McClure Message Week 27
March 13 - March 17
D101 Referendum
As you know, D101 has a very important tax rate question on the upcoming April 4 ballot. A group of current and former D101 parents has researched the issue in depth and created the following website to share the information they think all D101 parents and community members should know on the topic: www.d101ref.com
They also hosted a Public Forum on the referendum in late-February.
Please click on their site to learn more about the referendum, informational videos (and slide deck) that overview the presentations made at the Public Forum, and voting information for the April 4 election.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact one of the hosts of the forum:
Marleen Coglianese marcoglianese@gmail.com
Amy Avakian aavakian@bhhschicago aavakian@bhhschicago
Jason Lee jdlee41@gmail.com
Kurt Frehner kjfrehner@gmail.com
Amanda Taglia aloutag@gmail.com
Mary Hays mmvhays4@gmail.com
Upcoming Dates
Wednesday, March 15 ___ Late Arrival Day , 10am start
Wednesday, March 15 ___ Parent education opportunity: Rich Wistocki (6:30pm, MC Gym)
Friday, March 17 ___ Elective selections due (6th and 7th grade only)
Wednesday, March 22 ___ REGULAR schedule (changed from a Homebase schedule)
Thursday, March 23 ___ Last day of 3rd quarter
Friday, March 24 ___ Spring Break Begins
Monday, April 3 ___ School resumes
Tuesday, April 4 ___ IAR testing begins (Testing scheduled for April 4, 5, 6, 11, & 12. Makeups to follow)
Elective Selection reminder
As a reminder, each student has 2 periods in their school day for electives. This means that in total for a school year, each student has 8 quarters of electives. As an example, if a student takes Spanish, then that course makes up 4 of those 8 total electives quarters. Students will be asked to provide both preferred course choices and alternate course choices. We have a wide variety of electives available for students, some are semester (2 quarters) courses and others are quarter courses. Every attempt is made to give each student their preferred courses, but scheduling constraints sometimes necessitate that students are assigned a mix of preferred and alternate course selections.
Note: If you or a friend have an incoming 6th grader next year, those elective selections will happen in conjunction with our parent meetings toward the end of April.
D101 Parent Volunteer Opportunity!
Internet Safety Speaker - this Wednesday
March 15 - 6:30 - 8:30pm - McClure Gym
Detective Richard Wistocki, nationally recognized High Technology Cyber Crimes Specialist, will be presenting proactive strategies, expert insight, and invaluable resources in the program ""Keeping Our Kids Cyber Safe". Topics include cyber bullying, harassment, the dangers of popular apps and how to keep kids safe, sexting/sextortion, and protecting a child's "digital footprint". You are welcome to attend with your child and/or with their device, as the program is interactive.
Illinois 5 Essentials Survey (repeat)
The Parent Survey is currently available until March 31, and can be accessed by clicking HERE.
While this summary information is included on our School Report Card for general reporting purposes, your perceptions of McClure are of great value to me in ensuring we are continuing to grow as a school. I would greatly appreciate it if you all take a few minutes to complete this brief survey.
McClure on the Mic
Subscribe to the podcast, listen to the latest episode, or review past seasons HERE.
Counseling Corner
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Parent Council Corner
Looking Ahead: Get involved in '23-'24!
The McClure Parent Council Executive Board is hard at work making sure our fabulous programs for students, teachers, and parents continue into the next year! Please take a minute to indicate your interest in participating using the form linked here. Please don't hesitate to email mcclurepc@gmail.com if you have any questions!
A Word from WSFEE
Last year, WSFEE asked our D101 students to bring us their Big Ideas - this year it was the teachers turn! The winner of our Teacher Challenge is Anna Federman whose grant for Glowforge printers was approved and the printers are already being used at McClure. Students will have opportunities to use them next year in a new elective offering. Check out @glowforforge to learn more. And thank you to all the teachers who submitted grants. Remember to keep in touch with WSFEE by visiting wsfee.org or follow WSFEE on Facebook or Instagram (@wsfee_d101) to hear about recent grants, events, sponsorship, and donation opportunities.
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Community Events
Want more science?
A local parent who works at Argonne National Laboratory has shared these upcoming opportunities to explore science at the National Lab:
Quantum Realm on Mar 22 (in-person & online) - The quantum realm portrayed in the recently released film “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” may be fantastical, but it’s no more bizarre than the quantum realm of our own universe. Dig deep into how quantum is represented in film. What’s realistic? What’s fantasy? Will scientists be able to create the scenarios depicted in film?
https://www.anl.gov/event/into-the-quantum-realm
https://saturdaymorningphysics.fnal.gov/
April 11 – Science Careers in Search of Women @ Argonne National Laboratory
https://www.anl.gov/science-careers-in-search-of-women
May 20 – Argonne Open House (all ages) tour of the lab (first open house in over 6 years):
Model UN
As a veteran Social Studies teacher at Saint Ignatius College Prep and Director of the Saint Ignatius Model United Nations program, Victoria Haleas (also a former D101 parent) has witnessed firsthand the long-term benefits of student participation in Model United Nations and Debate activities. Students develop excellent communication, negotiation, critical thinking, problem-solving, and leadership skills as well as understanding of international relations, current events, and the complexity of global problems. Students are invited to attend one of the summer camp sessions being offered in the Western Suburbs, with one session held at McClure. At the camp, students (ages 11-15) will be immersed in the exciting and interactive world of international diplomacy through current events briefings, debates, and role-playing simulations. See the flyer for more information.
Assistant instructors are veteran Model UN delegates who have won many awards, including winning the National Championship out of 150+ schools in 2022, and many are McClure grads.
See the flyer for more information.
Contact Us
McClure Junior HIgh
4225 Wolf Road
Western Springs, IL 60558
Main Office Phone Number: (708) 246-7590
Office Fax Number: (708) 246-4370
Attendance Email: mjhattendance@d101.org
Principal Laura Broadnax: lbroadnax@d101.org
Dean of Students Thomas Sturm: tsturm@d101.org