Willowbrook High School
Encyclopedia
Willowbrook High School is a public four-year high school
located approximately half a mile North of Illinois Route 38
on Ardmore Ave in Villa Park
, Illinois
, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States
. It is part of School District 88, which also includes Addison Trail High School
. Willowbrook draws its students from Villa Park, Oakbrook Terrace
, and portions of Elmhurst
, Oak Brook
and Lombard
.
When the school opened, the principal drafted a group of upperclassmen to help shape the schools traditions (colors, team nickname, student council constitution, etc.). Until the middle of the 1969-1970 school year, students were required to follow a dress code which prohibited (among other things) jeans for both genders and long hair for young men.
In 1961, a bust of Thomas Jefferson
was added to the southeast wall of the school. The bust had been recovered from the demolition of the Louis Sullivan
designed Garrick Theater in Chicago
by relatives of a (then) current student who were contractors in the theater's demolition.
In 1963, a north wing was added, including district offices located on the first floor portion of the wing.
In the 1980s, improved vocational education
areas were added, as was a greenhouse
, and expansion of the library
.
In 2007, a referendum was passed to make infrastructure improvements and help improve the students' learning environment. Groundbreaking began the week of June 9, 2008 and continued year-round. Removal of unnecessary holidays were approved in order to allow construction to be continue longer during summer recesses. Such improvements included the expansion of music facilities, addition of a fieldhouse and other athletic areas, enhancements to existing science labs, mass improvement to electrical/plumbing, technological enhancements, a more student-centered foyer/commons and guidance areas, renovation to the library/media center, expansion of learning spaces and classrooms, installation of air-conditioning, enhancement to traffic flow and parking, the updating of handicap accessibility, and funds put toward the improvement of the auditorium/drama facilities.
In 2008, the district offices were relocated from the first floor of the north wing to the building previously used by the Addison Public Library.
In 2010, referendum totals came out to be $115.3 million among Willowbrook and sister school Addison Trail High School
. After completion of "Building the Future" in the Fall of 2010, dedication ceremonies were held at Willowbrook and Addison Trail on October 17, 2010.
score of 21.6 and graduated 94.2% of its senior class. Willowbrook made Adequate Yearly Progress
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, which with the ACT, are used as the assessment tools to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
.
In June 2009, Newsweek
, using the Challenge Index
, ranked Willowbrook #1464 on their annual list of top American high schools. The school had been on the list once before; ranked #1343 in 2008.
. The school is also a member of the Illinois High School Association
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic sports and competitive activities. Teams from the school are stylized as the "Warriors" (in the tradition of a Roman soldier).
The school sponsors interscholastic athletic teams for young men and women in: basketball
, cross country
, golf
, gymnastics
, soccer, swimming
& diving
, tennis
, track & field, and volleyball
. Young men may also compete in baseball
, football
, and wrestling
, while young women may compete in badminton
, bowling
, cheerleading
, and softball
. While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors a poms team, as well as a basketball team which competes in the Special Olympics
.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournaments or meets:
Cave Club
>The Legend. The Myths. The Rock Willowbrook HS website; accessed 18 July 2009
Willowbrook High School (WBHS) is a public four-year high school
located approximately half a mile North of Illinois Route 38
on Ardmore Ave in Villa Park
, Illinois
, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States
. It is part of School District 88, which also includes Addison Trail High School
. Willowbrook draws its students from Villa Park, Oakbrook Terrace
, and portions of Elmhurst
, Oak Brook
and Lombard
.
When the school opened, the principal drafted a group of upperclassmen to help shape the schools traditions (colors, team nickname, student council constitution, etc.). Until the middle of the 1969-1970 school year, students were required to follow a dress code which prohibited (among other things) jeans for both genders and long hair for young men.
In 1961, a bust of Thomas Jefferson
was added to the southeast wall of the school. The bust had been recovered from the demolition of the Louis Sullivan
designed Garrick Theater in Chicago
by relatives of a (then) current student who were contractors in the theater's demolition.
In 1963, a north wing was added, including district offices located on the first floor portion of the wing.
In the 1980s, improved vocational education
areas were added, as was a greenhouse
, and expansion of the library
.
In 2007, a referendum was passed to make infrastructure improvements and help improve the students' learning environment. Groundbreaking began the week of June 9, 2008 and continued year-round. Removal of unnecessary holidays were approved in order to allow construction to be continue longer during summer recesses. Such improvements included the expansion of music facilities, addition of a fieldhouse and other athletic areas, enhancements to existing science labs, mass improvement to electrical/plumbing, technological enhancements, a more student-centered foyer/commons and guidance areas, renovation to the library/media center, expansion of learning spaces and classrooms, installation of air-conditioning, enhancement to traffic flow and parking, the updating of handicap accessibility, and funds put toward the improvement of the auditorium/drama facilities.Building the Future; excerpted from DuPage High School District 88: Building the Future; DuPage High School District 88; accessed 11 December 2010
In 2008, the district offices were relocated from the first floor of the north wing to the building previously used by the Addison Public Library.
In 2010, referendum totals came out to be $115.3 million among Willowbrook and sister school Addison Trail High School
. After completion of "Building the Future" in the Fall of 2010, dedication ceremonies were held at Willowbrook and Addison Trail on October 17, 2010.
score of 21.6 and graduated 94.2% of its senior class. Willowbrook made Adequate Yearly Progress
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, which with the ACT, are used as the assessment tools to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
.
In June 2009, Newsweek
, using the Challenge Index
, ranked Willowbrook #1464 on their annual list of top American high schools.The Top of the Class - the complete list of the 1,500 top U.S. high schools; newsweek.com; accessed 18 July 2009 The school had been on the list once before; ranked #1343 in 2008.
