Community High School District 155
Standardized Test Days Provide Opportunity For Non-Traditional Lessons
Agar—along with 45 other speakers—was part of CG's third annual career day on the second day of state testing at the school. His words were echoed time and again by many of the day's speakers as they addressed seniors looking for information about possible career paths. The school assembled speakers from a variety of industries including marketing, public service, forensics/law enforcement, technology, healthcare, education, and engineering. Students chose the three career areas that they found interesting, and attended those sessions.
The day's activities coincided with the district's testing days for the Prairie State Achievement Exam (juniors) and PLAN test (freshmen and sophomores). All juniors took the PSAE on Wednesday and Thursday, April 22-23, while the PLAN test was administered to freshmen and sophomores at three of the four schools on Thursday. [Crystal Lake South administered the PLAN test on a different date to better accommodate its building.]
In Cary-Grove's fine arts session, Tim Etters, a CG graduate and visual artist,
projected onto a screen in the school's theater a variety of pictures of his murals—including one that adorns the school's cafeteria wall."My career as an artist has not been glamorous," Etters said with a smile, explaining that focusing as much on the business aspect of his work as the creative—mixed with a heavy dose of perseverance and passion—has been the key for him making a healthy living in the arts.
Just down the road at Crystal Lake Central, the "Exiting Senior Year Successfully" workshop helped seniors prepare for life after high school in a different way. After an opening presentation from Yusef Murphy of Monster.com's Making it Count program, students attended sessions entitled "Financial Aid Award Letters 101" and "Life after High School," along with an information session about McHenry County College's innovative Promise scholarship.
"The topics discussed provided an overview of how to best wrap-up their senior year," Said Dr. Liz Arbir, CLC guidance counselor. "We wanted to make sure the day was relevant to the students now and where they intend to go next."
For freshmen, sophomores, and seniors at Crystal Lake South, twenty trade schools participated in a trade fair, exposing the students to a variety of career and training opportunities. The students filed through the fair during their gym classes on Thursday, learning about nursing, broadcasting, photography, welding, technology, and massage therapy, among others. Trade school representatives shared information about potential careers in these fields, costs to pursue training, and what skills it takes to become successful.
Prairie Ridge High School's seniors—along with freshmen and
sophomores for day one—took on two distinct out-of-the-classroom learning experiences. On day one, the senior class, along with freshmen,
participated in "Prairie Ridge Gives Back." The day included speakers from organizations including Peace Corps, Relay for Life, Northern
Illinois Special Recreation Association, and Invisible Children. Students also had the opportunity to prepare care packages for the elderly,
a homeless shelter, and an animal shelter, write letters to U.S. troops serving abroad, or participate in a walk-a-thon to raise money for
the Crystal Lake Food Pantry. Still other students rolled up their sleeves and volunteered doing park clean-up at Veterans' Acres or attended
a community service fair to learn about non-profit organizations and volunteer opportunities in the community.Similar to Crystal Lake Central's activities, PR seniors participated in Senior Institute on day two, featuring speakers discussing finances, goal setting, legal issues, self-defense, and making college count.
Across the district, the testing days exposed non-test-takers to a variety of concepts, career paths, and volunteer opportunities. And while this was just two days, efforts at District 155 schools year-round—such as the schools' career centers, volunteer organizations, guidance office services—help reinforce these things and provide opportunities for students to learn about themselves and the outside world.
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