Community High School, also known as West Chicago Community High School, WCCHS, or simply WE-GO, is a public four-year high school located in

West Chicago, Illinois West Chicago is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,086 at the 2010 census. It was formerly named Junction and later Turner, after its founder, John B. Turner, president of the Galena and Chicago Union Railroa ...

, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It is the sole school in the Community High School District 94.

History

From 1904 to 1926, the old junior high school (since torn down and now the present location of the West Chicago Fire Department) and various buildings in the city of West Chicago were used as high school classrooms. On December 28, 1924, the citizens voted to construct a high school at the present site. The opening date of the new high school was September 23, 1926. The 21st annual commencement (the first at the new high school) was held on June 11, 1927. The graduating class consisted of 27 students (20 girls and 7 boys). In 1954, Community High School experienced its first addition to the building. That addition is the area that now includes the cafeteria, small gym, and some classroom facilities. In 1964 another major addition was approved by the Board of Education. This area includes the Bishop Gymnasium and all of the new classroom facilities in the northern part of the building. In 1978 additions were added to the north and south ends of the building providing a swimming pool, fieldhouse, greenhouses, library, commons, and administrative offices. In the summer of 1998 ground was broken for the addition of twenty-eight classrooms, a fitness center and dance studio, and the construction of a new sports stadium. The new classrooms, fitness center and dance studio are located on the west side of the building. In addition to new construction, the building referendum passed in 1997 included monies for the installation of new heating, ventilation, plumbing, and air conditioning systems for the remaining parts of the building. The referendum allocated 1.8 million dollars for technology. Technology has been integrated into all classrooms in the school. The high school now has 12 fully equipped computer labs, an Online College and Career Center,a Yearbook Production Lab, and laptop computers.

Academics

In 2008, West Chicago had an average composite ACT score of 20.4 and graduated 96.1% of its senior class. West Chicago has not made

Adequate Yearly Progress Adequate Yearly Progress (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 ac ...

(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievements Examination, which with the ACT comprise the assessment tools used in Illinois to fulfill the federal

No Child Left Behind Act The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) was a U.S. Act of Congress that reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act; it included Title I provisions applying to disadvantaged students. It supported standards-based education ...

. Four of the school's five student subgroups did not meet minimum expectations in reading, while three did not meet minimum expectations in mathematics.Class of 2008 school report card; Information begins on p. 8 of this report; accessed 23 June 2009

Athletics

As of the 2013-14 school year, West Chicago will compete in the

Upstate Eight Conference The Upstate Eight Conference (''UEC'', ''U8C'', or ''Upstate 8'') is an organization of ten high schools in northeastern Illinois, representing ten communities in Chicago's suburbs. These high schools are all members of the Illinois High School A ...

(UEC or U8C) and is a member of the

Illinois High School Association The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is an association that regulates competition of interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level for the state of Illinois. It is a charter member of the National Fed ...

(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic sports and competitive activities in Illinois. West Chicago formerly competed in the

DuPage Valley Conference The DuPage Valley Conference (DVC) is an organization of six high schools in northeastern Illinois, representing seven communities in Chicago's suburbs. These high schools are all members of the Illinois High School Association. The Conference, or ...

(DVC), where it was one of the smallest schools. The change in conference was motivated to move to a conference of schools closer in enrollment. West Chicago's teams are stylized as the

Wildcats The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...

. The Athletic Department sponsors interscholastic teams for young men and women in

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

, cross country, cheerleading,

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

diving Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), a ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

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. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

and, wrestling. Young men may also compete in

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

, and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, while young women may compete in

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...

, and

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

. While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors a

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

team for young men. The following teams have placed in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state championship tournament or meet:Season Summaries for WCCHS; ihsa.org; accessed 23 June 2009
/ref> * Soccer (boys): State Champions (2019–2020) * Football: State Champions (1974–75) * Swimming & Diving (girls): 3rd place (1991–92) * Volleyball (boys): 4th place (2000–01) * Wrestling: 4th place (1976–77)

Activities

West Chicago offers over 40 clubs and activities for students, ranging from academic and vocational, to cultural and leadership (the entire list of which can be foun
here
. Among the clubs which are chapters or affiliates of more national notable organizations are:

Future Business Leaders of America The Future Business Leaders of America, or FBLA, is an American career and technical student organization headquartered in Reston, Virginia. Established in 1940, FBLA is a non-profit organization of high school ("FBLA"), Middle Level ("FBLA ...

National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic achi ...

, SADD, and

SkillsUSA SkillsUSA is a United States career and technical student organization serving more than 395,000 high school, college and middle school students and professional members enrolled in training programs in trade, technical and skilled service occu ...

. The West Chicago Theatre program (Wego Drama) was invited to perform an original children's show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland in 2016. The group was invited back in the summer of 2020 but due to the COVID-19 pandemic it was cancelled. The following activities have placed in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournament: *

Chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...