. The school is also a member of the Illinois High School Association
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic sports and competitive activities. Teams from the school are stylized as the "Warriors" (in the tradition of a Roman soldier).
The school sponsors interscholastic athletic teams for young men and women in: basketball
, cross country
, golf
, gymnastics
, soccer, swimming
& diving
, tennis
, track & field, and volleyball
. Young men may also compete in baseball
, football
, and wrestling
, while young women may compete in badminton
, bowling
, cheerleading
, and softball
.WHS Athletic Department; accessed 18 July 2009 While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors a poms team, as well as a basketball team which competes in the Special Olympics
.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournaments or meets:
Cave Club
>The Legend. The Myths. The Rock Willowbrook HS website; accessed 18 July 2009
Willowbrook High School (WBHS) is a public four-year high school
located approximately half a mile North of Illinois Route 38
on Ardmore Ave in Villa Park
, Illinois
, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States
. It is part of School District 88, which also includes Addison Trail High School
. Willowbrook draws its students from Villa Park, Oakbrook Terrace
, and portions of Elmhurst
, Oak Brook
and Lombard
.
When the school opened, the principal drafted a group of upperclassmen to help shape the schools traditions (colors, team nickname, student council constitution, etc.). Until the middle of the 1969-1970 school year, students were required to follow a dress code which prohibited (among other things) jeans for both genders and long hair for young men.
In 1961, a bust of Thomas Jefferson
was added to the southeast wall of the school. The bust had been recovered from the demolition of the Louis Sullivan
designed Garrick Theater in Chicago
by relatives of a (then) current student who were contractors in the theater's demolition.
In 1963, a north wing was added, including district offices located on the first floor portion of the wing.
In the 1980s, improved vocational education
areas were added, as was a greenhouse
, and expansion of the library
.
In 2007, a referendum was passed to make infrastructure improvements and help improve the students' learning environment. Groundbreaking began the week of June 9, 2008 and continued year-round. Removal of unnecessary holidays were approved in order to allow construction to be continue longer during summer recesses. Such improvements included the expansion of music facilities, addition of a fieldhouse and other athletic areas, enhancements to existing science labs, mass improvement to electrical/plumbing, technological enhancements, a more student-centered foyer/commons and guidance areas, renovation to the library/media center, expansion of learning spaces and classrooms, installation of air-conditioning, enhancement to traffic flow and parking, the updating of handicap accessibility, and funds put toward the improvement of the auditorium/drama facilities.Building the Future; excerpted from DuPage High School District 88: Building the Future; DuPage High School District 88; accessed 11 December 2010
In 2008, the district offices were relocated from the first floor of the north wing to the building previously used by the Addison Public Library.
In 2010, referendum totals came out to be $115.3 million among Willowbrook and sister school Addison Trail High School
. After completion of "Building the Future" in the Fall of 2010, dedication ceremonies were held at Willowbrook and Addison Trail on October 17, 2010.
score of 21.6 and graduated 94.2% of its senior class. Willowbrook made Adequate Yearly Progress
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, which with the ACT, are used as the assessment tools to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
.
In June 2009, Newsweek
, using the Challenge Index
, ranked Willowbrook #1464 on their annual list of top American high schools.The Top of the Class - the complete list of the 1,500 top U.S. high schools; newsweek.com; accessed 18 July 2009 The school had been on the list once before; ranked #1343 in 2008.
. The school is also a member of the Illinois High School Association
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic sports and competitive activities. Teams from the school are stylized as the "Warriors" (in the tradition of a Roman soldier).
The school sponsors interscholastic athletic teams for young men and women in: basketball
, cross country
, golf
, gymnastics
, soccer, swimming
& diving
, tennis
, track & field, and volleyball
. Young men may also compete in baseball
, football
, and wrestling
, while young women may compete in badminton
, bowling
, cheerleading
, and softball
.WHS Athletic Department; accessed 18 July 2009 While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors a poms team, as well as a basketball team which competes in the Special Olympics
.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournaments or meets:
Cave Club
>The Legend. The Myths. The Rock Willowbrook HS website; accessed 18 July 2009
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
located approximately half a mile North of Illinois Route 38
Illinois Route 38
Illinois Route 38 is an east–west state road that runs across northern Illinois. It runs from U.S. Route 52 in downtown Dixon to U.S. Highways 12, 20, and 45 in Westchester. This is a distance of . As Roosevelt Road it continues through Forest Park and into Cicero and Chicago before...
on Ardmore Ave in Villa Park
Villa Park, Illinois
Villa Park is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 22,075 at the 2000 census. A special census in 2003 set the population at 22,517...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is part of School District 88, which also includes Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School, or ATHS, is a public four-year high school in DuPage County, located approximately half a mile east of Interstate 355 at the intersection of Army Trail Road and Lombard Road in Addison, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of...
. Willowbrook draws its students from Villa Park, Oakbrook Terrace
Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois
Oakbrook Terrace is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The population was 2,300 at the 2000 census. A 2003 recount gave the city a population of 2,293. Its current mayor is Tony "Red Panda" Ragucci.-Points of interest:...
, and portions of Elmhurst
Elmhurst, Illinois
Elmhurst is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage and Cook Counties, Illinois. The population is 46,013 as of the 2008 US Census population estimate.-History:...
, Oak Brook
Oak Brook, Illinois
Oak Brook is a village in DuPage and Cook Counties, in Illinois. The population was 8,702 at the 2000 census. A suburb of Chicago, it is the headquarters of McDonald's and Lions Clubs International.-History:...
and Lombard
Lombard, Illinois
Lombard, "The Lilac Village", is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 42,322 at the 2000 census. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population in 2004 to be 42,975.-History:...
.
