Prince of Peace Principal Bonnie Brown to Retire
Lake Villa, IL - May 2017 - Prince of Peace Catholic School, a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon school, announces that its principal of eight years, Mrs. Bonnie Brown, will retire on June 15, at the end of the school year.
A professional, a top-quality educator and an advocate for children everywhere, Mrs. Brown has been a part of the education field for 47 years. She has used her experience and motto "love the children first, then teach them" to enhance and strengthen the Prince of Peace community during her tenure, and will be missed by students, faculty, staff and parents.
As a result of her tireless effort and hard work, Prince of Peace has grown and become known throughout Lake County as a school of educational distinction. Under her direction, Prince of Peace became a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon School of Excellence in 2014. It also has a reputation for faith-based learning as well as innovation, integrating technology into each classroom from Preschool through Eighth Grade, using resources to teach to individual learning styles, and incorporating a variety of optional after-school programs to further help students express and enrich themselves, including art, chess, coding, robotics, rockets, yearbook and more. State test scores have risen during Mrs. Brown's time at the school, and facility improvements have allowed students to further flourish.
Mrs. Brown began her career in 1970 as a social studies teacher to grades 5-8 in Philadelphia, and worked for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia as an assistant to the Director of Youth Activities. She also was the first campus minister and first laywoman to teach religion at the Archbishop Wood for Girls in 1975. From there, she taught at Resurrection High School for Girls in Chicago, then moved into the assistant principal - and later principal - role at Mother Guerin High School in River Grove. She helped establish the Guerin College Prep School in 2004. She came to Prince of Peace in 2009.
Over the course of her dedicated career, Mrs. Brown has implemented religious programs and retreats, won a national award from the National Service Learning Association, earned the National Catholic Education Award as the outstanding high school educator in the Great Lakes region, represented Guerin College Prep at the canonization of Mother Theodore Guerin in Rome, was involved in the new Parish Life Center at Prince of Peace, and represented the school in 2014 at the Blue Ribbon School award ceremony in Washington DC.
"Watching students grow and learn while working with dedicated professionals has made my time here at Prince of Peace such a positive experience. Parental support and assistance are a critical component to a great school. Prince of Peace Catholic School has met all challenges and continued to embrace the mission of the school. They will move forward in forming great leaders for the Church and the community.
I have had a wonderful life as an educator. Over the years, I have had the opportunity to work in every grade from Kindergarten through College. With the wholehearted support of my loving family, I have had the opportunity to share my faith, teach young people and meet hundreds of wonderful people," Brown concluded.
Prince of Peace Catholic School is accepting registrations for 3-year-old Preschool through Eighth Grade. If your family is interested in finding out more about the Blue Ribbon school's award-winning curriculum and faith-based learning, or if you'd like to schedule a tour of the school and Parish Life Center that provides students with arts, technology and physical education, visit http://school.princeofpeacelv.org/ or call 847-356-6111.
Community is an important aspect of Prince of Peace, and the school welcomes community members to join us at our well-known Rummage Sale from June 8-10, and again as we celebrate our 60th school anniversary the weekend of September 15-16, which will include a special blessing from Cardinal Blase Cupich.