Support District 95 at Friday fundraiser
On Friday, May 29, the residents of the Lake Zurich District 95 communities will have the opportunity to embrace the youth of the school system in dramatic fashion, as they have so many times before. For you see, that is the last chance that it will be possible to save extracurricular programs that will otherwise be diminished or eliminated.
The residents of this community have a history of stepping forward at crucial times and demonstrating to other communities and to their own children that our school programs and facilities are important. As most of you know by now, the school district is in a financial situation that requires many extra curricular activities to be reduced or eliminated. These include band and orchestra programs in the elementary and middle schools.
The high school will not be spared. There are reductions or eliminations planned in theater productions, debate, counseling, drama and music. Further reductions or eliminations are also slated to be made in athletics, with either the reduction of some non-varsity teams or elimination of several athletic programs.
Think back to your school years and you will recall that the extra curricular programs are a major factor in keeping students involved in the school community and more focused on academics. For some students, extra curricular activities are the only thing that kept them attending school and earning a diploma. Participation in these programs has become an American tradition in our school system.
I asked my own children, who attended Lake Zurich schools their entire lives and graduated several years ago, what impact the music programs had on their lives. In addition to helping them get accepted to a number of colleges, one of them said this to me: "If I had not been exposed to music classes in my early education, I would be lacking a fundamental understanding of the benefit of fine arts. Not only do these classes teach students basic technical skills that allow them to develop musical talent later in life, but they teach us about music in historical, social, political, and cultural contexts."
On May 29, the final fundraiser to assist in keeping all of the extra curricular programs in place will take place at Lake Zurich High School's athletic field from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 a piece and qualify you for entry into a raffle for a plasma screen television. You can win the television whether you attend or not, as long as you purchase a raffle ticket. You also can buy additional tickets for the raffle in the coming days from students. The high school band will be performing, there will be concessions sold and there will also be a faculty North vs. South football game, with the faculty from schools on the north side of the district up against faculty from the schools on the south side of District 95. Other surprises are planned for those attending. It will be fun, it will be short and it will be one of the most important things that you can do for the youth in this community. See you there!
Mark Hutton
Lake Zurich