History
Planning for the school began as early as 1950 when projected growth for the area suggested that a new high school would soon be needed. In January, 1958, the school board not only decided that the new school was to be called Willowbrook (referring to a nearby creek), but that the school would be prepared to admit students in all four grades once the school opened in 1959.When the school opened, the principal drafted a group of upperclassmen to help shape the schools traditions (colors, team nickname, student council constitution, etc.). Until the middle of the 1969-1970 school year, students were required to follow a dress code which prohibited (among other things) jeans for both genders and long hair for young men.
In 1961, a bust of Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
was added to the southeast wall of the school. The bust had been recovered from the demolition of the Louis Sullivan
Louis Sullivan
Louis Henri Sullivan was an American architect, and has been called the "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism" He is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and an...
designed Garrick Theater in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
by relatives of a (then) current student who were contractors in the theater's demolition.
In 1963, a north wing was added, including district offices located on the first floor portion of the wing.
In the 1980s, improved vocational education
Vocational education
Vocational education or vocational education and training is an education that prepares trainees for jobs that are based on manual or practical activities, traditionally non-academic, and totally related to a specific trade, occupation, or vocation...
areas were added, as was a greenhouse
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
, and expansion of the library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
.
In 2007, a referendum was passed to make infrastructure improvements and help improve the students' learning environment. Groundbreaking began the week of June 9, 2008 and continued year-round. Removal of unnecessary holidays were approved in order to allow construction to be continue longer during summer recesses. Such improvements included the expansion of music facilities, addition of a fieldhouse and other athletic areas, enhancements to existing science labs, mass improvement to electrical/plumbing, technological enhancements, a more student-centered foyer/commons and guidance areas, renovation to the library/media center, expansion of learning spaces and classrooms, installation of air-conditioning, enhancement to traffic flow and parking, the updating of handicap accessibility, and funds put toward the improvement of the auditorium/drama facilities.
In 2008, the district offices were relocated from the first floor of the north wing to the building previously used by the Addison Public Library.
In 2010, referendum totals came out to be $115.3 million among Willowbrook and sister school Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School, or ATHS, is a public four-year high school in DuPage County, located approximately half a mile east of Interstate 355 at the intersection of Army Trail Road and Lombard Road in Addison, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of...
. After completion of "Building the Future" in the Fall of 2010, dedication ceremonies were held at Willowbrook and Addison Trail on October 17, 2010.
Academics
In 2008, Willowbrook had an average composite ACTACT (examination)
The ACT is a standardized test for high school achievement and college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in November 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist as a competitor to the College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test...
score of 21.6 and graduated 94.2% of its senior class. Willowbrook made Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP, is a measurement defined by the United States federal No Child Left Behind Act that allows the U.S. Department of Education to determine how every public school and school district in the country is performing academically according to results on standardized...
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, which with the ACT, are used as the assessment tools to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
No Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
.
In June 2009, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, using the Challenge Index
Challenge Index
The Challenge Index is a method for the statistical ranking of top public high schools in the United States by Washington Post columnist Jay Mathews...
, ranked Willowbrook #1464 on their annual list of top American high schools. The school had been on the list once before; ranked #1343 in 2008.
Athletics
Willowbrook competes in the West Suburban ConferenceWest Suburban Conference
The West Suburban Conference is an athletic conference in DuPage County and Cook County in the state of Illinois.The conference was founded in 1924.-Member schools:All of the schools are also members of the Illinois High School Association...
. The school is also a member of the Illinois High School Association
Illinois High School Association
The Illinois High School Association is one of 521 state high school associations in the United States, designed to regulate competition in most interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level. It is a charter member of the National Federation of State High...
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic sports and competitive activities. Teams from the school are stylized as the "Warriors" (in the tradition of a Roman soldier).
The school sponsors interscholastic athletic teams for young men and women in: basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, soccer, swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
& diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, track & field, and volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
. Young men may also compete in baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
, and wrestling
Scholastic wrestling
Scholastic wrestling, sometimes known in the United States as Folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practised at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially Collegiate wrestling with some slight modifications. It is currently...
, while young women may compete in badminton
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
, bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
, cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
, and softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
. While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors a poms team, as well as a basketball team which competes in the Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournaments or meets:
- Badminton: 4th place (1999—2000, 05—06); 3rd place (1994—95, 2002—03); 2nd place (1985—86, 95—96, 96—97); State Champions (1997—98, 98—99)
- Cross Country (boys): 2nd place (1978—79)
- Football: semifinals (1974—75, 75—76)
- Gymnastics (boys): 4th place (1959—60, 64—65); 2nd place (1961—62, 65—66); State Champions (1963—64)
Activities
|
Key Club Key Club International is the oldest and largest service program for high school students. It is a student-led organization whose goal is to teach leadership through serving others. Key Club International is a part of the Kiwanis International family of service-leadership programs... Mu Alpha Theta Mu Alpha Theta is a United States mathematics honor society for high schools and two-year colleges. It has over 89,000 student members in more than 1,800 schools worldwide. Its main goals are to inspire keen interest in mathematics, develop strong scholarship in the subject, and promote the... National Honor Society The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries... Odyssey of the Mind Odyssey of the Mind, often called OM , is a creative problem-solving competition involving students from kindergarten through college. Team members work together at length to solve a predefined problem ; and present their solution to the problem at a competition... |
Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries.... Student council Student council is a curricular or extra-curricular activity for students within elementary and secondary schools around the world. Present in most public and private K-12 school systems across the United States, Canada and Australia these bodies are alternatively entitled student council, student... |
The Rock
The Rock is a tradition in Willowbrook High School. It was dug up when the new auditorium was built in the 1960s. It was then positioned outside the main entrance doors of the high school building. Students usually paint it in the night with various slogans or colors of their discretion. People use it to express how they feel, and to show what's going on. According to the school's website. Neither the school nor the police have issued an official statement. So if you get caught you are on your own.>The Legend. The Myths. The Rock Willowbrook HS website; accessed 18 July 2009
Notable alumni
- Robert FallsRobert FallsRobert Falls is an American theater director and the current Artistic Director of the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.-Early years:Falls was born in Ashland, Illinois to Arthur Joseph Falls and Nancy Stribling...
