Village Likes East Building Modernization Project Plan
The Lincolnshire Village Board on Monday offered primarily positive feedback on the next phase in Stevenson’s East Building modernization project. The plan calls for an extension and redesign of the northwest corner of the East Building, which includes the Field House and East Student Services. If approved by the village and the District 125 Board of Education, preliminary work would begin this summer, and the project would be completed in 2022.
The board received details on the plan from Assistant Superintendent for Business Sean Carney and representatives from the architectural firm Wight and Company during a committee-of-the-whole meeting.
An expected student enrollment spike over the next decade is driving the project. Enrollment projections call for the student body to grow from its current level of 4,287 to 4,914 by 2029. The growth will place a strain on the East Building, which opened in 1994 when the school’s enrollment was 2,848, and was designed to house 1,000 students.
A three-story extension of the East Building, which opened last August, was the first step in the modernization project. The second phase would include the following:
- Updating and expanding the East Student Services area to create an equal distribution of Student Support Teams (counselors, deans, social workers and psychologists) between the school’s two academic buildings.
- Create much-needed locker room, training room, and fitness space for Physical Welfare classes, as well as athletic and co-curricular programs. Currently, some students have limited access to cardio and weight training programs due to lack of space and equipment.
- Add four large multi-use rooms for co-curricular and academic use during the school day, after school and on weekends.
- Expand the Field House to include two additional courts to the current set of four, for use by Physical Education classes during the school day, and by the athletic, co-curricular and PREP programs in the evening and on weekends. The expansion also would allow for creation of a regulation-sized indoor track.
The first step in the second phase of the East Building modernization project will be utility infrastructure upgrades that are needed before other work can begin. Electrical and gas lines would be moved and updated, but the key piece will be improving the SHS peaker plant, which can generate enough electricity to power the campus in the event of a power blackout or brownout. The plant, which opened in 2005 and is adjacent to the west side of the Field House, has reached its maximum generating capacity, which was designed when the school had a smaller footprint.
Final costs for the project won’t be available until February, but they are expected to be paid for through the use of existing reserves and the sale of bonds. In February, the Board of Education will vote on the utility upgrades. At the village level, the next step will be hearings with the Lincolnshire Zoning Board and the Architectural Review Board.
The Daily Herald reported on Monday night’s meeting. Click here to read its report.
Robotics Squad Wins Design Award, Qualifies for State
All four of Stevenson’s robotics teams took part in their first competition of the school year at the Glenbrook South Tower Takeover last weekend. The 1965Y/Steel Team 7 group won the Design Award, earning automatic qualification for the state competition in March at Illinois State University. Steel Team 7 included sophomores Joshua Neela, Johnny Burrer, Tanmay Panchpor, Neil Thakker, Andrei Nistor, Iyad Hamid and Adam Taylor.
The 1965T/omegaLOL squad made it all the way to the championship round. Its roster included juniors Kendrick Boardman, Ansh Parekh, Krethikram Gowrisankar, Sofia Kolobaev, Rushil Vora, Brandon Lu and Jeremiah Lee. The team will spend the rest of January preparing for its second competition, Feb. 1 at Northeastern Illinois University.
Final Incoming Freshman Orientation Night is Wednesday
The third and final orientation evening for incoming freshmen and their families takes place Wednesday. Families will receive information regarding the online enrollment process, and curriculum directors and students also will share information about course offerings and co-curricular activities. The evening begins with tours and enrollment packet distribution at 6 p.m., followed by a formal presentation at 7 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center.
Vape Users 4x More Likely to Smoke
Stevenson‘s Substance Abuse Prevention Coordinator, Dr. Cristina Cortesi, will share regular reflections during the school year in the Daily Digest. For more information on Dr. Cortesi and the substance abuse prevention program, visit her web page.
Though e-cigarettes were initially marketed as a smoking cessation device, research has shown the opposite for teens and young adults. One example of this research was conducted by the University of Pittsburgh, which noted that “vaping” or using an electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) that mimics a conventional cigarette quadruples the chance of taking up smoking. For more information about this study, click here.
Monday’s Varsity Results
Girls Bowling
Waukegan 2,108, Stevenson 1,823: At Bertrand Lanes in Waukegan, junior Yumin Kim led the Patriots with a 398 series and classmate Esther Lee shot a 383. Senior Noa Givati rolled the highest game of the day for SHS, a 157, and finished with a 367 series. Junior Kelly Radelet had a 364 and senior Reilly Sullivan contributed a 311.
Quick Hits
Stevenson’s swimmers and divers won the 12-team Hinsdale Central Freshman Invitational on Saturday, edging New Trier for the title, 240-228. David Badarch won the 50-yard breaststroke (30.24), and also swam on the Patriots’ two winning relays. He was part of the 200 medley relay (1:48.37) with Max LaPointe St Georges, David Kohan and Jack Curtin, and swam in the 200 free relay (1:35.90) with Jack, Lance Bi and Kunal Rajadhyax. … Today’s varsity and freshman boys basketball games at Libertyville can be seen on Stevenson’s NFHS Network page. The freshmen start at 5:30, followed by the varsity at 7. … The Allied Basketball team will play its first game of the season against Mundelein at 4:45 today in the Field House. Allied Basketball is one of four sports at SHS for students with disabilities.
Stevenson Daily Digest 