Local church to host golf outing to benefit North Chicago grads

It's not every day that a public school partners with a faith-based organization to host a charity golf outing, but that's exactly what's happening in North Chicago.

On Sept. 25, North Chicago School District 187 superintendent Dr. John Price will be teaming up with Faith Lutheran Church of Lake Forest to host the inaugural Faith on the Fairway golf outing at Foss Park Golf Course in North Chicago.

The event will benefit the North Chicago Public Education Foundation, which strives to prepare and empower North Chicago graduates as they take their first steps toward securing career-oriented, family-sustaining jobs.

Since becoming superintendent in July 2017, Price has recognized the pressing need to support students and their families beyond graduation.

"While the school district is focused on pre-K through 12th grade, we realize and understand that for our students and families in North Chicago, this isn't enough," he said. "We need to be doing more to care for and support families."

This led to the creation of the North Chicago Public Education Foundation.

"Our vision is to support students after they've graduated. Our dream is to completely fund every student's postsecondary dream."

The first step is focused on providing scholarships to fully support students as they attend the College of Lake County.

"Many of our students want to stay close to home," Price said. "They oftentimes live in multigenerational homes. They have responsibilities for elders and for littles. CLC is the first step for most of our students, so it made sense for us to start there."

Wanting to meet their unique needs, the board worked with students to identify what barriers stood in the way to achieving their goals.

"It's more than tuition, so we offer cash stipends above and beyond that," Price said. "We offer counseling. We offer technology - access to computers - to help our students, who tend to confront more barriers. Getting in and paying tuition isn't the challenge."

In 2020, the North Chicago Public Education Foundation raised enough money to send nine students on full scholarship to College of Lake County for two years. Price is excited about the opportunity the golf outing provides.

"Next year, with the help of Faith Lutheran Church, we hope to get that number to 12."

Anyone interested in participating should sign up by Sept. 22 on the event website, www.faithonthefairway.org.