(class of 1972) is the Artistic DirectorArtistic directorAn artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...
for the Goodman TheatreGoodman TheatreThe Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization...
in Chicago (1986—present). He won the 1999 Tony Award for Best Direction of a PlayTony Award for Best Direction of a PlayThe Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play has been given since 1960. Before 1960 there was only one award for both play direction and musical direction, then in 1960 the award was split into two categories: Dramatic and Musical. In 1976 the Dramatic category was renamed to Play...
, for his direction of Death of a SalesmanDeath of a SalesmanDeath of a Salesman is a 1949 play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. It was the recipient of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. Premiered at the Morosco Theatre in February 1949, the original production ran for a total of 742 performances.-Plot :Willy Loman...
. - Jody GerutJody GerutJoseph Diego Gerut is a former Major League Baseball center fielder. He attended Jackson Middle School, Willowbrook High School, and later Stanford University...
is a Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
outfielderOutfielderOutfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
(2003—present). He currently plays for the Milwaukee BrewersMilwaukee BrewersThe Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
. - Tom HicksTom Hicks (American football)Thomas Logan Hicks is a former professional American football player who played linebacker for five seasons for the Chicago Bears....
was an NFL linebackerLinebackerA linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
(1976—80), playing his entire career for the Chicago BearsChicago BearsThe Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. - Tom Higgenson (class of 1997) is the lead singer of the Grammy-nominated band, Plain White T'sPlain White T'sPlain White T's is an American Pop rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 1997 by high school friends Tom Higgenson and Ken Fletcher, the group had a mostly underground following in Chicago basements, clubs, and bars in its early years, and underwent numerous personnel changes.The band is best...
. - Drew PetersonDrew PetersonDrew Walter Peterson is a former Bolingbrook, Illinois, police sergeant who is suspected of killing his third and fourth wives. The story has received national media attention in the United States. Peterson has repeatedly denied involvement in both cases...
(class of 1972) is a former police officer, currently under indictment for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio. - Matt RothMatt RothMatthew M. Roth is an American football defensive end and outside linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft...
(class of 2001) is an NFL defensive endDefensive endDefensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
(2005—present), having played for the Miami DolphinsMiami DolphinsThe Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
after college until 2009 when he was traded to the Cleveland BrownsCleveland BrownsThe Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. Before the 2011-2012 season, he was traded to the Jacksonville JaguarsJacksonville JaguarsThe Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... - Mike RowlandMike RowlandMichael Evan "Mike" Rowland is former Major League Baseball pitcher. Rowland played for the San Francisco Giants in and .-External links:*...
, major league baseball pitcher, San Francisco Giants, 1981-1982 - Rick SantelliRick SantelliRick Santelli is an American on-air editor for the CNBC Business News network. He joined CNBC as an on-air editor on June 14, 1999, reporting primarily from the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade. He was formerly the vice president for an institutional trading and hedge fund account for...
(class of 1974), CNBCCNBCCNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
on-air editor and early catalyst of the Tea Party movementTea Party movementThe Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009... - Dan SchatzederDan SchatzederDaniel Ernest Schatzeder is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the major leagues from - for nine different teams. Schatzeder played college baseball at the University of Denver...
(class of 1972), major league baseball pitcher - Mike Sheldon (class of 1991) was an NFL offensive lineman (1997—99), playing his entire career for the Miami Dolphins.
- Dave Tirio (class of 1997) is the guitaristGuitaristA guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
for the Grammy-nominated band, Plain White T'sPlain White T'sPlain White T's is an American Pop rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 1997 by high school friends Tom Higgenson and Ken Fletcher, the group had a mostly underground following in Chicago basements, clubs, and bars in its early years, and underwent numerous personnel changes.The band is best...
.
Willowbrook High School (WBHS) is a public four-year high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
located approximately half a mile North of Illinois Route 38
Illinois Route 38
Illinois Route 38 is an east–west state road that runs across northern Illinois. It runs from U.S. Route 52 in downtown Dixon to U.S. Highways 12, 20, and 45 in Westchester. This is a distance of . As Roosevelt Road it continues through Forest Park and into Cicero and Chicago before...
on Ardmore Ave in Villa Park
Villa Park, Illinois
Villa Park is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 22,075 at the 2000 census. A special census in 2003 set the population at 22,517...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is part of School District 88, which also includes Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School, or ATHS, is a public four-year high school in DuPage County, located approximately half a mile east of Interstate 355 at the intersection of Army Trail Road and Lombard Road in Addison, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of...
. Willowbrook draws its students from Villa Park, Oakbrook Terrace
Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois
Oakbrook Terrace is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The population was 2,300 at the 2000 census. A 2003 recount gave the city a population of 2,293. Its current mayor is Tony "Red Panda" Ragucci.-Points of interest:...
, and portions of Elmhurst
Elmhurst, Illinois
Elmhurst is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage and Cook Counties, Illinois. The population is 46,013 as of the 2008 US Census population estimate.-History:...
, Oak Brook
Oak Brook, Illinois
Oak Brook is a village in DuPage and Cook Counties, in Illinois. The population was 8,702 at the 2000 census. A suburb of Chicago, it is the headquarters of McDonald's and Lions Clubs International.-History:...
and Lombard
Lombard, Illinois
Lombard, "The Lilac Village", is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 42,322 at the 2000 census. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population in 2004 to be 42,975.-History:...
