Niles West High School
| File:Niles West.gif | |
| Superintendent | Neil Codell |
| Asst. Superintendent | Roger Stein and Nanciann Gatta |
| Principal Administrator | Dale Vogler |
| Vice Principal Administrator | Kaine Osburn and Paula Miller |
| School type | Public |
| Religious affiliation | None |
| Founded | 1959 |
| Location | Skokie, Illinois |
| Enrollment | 2470 |
| Faculty | 347 in District 219 |
| Campus surroundings | Suburban |
| Mascot | Wolf |
| School color(s) | Red & White |
Niles West High School of District 219 is one of two public high schools in the Niles Township school system. Niles West is located in the suburban village of Skokie, Illinois on West Oakton street. Opened in 1959, Niles West serves the suburbs of Niles, Skokie, Lincolnwood, and Morton Grove. It is also recognized for its excellence in education.
School Data (2003-2004)
Statistics
- Total Enrollment: 2,470
- Average Student Daily Attendance: 92.7%
- Student/Teacher Ratio: 17:1
- Average ACT Score: 22
- Cost Per Student: $14,732
- Graduation Rate: 90-95%
- Four-year College Matriculation Rate: 64.6%
- Students Seeking Continuing Education: 90.8%
Faculty
- Faculty: 347 Full-time Teachers in District 219
- Average Teaching Experience: 10 Years
- Percentage Holding a Graduate Degree: 76%
Achievements
- Outstanding Biology Teacher of the Year
- Principal of the Year: Dr. Vogler, 2005
- Two Illinois History Teachers of the Year
- DECA students place second in the nation
- Qualified whole team in ICTM Math Team competitions in 2005 and 1999
- Illinois State Champions Science Olympiad in 1999; second place in state (19th in country) in 2006
- Highest percentile of students participating in extracurricular activities in the Northshore region (35.4%)
Technology
- Multiple computer labs, including one "walk-in" lab
- Technology Leadership Program, where students help other students and/or senior citizens
- Cisco IPTV, being phased out and replaced by similar on-demand internet videos
- Sponsorship of http://www.digitalstories.org
- Dell Computers in every science room, approx. 70-80 laptops (may be shared with Niles North High School)
- Computers in each department's "Resource Center"
- VoIP phones in every class room
- "Language Lab", with top-of-the-line computers linked with the teachers to allow the instructors full control
- E-mail and storage (accessible at home via POP3, IMAP, and FTP) for all students and staff
- A/V lab with around 12 eMacs for multimedia editing
Schedule
For many years the schedule has been based on 15 minute periods known as 'mods' with the last 5 minutes of a class being used as a passing period. The first mod was for a 10-minute homeroom, while most classes were 3 mods long (except for lab classes, which were 4 mods). Normal school days lasted 29 mods, although most students have the 29th mod free. Often, students had free mods between classes; these are no different (and sometimes takes the place of) mods devoted to lunch, allowing variable amounts of free time to students.
A new change instituted at the start of the 2005-2006 school year included a switch to a schedule similar to that of New Trier High School with nine 42-minute classes, and the possibility of taking physical education early morning, before classes officially begin. Homeroom has been moved to the middle of the day in an effort to prevent students from skipping it.
The switch to the newer scheduling system was done largely without community support. In the 2004 tax referendum, one of the concerns was that if the referendum would not pass, the mod system would be changed to a period system. When the referendum did pass, the Board of Education again made the schedule an issue in the contract negotiations later that year, allowing them to change the schedule as long as a public hearing was made. This public hearing had no discernable effect on the rescheduling plans.
One of the arguments used for and against the new schedule concerns school security. Supporters of the rescheduling believe that a reduction in students' free time will reduce the frequency of altercations. Opponents have made the claim that by having almost the entire school in the halls at one time is more dangerous, both because the halls become very crowded very commonly, and because if something happens security personnal are less able to move to the scene of the incident.
Controversies
Until October of 2000, the sports teams were known as Niles West Indians, a name which was changed to the Wolves so as not to offend Native Americans. The school colors are still red and white, although wolf murals and symbolism appear throughout the school.
In 1996, the Niles Township Federation of Teachers went on a strike for two weeks over negotiations with administrators. During that time numerous students staged a walkout. Strikes have also happened in 1979 and 1985.
In the spring of 2004, four teachers were denied contract renewal a month before their tenure. The teachers, including the theatre director Kevin Wall, were let go unanimously at a public vote by the school board for undisclosed reasons. Many students, parents, and community members attended the meeting in protest.
After the 2004-2005 boys' basketball season, head coach Dave Genis was fired as head coach despite his strong performance as head coach for three years. Although Genis was assured he would not lose his job after a profane argument with athletic director Steve Heuerman, he was terminated shortly after the argument. The Chicago Sun-Times reported on July 19, 2006 that a judge ruled in Genis' favor in his lawsuit against the school after he claimed his firing was due to District 219's anti-union bias. The full story is at http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-coach19.html.
Notable alumni
- Bart Conner -- Olympic gymnast
- Merrick B. Garland -- Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
- Jim Hart -- NFL Quarterback (1966 - 1984)
- John Klemmer -- Jazz musician
- Blake Sloan -- NHL Right Wing (1998 - Present)