Franky Zhang, Kahley Kubal, and Emily Pearce. Spanish Honor Society: Rawan Alehmoud, Brittany Hughes, Cristian Paramo, Sarah Barker, Emily Hypta, Rahul Parikh, Brian Bellair, Syeda Jafferi, Ginger Pastorek, Karsyn Bird, Corrine Johnson, Chase Peters, Katie Brittain, Destiny Johnson, Matthew Phad, Hannah Burke, Victoria Jones, Natalie Pierwola, Madison Callahan, Patrycja Junkiert, Melanie Plotke,
Joshua Camit, Luna Allison, Kozuch Deonté Rogers, Raquel Caneva, Braden Kramer, Isaac Rogers, Arturas Caplinskas, Brooke Kramer, Kailee Ruzicka, Pete Chiarelli, Amanda Lindau, Rania Salem, Emma Colarelli, Sarah Lallky, Brenna Schulz, Kattie Czopkiewicz, Karina Madanowski, Dana Sobczyk, Natalie DeLeon, Alison Marcione, Kamila Stasik, Joel Finlon, Madisen McCarthy, Julija Stropus, Angela Fiore, Meagan Medendorp, McKinley Timm, Tierney Gannon, Nikkoh Mendoza, Katelynn Vallejo, Kaitlyn Gliwa, Kaitlyn Miceli, Sarah Veatch, Ricardo Gonzalez, Melanie Milewski, Genesis Velasquez, Joshua Grabinski, Jennifer Mulhall, Brhett Vickery, Jessica Haas, Kathleen Muñoz, Brandon Vlach, Megan Harms, Tyler Nassar, Tiffany Williamson, Michelle Hernandez, Gozie Nwachukwu, Sydney Woerly, Megan Hoak, Kezie Nwachukwu, Monika Zajac, Jacob Huber, and Emily Zaplatosch The inductions included a candle lighting ceremony and a poem by Gloria Fuertes recited by the Spanish Honor Society inductees.
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LAST CHANCE TO SIGN UP FOR 5K RUN/WALK Registrations are still being taken for the fourth annual LTHS Foundation 5K Run/Walk at 8 a.m. on Sunday, May 4. The family-friendly event will include children’s activities, food and drink vendors, healthcare services, live entertainment and more. Medals are awarded to overall male and female winners, as well as top three runners in each five-year age group. All children who participate will receive medals as well. All proceeds will be used for student scholarships and minigrants. Please click on the link http://www.lths.org/cms/lib07/IL01904802/Centricity/Domain/4/5K%20Run-Walk%20 REGISTRATION%205-4-14.pdf to download a registration form and return it via email to kbrehm@lths.org or fax at (815) 588-8109. If you have any questions, please the Foundation office at (815) 588-8121.
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LET’S HEAR IT FOR THE BUS DRIVERS! More than 60 area businesses helped Lockport Township High School celebrate its bus driving staff at an April luncheon. Despite driving in one of the coldest and snowiest winter seasons in Chicagoland history, the LTHS bus drivers showed their skills by getting our students to school safely each and every day.
Each school morning all winter long, the bus drivers are one of the first staff to arrive, making sure their buses start and are warmed up for the student pick up routes, said Superintendent Dr. Todd Wernet, as he thanked the busing staff for their efforts. “Without you getting the kids to our buildings, none of us could do our jobs,” Dr. Wernet said. “We just
wanted to thank you for your dedication and let you know how much we appreciate the job you do.” The bus drivers were treated to a donated luncheon, thanks to Papa Joe’s Restaurant in Lockport. Many other businesses donated gift cards, snack items and coupons for the drivers.
TEE TIME! The LTHS Foundation is hosting its 15th annual golf outing on Wednesday, June 18, at Prairie Bluff Golf Course in Lockport. Please consider participating by golfing, attending dinner, or sponsoring the event. The first 14 outings have raised more than $235,000 for scholarships for graduating LTHS seniors. For more information, click on http://www.lths.org/cms/lib07/IL01904802/ Centricity/Domain/4/Golf%20Outing%202014%20Brochure.pdf
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