Community spirit big part of the success at Lake Zurich school
The VIP Mass at St. Francis de Sales Catholic School in Lake Zurich traditionally is held in January, but the event was moved up this year due to special circumstances.
On Wednesday, the student body, parents, community leaders and current and former staff celebrated the school's receiving the 2018 National Blue Ribbon of Excellence Award from the U.S. Department of Education.
The blue ribbon designation puts the K-8 school in elite company. Only 349 schools in the U.S. earned the recognition this year, and just 49 of them are private, putting St. Francis among the top tier in the country, according to Principal Kyle Schmitt.
St. Francis won for exemplary academic performance, as students in third through eighth grade scored better in math and reading than 85 percent of all students taking standardized tests.
"The micro-communities that are built and the work that is done in the classrooms each day is the very essence of what makes us special, unique, and excellent and all of that is led by our teachers," Schmitt said in remarks after the homily.
But the rigorous application involves more than test scores.
"The single most important thing we stressed in our (blue ribbon) application was our sense of community and our sense of solidarity," Schmitt said during an exuberant after-Mass party in the church basement. "We really do engage everyone here, which makes this an amazing school."
That spirit was evident during the gathering of about 500, including all 315 students.
"The school and the community here is like none other," said Ingrid Freeland, who has a daughter who just graduated and another in seventh grade. "The sense of community here is amazing."
A DJ provided pulsing music by Justin Bieber and other pop stars, while students wore T-shirts with "SFS 2018" and the school's eagle mascot on the front, the Blue Ribbon award logo on the back. Visitors munched on freshly made popcorn and special sugar cookies with blue icing.
And Schmitt posed with students in front of a banner of congratulations while parents snapped pictures.
School officials were notified in September that St. Francis was a finalist but had to keep it under wraps until the winners were announced Oct. 1 by U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.
"Within an hour of the announcement, there was an all-school assembly," Schmitt said. "It's been a celebration of our good fortune and success since then."
Schmitt and Assistant Principal Theresa Grom accepted the award Nov. 8 in Washington, D.C.
Roy Rash, who retired in 2017 after 26 years as principal, was at Wednesday's party. He was at the helm when St. Francis won its first national blue ribbon in 2007.
"It's an external sign of what's going on internally in the school," he said. "It's like the Oscars - it's acknowledgment from your peers you're doing well."