By: Dr. Jeff Feucht, Superintendent
D117 Families, Students, and Staff,
This is the January edition of our monthly update, where you will receive timely reminders, links to upcoming events, and news from Community High School District #117. We promise to keep this to a 5-minute read (or less!)!
1. District 117 Career Guide 1.0 Launched!
Please follow this link to our new District 117 Career Guide 1.0 that features specific courses we offer to prepare students for various career pathways. The guide includes current local job growth and salary data specific to Lake County! As you pick your courses for next year, we hope this is a useful tool to engage in meaningful conversations about life after our high schools! We are calling this District 117 Career Guide 1.0 because we have already gotten great feedback for how to improve the 2.0 version for next year.
2. Ms. Hart & Mr. Mitchell Are Staff Role Models of Our D117 Portrait of a Graduate!
Every quarter, I am thrilled to highlight two exceptional District 117 educators who truly embody our D117 Portrait of a Graduate. This quarter focuses on Robin Hart from ACHS Special Education and Jake Mitchell from LCHS Math! I was honored to sit down and interview both of them last month. Through their unique approaches and dedication, they serve as shining examples of the competencies we aim to instill in all of our students by the time they graduate! Click here to read this quarter’s article about Ms. Hart & Mr. Mitchell!
3. Last Call to Join Our 2026 Strategic Plan Coalition This Spring!
Please consider applying to join our large community meetings in March and April! Please follow this link to review the dates and put your name in! For background, in the spring of 2023, we formed a large community coalition to develop our District 117 Portrait of a Graduate. You can follow this link to watch the student-created video to get caught up on what we did in 2023. Now we are getting the band back together and we are looking for new members!
4. Winter Weather Information - Thank You for Your Help!
We appreciated everyone’s cooperation last Friday as we had to pivot to an E-Learning day due to the extreme cold. If you are interested in what we consider when deciding whether to call an E-Learning day, you can review this decision making process here.
5. Registration for D117 Summer School 2026 is Still Open!
I know it seems super early, but plan your summer jobs and trips around summer school by getting your classes locked in now! As a reminder, registration for Driver’s Education closes on January 9 at 11:59 pm. All other courses close on April 3rd at 11:59 pm! The options offered are various credit-bearing courses, bridge courses to assist with transitioning to higher-level coursework, credit recovery, and Summer Freshman Academy. Shared here You can review all of the offerings at this link in the Summer School Brochure. The last page of the brochure contains the information and links to the registration form. All registration will be done through the school store of the Infinite Campus Parent Portal; this process is the same for registering for an activity or a sport. If you have any questions, please reach out to your counselor or the respective building Summer School Principal. If you require assistance with registration, please reach out to techsupport@chsd117.org .
6. Check Our Weekly Updates for Key Dates!
For more detailed information and upcoming dates every week, don’t forget to view Dr. Berrie’s (“Sequoit Weekly”) and Ms. Bowen’s (“News from the Nest”) super informative weekly newsletters in your email inbox and anytime on our websites at the very first link on the top left of the menu bar titled “Quick Links” OR just click here for ACHS or here for LCHS.
Ping us back! If you have a question about any of these items or would like to suggest a topic for our February update, please feel free to share your idea with our superintendent, Dr. Jeff Feucht via email (jeff.feucht@chsd117.org) or via phone (direct line: 847.838.7679).