.
History
Planning for the school began as early as 1950 when projected growth for the area suggested that a new high school would soon be needed.School history; excerpted from DuPage H.S. District 88 History Lessons 1918-2001; Mahoney, Greg; WHS website; accessed 18 July 2009 In January, 1958, the school board not only decided that the new school was to be called Willowbrook (referring to a nearby creek), but that the school would be prepared to admit students in all four grades once the school opened in 1959.When the school opened, the principal drafted a group of upperclassmen to help shape the schools traditions (colors, team nickname, student council constitution, etc.). Until the middle of the 1969-1970 school year, students were required to follow a dress code which prohibited (among other things) jeans for both genders and long hair for young men.
In 1961, a bust of Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
was added to the southeast wall of the school. The bust had been recovered from the demolition of the Louis Sullivan
Louis Sullivan
Louis Henri Sullivan was an American architect, and has been called the "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism" He is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and an...
designed Garrick Theater in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
by relatives of a (then) current student who were contractors in the theater's demolition.
In 1963, a north wing was added, including district offices located on the first floor portion of the wing.
In the 1980s, improved vocational education
Vocational education
Vocational education or vocational education and training is an education that prepares trainees for jobs that are based on manual or practical activities, traditionally non-academic, and totally related to a specific trade, occupation, or vocation...
areas were added, as was a greenhouse
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
, and expansion of the library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
.
In 2007, a referendum was passed to make infrastructure improvements and help improve the students' learning environment. Groundbreaking began the week of June 9, 2008 and continued year-round. Removal of unnecessary holidays were approved in order to allow construction to be continue longer during summer recesses. Such improvements included the expansion of music facilities, addition of a fieldhouse and other athletic areas, enhancements to existing science labs, mass improvement to electrical/plumbing, technological enhancements, a more student-centered foyer/commons and guidance areas, renovation to the library/media center, expansion of learning spaces and classrooms, installation of air-conditioning, enhancement to traffic flow and parking, the updating of handicap accessibility, and funds put toward the improvement of the auditorium/drama facilities.Building the Future; excerpted from DuPage High School District 88: Building the Future; DuPage High School District 88; accessed 11 December 2010
In 2008, the district offices were relocated from the first floor of the north wing to the building previously used by the Addison Public Library.
In 2010, referendum totals came out to be $115.3 million among Willowbrook and sister school Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School, or ATHS, is a public four-year high school in DuPage County, located approximately half a mile east of Interstate 355 at the intersection of Army Trail Road and Lombard Road in Addison, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of...
. After completion of "Building the Future" in the Fall of 2010, dedication ceremonies were held at Willowbrook and Addison Trail on October 17, 2010.
Academics
In 2008, Willowbrook had an average composite ACTACT (examination)
The ACT is a standardized test for high school achievement and college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in November 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist as a competitor to the College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test...
score of 21.6 and graduated 94.2% of its senior class. Willowbrook made Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP, is a measurement defined by the United States federal No Child Left Behind Act that allows the U.S. Department of Education to determine how every public school and school district in the country is performing academically according to results on standardized...
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, which with the ACT, are used as the assessment tools to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
No Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
.
In June 2009, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, using the Challenge Index
Challenge Index
The Challenge Index is a method for the statistical ranking of top public high schools in the United States by Washington Post columnist Jay Mathews...
, ranked Willowbrook #1464 on their annual list of top American high schools.The Top of the Class - the complete list of the 1,500 top U.S. high schools; newsweek.com; accessed 18 July 2009 The school had been on the list once before; ranked #1343 in 2008.
Athletics
Willowbrook competes in the West Suburban ConferenceWest Suburban Conference
The West Suburban Conference is an athletic conference in DuPage County and Cook County in the state of Illinois.The conference was founded in 1924.-Member schools:All of the schools are also members of the Illinois High School Association...
. The school is also a member of the Illinois High School Association
Illinois High School Association
The Illinois High School Association is one of 521 state high school associations in the United States, designed to regulate competition in most interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level. It is a charter member of the National Federation of State High...
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic sports and competitive activities. Teams from the school are stylized as the "Warriors" (in the tradition of a Roman soldier).
The school sponsors interscholastic athletic teams for young men and women in: basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, soccer, swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
& diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, track & field, and volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
. Young men may also compete in baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
, and wrestling
Scholastic wrestling
Scholastic wrestling, sometimes known in the United States as Folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practised at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially Collegiate wrestling with some slight modifications. It is currently...
, while young women may compete in badminton
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
, bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
, cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
, and softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
.WHS Athletic Department; accessed 18 July 2009 While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors a poms team, as well as a basketball team which competes in the Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournaments or meets:
- Badminton: 4th place (1999—2000, 05—06); 3rd place (1994—95, 2002—03); 2nd place (1985—86, 95—96, 96—97); State Champions (1997—98, 98—99)
- Cross Country (boys): 2nd place (1978—79)
- Football: semifinals (1974—75, 75—76)
- Gymnastics (boys): 4th place (1959—60, 64—65); 2nd place (1961—62, 65—66); State Champions (1963—64)
Activities
|
Key Club Key Club International is the oldest and largest service program for high school students. It is a student-led organization whose goal is to teach leadership through serving others. Key Club International is a part of the Kiwanis International family of service-leadership programs... Mu Alpha Theta Mu Alpha Theta is a United States mathematics honor society for high schools and two-year colleges. It has over 89,000 student members in more than 1,800 schools worldwide. Its main goals are to inspire keen interest in mathematics, develop strong scholarship in the subject, and promote the... National Honor Society The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries... Odyssey of the Mind Odyssey of the Mind, often called OM , is a creative problem-solving competition involving students from kindergarten through college. Team members work together at length to solve a predefined problem ; and present their solution to the problem at a competition... |
Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries.... Student council Student council is a curricular or extra-curricular activity for students within elementary and secondary schools around the world. Present in most public and private K-12 school systems across the United States, Canada and Australia these bodies are alternatively entitled student council, student... |
The Rock
The Rock is a tradition in Willowbrook High School. It was dug up when the new auditorium was built in the 1960s. It was then positioned outside the main entrance doors of the high school building. Students usually paint it in the night with various slogans or colors of their discretion. People use it to express how they feel, and to show what's going on. According to the school's website. Neither the school nor the police have issued an official statement. So if you get caught you are on your own.>The Legend. The Myths. The Rock Willowbrook HS website; accessed 18 July 2009
Notable alumni
- Robert FallsRobert FallsRobert Falls is an American theater director and the current Artistic Director of the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.-Early years:Falls was born in Ashland, Illinois to Arthur Joseph Falls and Nancy Stribling...
