Waubonsie Valley High School
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Waubonsie Valley High School (WVHS) is a
public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichk ...
four-year
high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
in
Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
, United States. It was established in 1975 and it is one of 3 high schools in
Indian Prairie School District 204 Indian Prairie School District 204 (abbreviated IPSD) serves roughly 27,400 students from the Illinois communities of Aurora, Bolingbrook, Plainfield and Naperville Naperville ( ) is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, DuPage and Will County, ...
, along with Neuqua Valley High School and
Metea Valley High School Metea Valley High School is a high school in Aurora, Illinois that opened in August 2009 in DuPage County. The school is one of four high schools operated by the Indian Prairie School District. Waubonsie Valley High School is also in Aurora, wh ...
.


History

Indian Prairie Community Unit School District #204 (a unit district K-12) was formed in the fall of 1972. In December 1972 a referendum was passed to build and equip a high school at a projected cost of $8.2 million. A separate issue also passed to add a swimming pool. Construction on Waubonsie Valley High School began in the spring of 1973. In September 1975, Waubonsie Valley opened its doors for its first school year. 293 Freshmen, Sophomores and Juniors attended the new high school. In addition, 7th and 8th graders were housed in the building (using the name Granger Junior High) until Hill Junior High (now Hill Middle School) opened in the Fall of 1981. Construction delays prevented students from using the gym until May 1976 and the pool until October 1976. The school was designed as an open campus, with very few walls to separate classes. This quickly gave way to temporary room dividers and eventually, more permanent walls. Major construction projects over the years added three classroom wings, a field house and an auditorium, leaving just a few clues as to the original design of the building. The school was considered futuristic with a swimming pool, greenhouse, and planetarium.


Demographics

In 2021, 41.9% of the student body identified as White, 23.3% of the student body identified as Asian, 18.3% of the student body identified as Hispanic, 10.7% of the student body identified as Black, and 5.7% of the student body identified as another race.


Music program

The Waubonsie Valley music program has received a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
six times in total. WVHS was named a Grammy Association's Signature School in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2011 through the
National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous for its Grammy Aw ...
. In 2007 and 2011, WVHS was one of two schools in the nation to receive the honor of the Grammy Association's Signature GOLD School. The choir program offers seven choirs and several extracurricular ensembles, including two show choirs. The top level mixed show choir was ranked 1st for 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2015 by the National Show Choir Ranking System.


Notable alumni

*
Derek Ahonen Derek Ahonen is an American playwright, director, producer, and filmmaker. He is the founder of ''The Amoralists Theatre Company'' in NYC. Ahonen is most known for his plays ''The Pied Pipers of The Lower East Side'', ''Happy In The Poorhouse'', ...
(1999), playwright, director, and founder of the Amoralists Theatre Company in New York City. *
Patrick Beverley Patrick Beverley (born July 12, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Arkansas Razorbacks before spending three and a half ...
, professional basketball player * Michael Bowden (2005), former professional baseball player,
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...
, * Fabien Bownes, NFL wide receiver and
kickoff returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...
for the Chicago Bears (1995, 1997-1998) and Seattle Seahawks (1999-2001). * Michael Damian Thomas (1992) - Hugo Award-winning science fiction editor and podcaster, publisher of ''
Uncanny Magazine ''Uncanny Magazine'' is an American science fiction and fantasy online magazine, edited and published by Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas, based in Urbana, Illinois. Its mascot is a space unicorn. The editors-in-chief, who originally ...
'' *
Parvesh Cheena Parvesh Singh Cheena (born July 22, 1979) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Gupta in the TV series ''Outsourced'' and as Sunil Odhav on ''Crazy Ex-Girlfriend''. He also voices Bodhi in ''T.O.T.S.'' Early life Cheena was ...
(1997), actor known for role as Gupta in the NBC series, '' Outsourced''. He has also appeared in the TV shows '' ER'', '' Sons of Tucson'', ''
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' is an American sitcom created by Danny Kallis and Jim Geoghan. The series aired on Disney Channel from March 18, 2005, to September 1, 2008. The series was nominated for an Emmy Award three times and was al ...
'', along with many more. He was also in the two movies in the '' Barbershop'' series. * Steve Keller, retired soccer midfielder *
Chris Schuler Chris Schuler (born September 6, 1987) is an American former soccer player who last played for Orlando City in Major League Soccer. He is currently pursuing an events management career with US Soccer. Career College and amateur Schuler atte ...
(2009), professional soccer player *
Peter Tiberio Peter Tiberio (born April 26, 1989) is an American rugby union player who plays for the Seattle Seawolves in Major League Rugby (MLR). At 5'11", 180 lbs, he plays wing for the United States national rugby sevens team and has represented the U ...
,
USA Eagles The United States men's national rugby union team represents the United States in men's international rugby union. Nicknamed the Eagles, it is controlled by USA Rugby, the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United Stat ...
rugby player *
Morolake Akinosun Morolake Akinosun (born May 17, 1994) is a Nigerian-born American track runner who competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She won a team gold medal at the 2015 Pan-American Games in Toronto in the 4 x 100-meter relay. She is ...
(2012), gold medal winner of the women's
4 × 100 metres relay The 4 × 100 metres relay or sprint relay is an athletics track event run in lanes over one lap of the track with four runners completing 100 metres each. The first runners must begin in the same stagger as for the indiv ...
in the
2016 Rio Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...
*
Troy Fumagalli Troy Fumagalli (born February 17, 1995) is an American football tight end who is a free agent. He played college football at Wisconsin. Early years Fumagalli was born with amniotic band constriction, which forced doctors to amputate part of hi ...
(2013), current
tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...
for NFL's
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...
* Jerry Harris (2017), cheerleader from
Cheer Cheering involves the uttering or making of sounds and may be used to encourage, excite to action, indicate approval or welcome. The word cheer originally meant face, countenance, or expression, and came through Old French into Middle Engli ...


Notable staff

*
Dan Schatzeder Daniel Ernest Schatzeder (born December 1, 1954) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the major leagues from – for nine different teams. Schatzeder attended Willowbrook High School in Villa Park, Illinois then played college ...
(physical education teacher) was a Major League Baseball pitcher (1977—91). He was a member of the
1987 World Series The 1987 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1987 season. The 84th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Minnesota Twins and the Natio ...
Champion Minnesota Twins. *
Angelo DiBernardo Angelo DiBernardo (born May 16, 1956) is an Argentine-American former soccer player who played professionally in the North American Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League. He also represented the United States at the 1984 Summer Olympic ...
(Spanish teacher) is a retired soccer player who played professionally in the
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...
and Major Indoor Soccer League. He also represented the United States at the
1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...
. DiBernardo played alongside soccer legend Pelé during his time at
New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to * New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada) * New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independ ...
.


References


External links

* {{authority control Education in Aurora, Illinois Schools in DuPage County, Illinois Public high schools in Illinois Educational institutions established in 1975 1975 establishments in Illinois