Crossings: Ellis Elementary School

Ellis Elementary School

Address: 720 Central Park Drive, Round Lake Beach

Phone: (847) 270-9900

Web site: www.rlas-116.org/eagles/index.php

District's name and Web site: Round Lake Area Schools District 116, www.rlas-116.org

Number of students/grade levels offered: There are 850 first- through sixth-grade students.

Number of staff: 67

School mascot: the Eagles

When was school built: 1959. A celebration is planned next school year to honor the 50th anniversary including bringing back community members who went to the school and former teachers and board members.

An interesting tidbit: The school has received two honors from the Illinois State Board of Education, the Academic Improvement Award in 2006 and was named one of 500 schools in Illinois to be named an Illinois Spotlight School.

Principal: Bill Pritchard

• He has been at the school for two years.

• What is your favorite memory from Ellis School? Pritchard said every day is his favorite school memory. Ellis has a somewhat unique population in that 80 percent are Hispanic and more than half are low-income. He said the day-to-day reward is knowing that they make a difference for these students.

• What do you think is a unique aspect of your school? Pritchard said one aspect is their student body -- 850 is large for an elementary school. Another aspect is an all Web-based program called MAP that is used to test students in reading, language usage and math. After completing the test, students receive a score that determines their academic level. He said the score ranges correspond with how students select books in the library. Based on their score, they are able to select a book that is grade-level appropriate.

• What are you most proud of? Pritchard said it is the dedication shown by the staff. The school at one time was on academic warning, faced with restructuring under guidelines of the state board of education. Now the school is earning academic honors. "I'm proud how hard our staff works. It's all about the kids. It's all about teaching and learning," he said.

• If all school enrollments were determined by choice, what would you say to potential parents to convince them to choose Ellis School for their children? "While we're a big school with 850 kids, hallways are long and in some cases 29 kids per class, your child will not get left behind or slip through the cracks," he said. "Teachers care about our children. They care about learning. They are accessible."

• How has technology changed the way students learn over the past five years? Has that been a good change? Pritchard said technology has provided a great change to educate students, which he once heard are now described as the HD generation. "It's a must for educators to tap into that resource. That is how most kids are learning these days. It is a fast multi-sensory way to learn," he said.

• If you can get one thing accomplished between now and the end of May in your school, what would it be? Pritchard said he hopes to increase parent involvement, such as seeing more parents come to the school to learn more how their child is doing. He said the bond between the home and school is important. "Teachers are the educational experts. Parents are the child experts. When the two are combined, it is a powerful thing," he said.