Classes almost ready to start in some DuPage schools
Summer is drawing to a close for some area teens and it has nothing to do with the departure of the sweltering heat that gripped our region.
By this time next week, students at several DuPage County parochial high schools already will be back in class — a week ahead of most of their public school peers.
Students at Montini Catholic in Lombard will be among the first to hit the books, with classes resuming on Tuesday.
Montini Principal Maryann O’Neill says a number of parochial high schools adopted the earlier schedule to ensure they could fit semester exams in before winter break.
“The kids really enjoy getting finals in and having a good two weeks off over Christmas where they don’t have to worry about anything,” O’Neill said Wednesday.
She says Montini switched to the new calendar five years ago. A number of other high schools, including Wheaton’s St. Francis and Immaculate Conception in Elmhurst, also have moved to similar schedules.
St. Francis resumes classes on Monday and Immaculate Conception is back in session Aug. 18.
“It is more of a trend to have exams before Christmas break,” St. Francis Assistant Principal Cindy Johnson said.
The students at the Catholic prep school must spend 18 weeks in classes before the December holidays, necessitating an earlier start date.
“There are more and more schools that are doing it,” Johnson said.
St. Francis students arrived on campus as early as Aug. 8 for orientation and athletic practice, marking an early end to summer and the start of a new semester.
While students begrudgingly buy school supplies and rediscover how to use alarm clocks, both St. Francis and Montini have been fully outfitted for the start of the semester.
“The classrooms are ready to go,” O’Neill said. “All the painting and carpet cleaning is done. All the disinfecting has taken place.”
After finals schedules and state requirements, the most obvious benefit of going back to school sooner cannot be ignored.
Summer vacation begins earlier as well.