: 3rd place (1996–97); 2nd place (1994–95); State Champions (1995–96) *

Music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

: State Champions (1986–87) Music Director Ron Benner The following ar
Journalism Education Association/National Scholastic Press Association
national awards that the members of the ''Wildcat Chronicle s''taff have won. * Journalism Education Association/National Scholastic Press Association's Write-off Competition, San Antonio, TX, 2012 ** Excellent Rating for Feature Writing, Liz Ramos ** Excellent Rating for Commentary, Giuliana LaMantia * JEA/NSPA San Diego, CA, 2014 ** Honorable Mention for Sports Writing, Katelyn Foehner ** Honorable Mention for Feature Writing, Alexandra Garibay * JEA/NSPA Seattle, WA, Spring 2017 ** Superior Rating for Photography, Theresa Carriveau *** Carriveau's award-winning photo from this competition was also featured on cover of the JEA ''Communication: Journalism Education Today'' magazine.

Notable alumni

Tony Aiello Tony Aiello (born March 6, 1963) is a television reporter for WCBS-TV in New York City. He joined the station in October, 2002 after spending more than four years at WNBC New York. After almost a decade covering the northern suburbs from the W ...

TV reporter for WCBS-TV in New York City. Class of 1981 (known in high school as Carm Aiello). *

Lisa Houle Lisa or LISA may refer to: People People with the mononym * Lisa Lisa (born 1967), American actress and lead singer of the Cult Jam * Lisa (Japanese musician, born 1974), stylized "LISA", Japanese singer and producer * Lisa Komine (born 1978), J ...

Actress in TV and movies. Scene of the Crime, Seinfeld, Emily of New Moon, Pontypool. *

Scott Dierking Scott Dierking (born May 24, 1955) is a former running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the New York Jets from 1977-1983 after being drafted in Round 4 of the 1977 NFL Draft. College career Before his NFL career, he pl ...

was an

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

(1977–84), spending most of his career with the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

. * John Watanabe TV and radio host. TV commentator for

Urban Wrestling Alliance Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

and

Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded on July 28, 1989, by Atsushi Onita as (FMW). The promotion specializes in hardcore wrestling involving weapons such as barbed wire and fire. They held their ...

. *

Harris W. Fawell Harris Walter Fawell (March 25, 1929 – November 11, 2021) was an American politician from Illinois who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1985 to 1999. Early life and career Fawell was a graduate of ...

was a

U.S. Congressman The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

(1984–1999), who represented the 13th Congressional District of Illinois. *

Chauncey W. Reed Chauncey William Reed (June 2, 1890 – February 9, 1956) was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Illinois. Reed was born in West Chicago, Illinois to William Thomas Reed and Margaret Reed. Reed's father held se ...

was a U.S. Congressman (1935–1956), who represented the 11th and

14th 14 (fourteen) is a natural number following 13 (number), 13 and preceding 15 (number), 15. In relation to the word "four" (4), 14 is spelled "fourteen". In mathematics * 14 is a composite number. * 14 is a square pyramidal number. * 14 is a s ...

Congressional Districts of Illinois. He was briefly Chairman of the

House Judiciary Committee The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, a ...

. * Alexis Quezada Cardenas (b. 2 May 1997), professional soccer player, who currently plays for

Leixões The Port of Leixões ( pt, Porto de Leixões, ) is one of Portugal's major seaports, located 4 km north of the mouth of the Douro River, in Matosinhos municipality, near the city of Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city i ...

in Segunda Liga division in Portugal. Quezada attended WCHS until junior year when he decided to pursue his career professionally with

Deportivo Cuenca Club Deportivo Cuenca is an Ecuadorian football club based in Cuenca. They currently play in the Serie A, the top-flight football league in the country, and is one of two clubs from Cuenca to have played in the top-flight (the other being LDU ...

. Also played for

Celaya Celaya (; ) is a city and its surrounding municipalities of Mexico, municipality in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, located in the southeast quadrant of the state. It is the third most populous city in the state, with a 2005 census population of 3 ...

, Venados, Chicago Fire. *

Chris Voelz Chris Voelz (born May 29, 1949) is the executive director of the Honda Sports Award, Collegiate Women Sports Awards, the most prestigious national collegiate sports awards program for women since 1976. Voelz also heads her own consulting business, A ...

co-authoring the NCAA Guidelines for Gender Equityhttp://www.d94.org/cms/lib09/IL01905539/Centricity/Domain/22//eNews%20Archives/eNews%2009-30-16.pdf News from Community High School District 94 - September 30, 2016; accessed 3 November 2016 *

Martin O'Donnell Martin O'Donnell (born May 1, 1955) is an American composer known for his work on video game developer Bungie's series, such as '' Myth'', ''Oni'', ''Halo'', and ''Destiny''. O'Donnell collaborated with his musical colleague Michael Salvatori ...

Composer primarily known for his work in game music, most notably the

Halo Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to: * Halo (optical phenomenon) * Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Video games * ''Halo'' (franch ...

series. *

John Konchar John Konchar (born March 22, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons. High school career Konc ...

Current professional basketball player for the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

References

External links

* {{authority control 1926 establishments in Illinois Educational institutions established in 1926 Public high schools in Illinois Schools in DuPage County, Illinois West Chicago, Illinois