Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Groups from Brooks and Julian will travel to Omaha Neb. in early March.
For the second time in two years, two VEX Robotics teams from the Oak Park Education Foundation will head to nationals March 7 through 9. The Terminators from Gwendolyn Brooks and the Black Team from Percy Julian, along with their coaches, will be traveling to Omaha to compete against the best middle school teams from across the country. They will face off against other teams on a playing field in this year's VEX Robotics game Sack Attack by driving robots they have designed, built and programmed from the ground up since October. The teams will also vie for awards in categories such as design, creativity, innovation and teamwork. Terminator team members are Samantha Braun, Mac Bell, Julia Dreher-Threlkeld, and An Edwards. Black team …
41.881348
-87.784493
Percy Julian Middle School
420 S Ridgeland Ave, Oak Park, IL
/articles/local-robotics-team-going-to-nationals-for-second-time-in-two-years
245942
/locations/8834558
41.882924
-87.796994
Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School
325 S Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park, IL
/articles/local-robotics-team-going-to-nationals-for-second-time-in-two-years
246236
/locations/8834559
Friday, January 25, 2013
Robotics geeks will show off their creations and compete for prizes.
If you're into all things robots and robotics, Percy Julian Middle School will be the place to be Jan. 26. More than 100 middle school VEX Robotics students from Oak Park and the Chicago area will square off in the Battle of the Bots, featuring teams from Brooks, Julian, St. Giles and the surrounding suburbs. It will be set at 9 a.m. at the school, 416 S. Ridgeland Ave. Participants will compete for trophies by strategically executing the VEX Robotics challenge game Sack Attack, driving robots they've designed, built and programmed from the ground up since October. The Robotics program involves more than 80 middle school students who have worked with teachers, volunteer engineers, and high school mentors. The most successful teams will …
41.881348
-87.784493
Percy Julian Middle School
420 S Ridgeland Ave, Oak Park, IL
/articles/battle-of-the-bots-slated-for-jan-26
245942
/locations/8672116
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Parents can explore how programs will be integrated into classrooms at Brooks and Julian.
New efforts that Elementary District 97 officials hope will take education to a new level at Oak Park middle schools will be the focus of a forum at 7 p.m. this Wednesday at Brooks, 325 Kenilworth Ave. Staff will explain how the Common Core State Standards and the International Baccalaureate program, which have been initiated in District 97, are being integrated into the classrooms at Brooks and Julian. Parents also can talk with their child's teachers to find out how these new programs are affecting every-day learning. Follow Patch on Facebook for breaking news, friendly discussions and more. Click here to follow Forest Park Patch. Or, click here to follow Oak Park and River Forest Patch. The Common Core State Standards came about by a …
41.882924
-87.796994
Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School
325 S Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park, IL
/articles/forum-on-new-learning-efforts-at-oak-park-middle-schools-set-for-wednesday
246236
/locations/7979983
Monday, May 21, 2012
Oak Park middle schoolers earn top honors in state track meet and music festival.
From Oak Park Elementary School District 97 The track teams from Gwendolyn Brooks and Percy Julian Middle Schools earned several medals and top finishes during the state meet held by the Illinois Elementary School Association on Friday, May 18 and Saturday, May 19 in East Peoria, Illinois. Mary Blankemeier, a seventh grader from Brooks who took first place in the 2011 Girls AA Cross Country Champion state meet held in the fall, captured first place and set a state record of five minutes and 10.23 seconds in the 1600 meter run. In addition to Blankemeier, who also took second place in the 800 meter dash, Chisom Nwoko, an eighth grader from Brooks, finished first in the 400 meter dash. Other notable performances included: The girls track …
Friday, March 16, 2012
Local kids take inspiration from Tina Fey, Chris Farley and other famous improv comedy alums.
Dallas Koelling had been waiting and waiting for a call to get the news she'd been accepted into into the Second City's Youth Ensemble course. She missed the call, dialed voicemail and learned she made the cut. She screamed. She shrieked. Casey Kosydor Whitley got the same news while at Brooks Middle School. He inexplicably darted to Erik's Deli for a salad and French fries. "I never even eat salad," Kosydor Whitley said. "I flipped out." Whitley, 13, and Koelling, 14, were accepted into the Improv Ensemble troupe earlier this year after rigorous auditions. Led by Alex Moffat, the program teaches the art of improvisation and the finer points of working within an ensemble cast. The coursework culminates with spring performances at Donny’s …
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Supt. Al Roberts pledges push to address behavior problems.
Oak Park Elementary School District 97 Supt. Al Roberts has responded to a parent's allegations that administrators haven't properly disciplined a student accused of punching and tripping a 13-year-old student at Percy Julian Middle School. Roberts said the incident, which remains under investigation by police, will be taken seriously and handled "in adherence to our policies and the law." A PDF copy of Roberts' response to the allegations accompanies this story. A local parent, Elisabeth Schaffrath told Wednesday Journal administrators were "dragging their feet" in doling out punishment against her daughter's 12-year-old male classmate, who allegedly tripped and punched the girl near her school locker on May 19. Roberts said school …
Thursday, January 13, 2011
OPRF graduate Susan Kerwin Jenkins' 'Encyclopedia of the Exquisite' finds luxury in everyday items.
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Laura Stuart
-
Thursday, January 13, 2011
When fashion journalist and author Jessica Kerwin Jenkins left Oak Park for college and a career that landed her in the glamor capitals of the U.S. and Europe, she took one habit with her. As a little girl, she'd collected small treasures in a jewelry box. As an adult, she collects fabulous things in a file. “I kept a long list of things I’d come across that took my breath away, beautiful, wondrous, give-a-little-gasp things, in a file on my desk," she said. "I moved desks a lot, but the file was always there in a corner. I thought if I ever leave my day job, I’ll research the things on this list." Jenkins grew up in Oak Park, attending Oliver Wendell Holmes School, Percy Julian Middle School (then Hawthorne) and Oak Park-River Forest …
Frank DiGeorge
11:06 pm on Tuesday, October 9, 2012
11) IB has little to do with real education and more to do with ideology; specifically the UN’s ideology and Agenda 21. 12) With IB schools give up some local control. Any disputes are handled in Switzerland with Swiss law. 13) Some states are trying to eliminate IB. 14) The IB diploma required TOK class is composed entirely of questions like, "When can it be right to disobey the law? Can suicide… more ›