(class of 1972) is the Artistic DirectorArtistic directorAn artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...
for the Goodman TheatreGoodman TheatreThe Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization...
in Chicago (1986—present). He won the 1999 Tony Award for Best Direction of a PlayTony Award for Best Direction of a PlayThe Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play has been given since 1960. Before 1960 there was only one award for both play direction and musical direction, then in 1960 the award was split into two categories: Dramatic and Musical. In 1976 the Dramatic category was renamed to Play...
, for his direction of Death of a SalesmanDeath of a SalesmanDeath of a Salesman is a 1949 play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. It was the recipient of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. Premiered at the Morosco Theatre in February 1949, the original production ran for a total of 742 performances.-Plot :Willy Loman...
. - Jody GerutJody GerutJoseph Diego Gerut is a former Major League Baseball center fielder. He attended Jackson Middle School, Willowbrook High School, and later Stanford University...
is a Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
outfielderOutfielderOutfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
(2003—present). He currently plays for the Milwaukee BrewersMilwaukee BrewersThe Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
. - Tom HicksTom Hicks (American football)Thomas Logan Hicks is a former professional American football player who played linebacker for five seasons for the Chicago Bears....
was an NFL linebackerLinebackerA linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
(1976—80), playing his entire career for the Chicago BearsChicago BearsThe Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. - Tom Higgenson (class of 1997) is the lead singer of the Grammy-nominated band, Plain White T'sPlain White T'sPlain White T's is an American Pop rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 1997 by high school friends Tom Higgenson and Ken Fletcher, the group had a mostly underground following in Chicago basements, clubs, and bars in its early years, and underwent numerous personnel changes.The band is best...
.Swade, Alison; Plain White T’s come home to play DuPage County Fair; 24 July 2007; My Suburban Life - Clarendon Hills; Higgenson, the lead singer from Villa Park, attended Willowbrook High School with the band’s guitarist, Dave Tirio.; accessed 18 July 2009 - Drew PetersonDrew PetersonDrew Walter Peterson is a former Bolingbrook, Illinois, police sergeant who is suspected of killing his third and fourth wives. The story has received national media attention in the United States. Peterson has repeatedly denied involvement in both cases...
(class of 1972) is a former police officer, currently under indictment for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio. - Matt RothMatt RothMatthew M. Roth is an American football defensive end and outside linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft...
(class of 2001) is an NFL defensive endDefensive endDefensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
(2005—present), having played for the Miami DolphinsMiami DolphinsThe Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
after college until 2009 when he was traded to the Cleveland BrownsCleveland BrownsThe Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. Before the 2011-2012 season, he was traded to the Jacksonville JaguarsJacksonville JaguarsThe Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... - Mike RowlandMike RowlandMichael Evan "Mike" Rowland is former Major League Baseball pitcher. Rowland played for the San Francisco Giants in and .-External links:*...
, major league baseball pitcher, San Francisco Giants, 1981-1982 - Rick SantelliRick SantelliRick Santelli is an American on-air editor for the CNBC Business News network. He joined CNBC as an on-air editor on June 14, 1999, reporting primarily from the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade. He was formerly the vice president for an institutional trading and hedge fund account for...
(class of 1974), CNBCCNBCCNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
on-air editor and early catalyst of the Tea Party movementTea Party movementThe Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009... - Dan SchatzederDan SchatzederDaniel Ernest Schatzeder is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the major leagues from - for nine different teams. Schatzeder played college baseball at the University of Denver...
(class of 1972), major league baseball pitcher - Mike Sheldon (class of 1991) was an NFL offensive lineman (1997—99), playing his entire career for the Miami Dolphins.
- Dave Tirio (class of 1997) is the guitaristGuitaristA guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
for the Grammy-nominated band, Plain White T'sPlain White T'sPlain White T's is an American Pop rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 1997 by high school friends Tom Higgenson and Ken Fletcher, the group had a mostly underground following in Chicago basements, clubs, and bars in its early years, and underwent numerous personnel changes.The band is best...
.
Willowbrook High School (WBHS) is a public four-year high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
located approximately half a mile North of Illinois Route 38
Illinois Route 38
Illinois Route 38 is an east–west state road that runs across northern Illinois. It runs from U.S. Route 52 in downtown Dixon to U.S. Highways 12, 20, and 45 in Westchester. This is a distance of . As Roosevelt Road it continues through Forest Park and into Cicero and Chicago before...
on Ardmore Ave in Villa Park
Villa Park, Illinois
Villa Park is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 22,075 at the 2000 census. A special census in 2003 set the population at 22,517...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is part of School District 88, which also includes Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School, or ATHS, is a public four-year high school in DuPage County, located approximately half a mile east of Interstate 355 at the intersection of Army Trail Road and Lombard Road in Addison, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of...
