Carmel Catholic High withdraws plan for international student dorm
Mundelein’s Carmel Catholic High School has withdrawn a plan to build a dormitory for international students.
A housing wing with between 16 and 28 bedrooms was proposed for the Carmel campus, which is on the northeast side of the village off Route 176.
Carmel has averaged between 25 and 50 international students a year since the school opened enrollment to foreign families in 2017, documents indicate. International students now live at the Mil’Ton Luxury Apartments in neighboring Vernon Hills.
Carmel once offered on-site housing but hasn’t for years, documents indicate. Mundelein zoning rules no longer allow residential housing on the Carmel campus, so school officials had requested permission to construct a dorm.
The proposal was opposed by several Mundelein residents during a review by the village’s planning and zoning commission in May. Several commissioners questioned the proposal, too.
A public hearing that began at that meeting was scheduled to continue Wednesday night, but the plan has been withdrawn by the school without explanation, Village Administrator Eric Guenther said.
Amerigo Education, the company that handles international students for Carmel, reportedly said it won’t continue the program if an on-campus dormitory isn’t built.
Carmel’s international students are an important part of its community, school President Brad Bonham said in an email Monday. School officials are working to determine their next steps with the program, he said.
Wednesday’s planning and zoning commission meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. at village hall, 300 Plaza Circle.