The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

McHenry High > - " • / ' f :t {V, ?$>1i'MV&SSfjl' •"*? SUPPLEMENT TO McHENRY PLAINDEALER - PAGE 3 - FRIDAY, AUGUST 2*. lfH r It is doubtful there is a more beleaguered school district in the state .of Illinois than McHenry high school district No. 156. Witil Johnsburg high school opening its doors for students in fall, 1978, the loss of about 550 students, and the revenue those students bring into the district, will put McHenry into a hapless financial situation. However, this is 1977, NOT 1978, and while the clouds may be on the way, the sky is still sunny as District 156 gears up for what it hopes will be ^ banner year. The district is headed by Acting Superintendent Robert Swartzloff. He replaces Richard Swantz, who left to take a position in LaCrosse, Wis. Both East and West campus feature new principals this year, with D. William Dodds manning East and Greg Johnson, who was a dean at McHenry high schoo last year, heading West. Supporting Dodds and Johnson are a total of eight counselors and four assistant , principals. There may be some confusion over recent decisions by the high school board of education which eliminates some programs and reduces others. Suffice it to say that those reductions will take place NEXT year, with 'business as usual' personifying this year's plans v Enrollment this year will be in the vicinity of 2,300 students, probably the largest class ever. To serve the needs of that many students, the district has devised a variety of curriculums. Some of the unique characteristics of the curriculums, including the Education For Life program, the Alternative school, and Vocational Education, are explained elsewhere in this issue. This year marks the second year of a return to more traditional scheduling, especially at West campus, where juniors and seniors attend. At one time, the district of­ fered huge blocks of 'free' time, in which the student was to study by himself, sort of in­ dividualizing instruction. Recently however, the trend in education in the district has been marked by a return to more conventional methods. For example, this year at East campus, all students will have at least 75 percent of their average day structured into a class. The reduction in in­ dependent study time ('free' time) should also serve to make an easier transition from junior high into high school. That does not mean that the other 25 percent of the time is 'free' time. Rather, a portion of the schoo week will be devoted to un­ scheduled time, or independent study time. Unscheduled study time refers to that time during the school day when a student is not assigned to a specific class, teacher, project, or area, but when the student can complete homework assignments, prepare for class, or take a break in the student activity area. This is NOT free time, administrators emphasize. Unscheduled study time may be spent in the library, a resource center, a conference room, foreign language cen­ ters, and several laboratories, including science, home I). William Dodds (ireg Johnson e c o n o m i c s , m e t a l s , automotives, etc. There are few, in any schools, around which offer as extensive a co-curricular program as does District 156. Name the activity, and. McHenry high school has it. x One of the unique things about the high school is that East campus boasts of a con­ stitution, which provides for an actual government within the school. The purpose of the govern­ ment is that the school com­ munity feels the need to develop a positive school at­ mosphere through cooperative efforts of students, faculty, and administrators. There are three brances to the government. The first is the legislative branch, which has the power to create com­ mittees, write the student handbook in cooperation with the administration, collect and distribute money for school activities, and submit to the executive branch, school community rules. The second, the executive branch, is composed of members of the ad­ ministration. they assume a role similar to that of the President of the United States in relation to Congress. The third branch, the judicial branch, operates as an appeals court for the students, and as an advisory council to the /legislature and the executive branch. Students who have been disciplined by the ad­ ministration, and who believe they have been treated un­ fairly, are able to appeal their case to the appeals court. The reason why this type of student government is utilized is because there is a much wider 11 representation of the entire' school community. There Is one representative for each twenty students, and one representative for each ten teachers. Also, this type of represen­ tation .provides- for greater student input into the making of rules and selection of new courses which would be more student oriented. The judicial branch of the government hears any case involving a student appeal of a rule violation in which the student feels he or she has been wrongly accused, or has received an incorrect punish­ ment, The court, after hearing the case, may rule in favor of the student in several different ways. The court may find the student innocent of all charges, or it may reduce the punish­ ment previously given by the administration. If the court finds the student guilty, the punishment remains as originally given by the ad­ ministration. The court consists of nine regular judges and one alternate. The persons selected are divided equally between students and adults. The judges are appointed by the ad­ ministration, with the ap­ pointed persons being in­ terviewed and screened prior to taking office. Besides teachers, students also have a wealth of non- teachers at their disposal. The Pupil Personnel Services department at East includes counselors, a psychologist, a nurse, etc. The counselors, of which their are eight in. the system, help the student secure, in­ terpret, and accept information about himself. When the social- emotional aspects of his life interfere with proper decisions, counseling sessions may be necessary to remove or resolve (Continued on page 4) "Back to school" is a com­ mon expression as opening day approaches. But "back to school" has different meanings for each age group. For the very young, it is a day anticipated with mixed emotions. There is reluctance that play days are at an end, but there is excitement in the new mysteries of school, forgotten so soon after the end of the spring term. For high schoolers, there is usually either a strong urge to "hit the books" with an eye on future college days, or there may be a reluctance to leave a lucrative summer job. For adults, it is mostly a time for looking back. Young mothers and fathers remember their own school days and these memories are renewed. Recollections for the older generation are more apt to be a bit hazy, with particular em­ phasis on the very special moments of youth that last a lifetime. u\ •- And fltow many of today's, school, buildings can you remember from the time of their consturction? That depends on how much of an old timer you are. Landmark, which now houses kindergarten age youngsters, was built in 1894. Although many have passed through its hallowed halls, both as grade and high school students, probably no one alive today remembers when it was built. Yes. at one time Landmark Hoborl Swartzloff was both grade and high school. That was long before the population explosion. Only those before 1926 vintage will recall when the first portion of East campus was constructed, separating the elementary and secondary level students. Since then, newer residents will have various recollections of the additions, but probably few will remember the dates. If memory serves us correctly, Edgebrook came in the early 'fifties, followed at regular intervals by Junior high, Valley View, Hilltop and West campus (not necessarily in that order) and lastly, Parkland Junior high. McHenry also has both the Montini Catholic school system and the Fox Valley Christian school. In just about one year, with the creation of a new Johnsburg district, that area will have facilities for both grade and high school students to the north. West of McHenry is Wonder Lake; with Harrison grade school. Some of the McHenry area schools are having financial difficulties, but the problems are being attacked with all seriousness. One thing is certain, there is much community pride in our schools, both public and parochial, and every effort will be made to maintain this pride. KAF ' I--