. Willowbrook draws its students from Villa Park, Oakbrook Terrace
Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois
Oakbrook Terrace is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The population was 2,300 at the 2000 census. A 2003 recount gave the city a population of 2,293. Its current mayor is Tony "Red Panda" Ragucci.-Points of interest:...
, and portions of Elmhurst
Elmhurst, Illinois
Elmhurst is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage and Cook Counties, Illinois. The population is 46,013 as of the 2008 US Census population estimate.-History:...
, Oak Brook
Oak Brook, Illinois
Oak Brook is a village in DuPage and Cook Counties, in Illinois. The population was 8,702 at the 2000 census. A suburb of Chicago, it is the headquarters of McDonald's and Lions Clubs International.-History:...
and Lombard
Lombard, Illinois
Lombard, "The Lilac Village", is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 42,322 at the 2000 census. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population in 2004 to be 42,975.-History:...
.
History
Planning for the school began as early as 1950 when projected growth for the area suggested that a new high school would soon be needed.School history; excerpted from DuPage H.S. District 88 History Lessons 1918-2001; Mahoney, Greg; WHS website; accessed 18 July 2009 In January, 1958, the school board not only decided that the new school was to be called Willowbrook (referring to a nearby creek), but that the school would be prepared to admit students in all four grades once the school opened in 1959.When the school opened, the principal drafted a group of upperclassmen to help shape the schools traditions (colors, team nickname, student council constitution, etc.). Until the middle of the 1969-1970 school year, students were required to follow a dress code which prohibited (among other things) jeans for both genders and long hair for young men.
In 1961, a bust of Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
was added to the southeast wall of the school. The bust had been recovered from the demolition of the Louis Sullivan
Louis Sullivan
Louis Henri Sullivan was an American architect, and has been called the "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism" He is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and an...
designed Garrick Theater in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
by relatives of a (then) current student who were contractors in the theater's demolition.
In 1963, a north wing was added, including district offices located on the first floor portion of the wing.
In the 1980s, improved vocational education
Vocational education
Vocational education or vocational education and training is an education that prepares trainees for jobs that are based on manual or practical activities, traditionally non-academic, and totally related to a specific trade, occupation, or vocation...
areas were added, as was a greenhouse
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
, and expansion of the library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
.
In 2007, a referendum was passed to make infrastructure improvements and help improve the students' learning environment. Groundbreaking began the week of June 9, 2008 and continued year-round. Removal of unnecessary holidays were approved in order to allow construction to be continue longer during summer recesses. Such improvements included the expansion of music facilities, addition of a fieldhouse and other athletic areas, enhancements to existing science labs, mass improvement to electrical/plumbing, technological enhancements, a more student-centered foyer/commons and guidance areas, renovation to the library/media center, expansion of learning spaces and classrooms, installation of air-conditioning, enhancement to traffic flow and parking, the updating of handicap accessibility, and funds put toward the improvement of the auditorium/drama facilities.Building the Future; excerpted from DuPage High School District 88: Building the Future; DuPage High School District 88; accessed 11 December 2010
In 2008, the district offices were relocated from the first floor of the north wing to the building previously used by the Addison Public Library.
In 2010, referendum totals came out to be $115.3 million among Willowbrook and sister school Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School
Addison Trail High School, or ATHS, is a public four-year high school in DuPage County, located approximately half a mile east of Interstate 355 at the intersection of Army Trail Road and Lombard Road in Addison, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of...
. After completion of "Building the Future" in the Fall of 2010, dedication ceremonies were held at Willowbrook and Addison Trail on October 17, 2010.
Academics
In 2008, Willowbrook had an average composite ACTACT (examination)
The ACT is a standardized test for high school achievement and college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in November 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist as a competitor to the College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test...
score of 21.6 and graduated 94.2% of its senior class. Willowbrook made Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP, is a measurement defined by the United States federal No Child Left Behind Act that allows the U.S. Department of Education to determine how every public school and school district in the country is performing academically according to results on standardized...
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, which with the ACT, are used as the assessment tools to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
No Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
.
In June 2009, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, using the Challenge Index
Challenge Index
The Challenge Index is a method for the statistical ranking of top public high schools in the United States by Washington Post columnist Jay Mathews...
, ranked Willowbrook #1464 on their annual list of top American high schools.The Top of the Class - the complete list of the 1,500 top U.S. high schools; newsweek.com; accessed 18 July 2009 The school had been on the list once before; ranked #1343 in 2008.
Athletics
Willowbrook competes in the West Suburban ConferenceWest Suburban Conference
The West Suburban Conference is an athletic conference in DuPage County and Cook County in the state of Illinois.The conference was founded in 1924.-Member schools:All of the schools are also members of the Illinois High School Association...
. The school is also a member of the Illinois High School Association
Illinois High School Association
The Illinois High School Association is one of 521 state high school associations in the United States, designed to regulate competition in most interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level. It is a charter member of the National Federation of State High...
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic sports and competitive activities. Teams from the school are stylized as the "Warriors" (in the tradition of a Roman soldier).
The school sponsors interscholastic athletic teams for young men and women in: basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, soccer, swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
& diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, track & field, and volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
. Young men may also compete in baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
, and wrestling
Scholastic wrestling
Scholastic wrestling, sometimes known in the United States as Folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practised at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially Collegiate wrestling with some slight modifications. It is currently...
