Friday Final

Oak Lawn-Hometown School District 123 Learning Community,

Happy New Year! We hope everyone had a joyful and relaxing Winter Break and you are recharged for the second half of the school year. As we enter 2025, it is the perfect time to recognize new beginnings, fresh starts, and exciting growth opportunities. Together, we can achieve our goals of improved attendance rates, increased engagement, and helping 100% of District 123 students meet or exceed their growth targets in Reading and Mathematics. Although these goals may seem ambitious, we believe they can be accomplished through the continued efforts, collaboration, and commitment of our entire learning community.

Remember, when District 123 was first established in 1902, a brick-and-mortar school didn’t exist. Now, we have seven active attendance centers filled with dedicated staff members, innovative learning spaces, and eager-to-learn students from the Oak Lawn and Hometown communities. This year over 700 members of our district community have contributed their thoughts, feedback, and aspirations for School District 123 over the next 5 years. The outcome of this work can be found in our Strategic Framework available on our website. We have accomplished many excellent things in the last 123 years of operation and will continue to achieve even more as we progress through the next 123 years.

May 2025 be full of opportunities to learn, persevere, and grow. We look forward to seeing everyone back in the classroom on Monday, January 6, 2025.

Thank you,

Paul Enderle Ed.D.

Superintendent

From becoming a Zookeeper or an Emergency Services Counselor to pursuing a career in Nursing or Food Science, D123 graduates are prepared to take on tomorrow's world. Read our alumni success stories at link.d123.org/Dec4ward

From teachers channeling their inner child and dressing up for Halloween to Buddy and Jovie visiting for the holidays, the Early Learning Center staff knows how to have a fun time while teaching our District's youngest learners.

We know our students love spirit days, but teachers love them, too. For one week, teachers had special spirit days just for them, including "anything but a cup day," when teachers used a container other than a typical water bottle or mug to drink out of.

What a better way to end the year than visits from an elf and the conductor of the Polar Express? Students enjoyed spotting the elf and were filled with cheer as they took a trip to the North Pole before Winter Break.

From Paul Bunyan to princesses, students and teachers celebrated the completion of the CKLA unit on tall tales and fairy tales with costumes and activities for a culminating experience. It's always important to recognize these accomplishments throughout the school year.

The best way to spread holiday cheer is singing loud for all to hear! Kolmar's winter concert was sure to warm your heart as the chorus and Kindergarten through 2nd grade students took the stage. The students and music teacher Cheri Brodsky worked hard to put on a wonderful show for families before Winter Break.

The start of a new school year is always a special time for both students and staff. It's the perfect time to set goals, meet new friends, and take a group photo in front of the newly designed poster board at the front of the school. Did you know that one of Sward's very own teachers used individual feathers to create the Eagle wings?

The OLHMS boys Volleyball and girls Basketball teams finished their seasons strong in December. The 8th grade boys Volleyball Team won the SWIC Championship and the Lady Mustang Basketball program finished second in the SWIC Tournament.

Watch the Community update at: facebook.com/district123

In 1971, three new principals joined District 123. Mary C. Lange at Hannum School, Terrence Bopp at McDonald School, and James A. Paziotopoulos at Kolmar School are pictured above with members of the District 123 Board of Education. Paziotopoulos, or Dr. Paz, was later named the Principal of McGugan Junior High School before becoming the District 123 Superintendent until his retirement in 2005.

From classrooms to stages, athletic fields to culinary labs, and everywhere in between, we know you’ve been making waves in “tomorrow’s world,” and we can’t wait to hear all about it! As we celebrate 123 years, let’s showcase the amazing achievements of our alumni and keep the D123 spirit thriving. Don't miss your chance to shine in the second edition of our alumni spotlight E-Newsletter, D123 4-WARD!

Check out our first edition HERE! Click the button below to submit your story for possible inclusion in the second edition coming this December!

Note: Submissions will now be considered for our May 2025 edition.