, while young women may compete in badminton
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
, bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
, cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
, and softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
.WHS Athletic Department; accessed 18 July 2009 While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors a poms team, as well as a basketball team which competes in the Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournaments or meets:
- Badminton: 4th place (1999—2000, 05—06); 3rd place (1994—95, 2002—03); 2nd place (1985—86, 95—96, 96—97); State Champions (1997—98, 98—99)
- Cross Country (boys): 2nd place (1978—79)
- Football: semifinals (1974—75, 75—76)
- Gymnastics (boys): 4th place (1959—60, 64—65); 2nd place (1961—62, 65—66); State Champions (1963—64)
Activities
|
Key Club Key Club International is the oldest and largest service program for high school students. It is a student-led organization whose goal is to teach leadership through serving others. Key Club International is a part of the Kiwanis International family of service-leadership programs... Mu Alpha Theta Mu Alpha Theta is a United States mathematics honor society for high schools and two-year colleges. It has over 89,000 student members in more than 1,800 schools worldwide. Its main goals are to inspire keen interest in mathematics, develop strong scholarship in the subject, and promote the... National Honor Society The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries... Odyssey of the Mind Odyssey of the Mind, often called OM , is a creative problem-solving competition involving students from kindergarten through college. Team members work together at length to solve a predefined problem ; and present their solution to the problem at a competition... |
Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries.... Student council Student council is a curricular or extra-curricular activity for students within elementary and secondary schools around the world. Present in most public and private K-12 school systems across the United States, Canada and Australia these bodies are alternatively entitled student council, student... |
The Rock
The Rock is a tradition in Willowbrook High School. It was dug up when the new auditorium was built in the 1960s. It was then positioned outside the main entrance doors of the high school building. Students usually paint it in the night with various slogans or colors of their discretion. People use it to express how they feel, and to show what's going on. According to the school's website. Neither the school nor the police have issued an official statement. So if you get caught you are on your own.>The Legend. The Myths. The Rock Willowbrook HS website; accessed 18 July 2009
Notable alumni
- Robert FallsRobert FallsRobert Falls is an American theater director and the current Artistic Director of the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.-Early years:Falls was born in Ashland, Illinois to Arthur Joseph Falls and Nancy Stribling...
(class of 1972) is the Artistic DirectorArtistic directorAn artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...
for the Goodman TheatreGoodman TheatreThe Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization...
in Chicago (1986—present). He won the 1999 Tony Award for Best Direction of a PlayTony Award for Best Direction of a PlayThe Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play has been given since 1960. Before 1960 there was only one award for both play direction and musical direction, then in 1960 the award was split into two categories: Dramatic and Musical. In 1976 the Dramatic category was renamed to Play...
, for his direction of Death of a SalesmanDeath of a SalesmanDeath of a Salesman is a 1949 play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. It was the recipient of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. Premiered at the Morosco Theatre in February 1949, the original production ran for a total of 742 performances.-Plot :Willy Loman...
. - Jody GerutJody GerutJoseph Diego Gerut is a former Major League Baseball center fielder. He attended Jackson Middle School, Willowbrook High School, and later Stanford University...
is a Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
outfielderOutfielderOutfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
(2003—present). He currently plays for the Milwaukee BrewersMilwaukee BrewersThe Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
. - Tom HicksTom Hicks (American football)Thomas Logan Hicks is a former professional American football player who played linebacker for five seasons for the Chicago Bears....
was an NFL linebackerLinebackerA linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
(1976—80), playing his entire career for the Chicago BearsChicago BearsThe Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. - Tom Higgenson (class of 1997) is the lead singer of the Grammy-nominated band, Plain White T'sPlain White T'sPlain White T's is an American Pop rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 1997 by high school friends Tom Higgenson and Ken Fletcher, the group had a mostly underground following in Chicago basements, clubs, and bars in its early years, and underwent numerous personnel changes.The band is best...
.Swade, Alison; Plain White T’s come home to play DuPage County Fair; 24 July 2007; My Suburban Life - Clarendon Hills; Higgenson, the lead singer from Villa Park, attended Willowbrook High School with the band’s guitarist, Dave Tirio.; accessed 18 July 2009 - Drew PetersonDrew PetersonDrew Walter Peterson is a former Bolingbrook, Illinois, police sergeant who is suspected of killing his third and fourth wives. The story has received national media attention in the United States. Peterson has repeatedly denied involvement in both cases...
(class of 1972) is a former police officer, currently under indictment for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio. - Matt RothMatt RothMatthew M. Roth is an American football defensive end and outside linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft...
(class of 2001) is an NFL defensive endDefensive endDefensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
(2005—present), having played for the Miami DolphinsMiami DolphinsThe Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
after college until 2009 when he was traded to the Cleveland BrownsCleveland BrownsThe Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. Before the 2011-2012 season, he was traded to the Jacksonville JaguarsJacksonville JaguarsThe Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... - Mike RowlandMike RowlandMichael Evan "Mike" Rowland is former Major League Baseball pitcher. Rowland played for the San Francisco Giants in and .-External links:*...
, major league baseball pitcher, San Francisco Giants, 1981-1982 - Rick SantelliRick SantelliRick Santelli is an American on-air editor for the CNBC Business News network. He joined CNBC as an on-air editor on June 14, 1999, reporting primarily from the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade. He was formerly the vice president for an institutional trading and hedge fund account for...
(class of 1974), CNBCCNBCCNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
on-air editor and early catalyst of the Tea Party movementTea Party movementThe Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009... - Dan SchatzederDan SchatzederDaniel Ernest Schatzeder is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the major leagues from - for nine different teams. Schatzeder played college baseball at the University of Denver...
(class of 1972), major league baseball pitcher - Mike Sheldon (class of 1991) was an NFL offensive lineman (1997—99), playing his entire career for the Miami Dolphins.
- Dave Tirio (class of 1997) is the guitaristGuitaristA guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
for the Grammy-nominated band, Plain White T'sPlain White T'sPlain White T's is an American Pop rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 1997 by high school friends Tom Higgenson and Ken Fletcher, the group had a mostly underground following in Chicago basements, clubs, and bars in its early years, and underwent numerous personnel changes.The band is best...
.