Principal's Newsletter

Hello - this is a reminder that you're receiving this email because you have a student at, or have expressed an interest in, Glenbard West High School. Communication between Glenbard West and our families and community is very important to us. Don't forget to add gw_news@glenbard.org to your address book so we'll be sure to land in your inbox! Please email any questions directly to Glenbard Staff, we are happy to respond.

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Hilltopper Community,

Second semester is in full swing on the hilltop. Many classes are headed toward their first summative assessment, students and counselors are wrapping up enrollment for next year, and our Winter sports are participating in or preparing for their postseason. Last night I had the privilege of seeing the opening night of Animal Farm, our winter play. It was outstanding! You can still get tickets for the next two performances: tonight and Saturday.

Next week we will be conducting a traffic study around campus to help inform the traffic patterns we will use during our future construction projects. As part of this study, you may see cameras set up and people in orange vests taking notes during drop off and pick up times. We are working with the village to develop a traffic plan for next school year that we will communicate to West families and neighbors this summer. While on the subject, I want to remind everyone that our staff lot should not be used for drop off, pick up, or as a turnabout. Thank you for helping keep our staff and students safe during peak traffic times.

February is a short month, but it is full of events for students. Read on for information on Heart Hop, our Black History Month events, Live Life Well Week, and the 8th Grade Activities and Athletics Night.

As always, thank you for reading. Please feel free to contact me directly with any questions or concerns.

Go West!

Ben Peterselli

630-942-7473

ben_peterselli@glenbard.org

January 31 - February 1

Winter Play

7:30 p.m.

Auditorium

February 5

Valentines for Vets

All Lunch Periods

Cafeteria

February 7

D87 GBX Music Festival

6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Glenbard East High School

February 8

Heart Hop Dance

7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Biester Gym

February 10 - 21

Annual Student Council/Glen Ellyn Food Pantry Drive

February 14

Student Council Valentine's Day Breakfast

7:00 - 7:30 a.m.

Cafeteria

February 17

No School - President's Day

February 17

President's Day of Service

11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Ackerman Sports and Fitness Center

800 St. Charles Rd., Glen Ellyn

February 17 - 24

Live Life Well Week

February 19

8th Grade Athletic and Activity Night

7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Biester Gym

February 21

West Nation Live Life Well Week Breakfast

7:00 - 7:45 a.m.

Cafeteria

February 22

Father Daughter Dance

8:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.

Biester Gym

February 24

D87 Art Show

6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

February 25

Masterworks Choir and Orchestra Concert

7:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Glenbard South High School

February 27

Junior College Night with School Counseling

6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Auditorium

February 28

No School - Institute Day

Glenbard West had two students honored for their outstanding leadership and academic success at the January 13th D87 Board of Education meeting at the Glendale Heights Senior Center: Seniors Ayushi Patel and Christopher Tran. Both Ayushi and Chris are outstanding examples of the West Way: successful inside and outside of the classroom; involved in clubs, athletics, and service organizations; and respectful toward all those with whom they interact. Go West!

Each year Glenbard West recognizes one deserving student for the Daughters of the American Revolution Good Citizenship Award. Blake Noble is the 2024 - 2025 recipient of the Glenbard West DAR award. The DAR Good Citizen Award recognizes one student who excels in dependability, service, leadership, and patriotism. Blake displays strength in all these areas through her involvement in activities and clubs at Glenbard West as well as her academic achievements. The local DAR chapter will honor Blake during an award ceremony at Glen Ellyn Historical Society on February 25, 2025.

Congratulations to Keaton Peter for scoring a perfect

36 on the ACT.

The 2024-2025 Scholastics Regional Art Awards have been announced. 1,723 individual works and 59 senior portfolios were adjudicated. Glenbard West earned 9 awards.

Congratulations to:

Alexia Gomez - Silver Key

Morgan Putnum - 2 Silver Keys and 1 Honorable Mention

Angie Abraham - 1 Silver Key and an Honorable Mention for her senior portfolio

Anna Holter - Honorable Mention

Sonja Lohmeier - Silver Key

Lila Muscatello - Honorable Mention

The Scholastic Art Awards is the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious recognition program for creative teens.

We are so proud of all of our art students. An open house reception for all Scholastics Regional winners will be held Sunday, February 2, at Downers Grove North High School from 1:00 -4:00 p.m.

Student Services hosted the Matter of Pride Ceremony on January 24, 2025. For those that are not familiar with our Matter of Pride Award, it was created over 30 years ago at West as a way to recognize students with outstanding character. This is the only award at West that focuses on a student's kindness, willingness to help others, going above and beyond for their school and/or community, and positive attitude. Basically, Matter of Pride recipients are what makes

West the Best!

Congratulations to our January Award Recipients:

Hamza Ali, Madison Bodzioch, Eli Contreras, Maritza Guadarrama, Rafay Khan, Bridget Mitra,

Quetzaly Sanchez Najera, Lindsay Seifert, Nawra Shaik, and Chris Tran.

Each Quarter, teachers across the various departments at Glenbard West choose the one student who best exemplifies excellence within their discipline. The Glenbard West community remains strong because of these students. We congratulate the Departmental Recognition Award Recipients and thank the families and teachers who have helped them along the way.

Front Row (L-R) - Nicholas Lewytskyj - Business, Faraaz Meer - Math, Aithana Sánchez Tenjo - World Languages, Audrey Weaver - Music, Maeve Brannegan - Driver'd Ed, Morgan Baedke - English, Simon Ellis - Speech, Ryan Novelle - Excellence at West

Back Row - (L-R) - Lillian Svach - Social Studies, David Perez - Technology Center of DuPage, Robert Elliott - Science, Angelica Diaz - Art, Sebastian Guadarrama - Health, Diego Marquez Reyes - English Language Learners, Owen Farrell - Physical Education

In order to recognize students for academic achievement, Glenbard West students will receive an academic award as follows:

Glenbard West will use the final grades for the first semester of the current school year. A student with a first semester GPA of 3.8 or higher qualifies for the Academic Letter or Gold Bar.

The academic letter will be the same varsity letter given to athletes with an embroidered lamp of learning or scholastic torch. Subsequent academic winners will receive a bar to add to their letter.

In the event of an error or misinterpretation of the transcripts, a parent may petition the principal in writing (email) for an Academic Letter or Gold Bar at the conclusion of the second semester.

ALL are welcome to take part in West Theatre's spring comey, You Can't Take it With You!

Ways to get involved in this show (no experience required):

• ACT - be part of the cast
• TECH - help on a tech crew (set, costumes, painting, props, makeup, etc.)
• BUSINESS - help on a business crew (publicity, tickets, promo video, concessions, etc.)

If interested, come to the Spring Play Information Session on Thursday, February 6, 3:15 - 4:00pm, Auditorium

GUEST PASS FORM - This must be completed and a paper copy returned to the Deans’ office. This process can take up to three school days so please plan accordingly. Paper copies are available in the Deans’ office or you can print it out yourself.

Ticket Sales - Two different opportunities to purchase tickets:

• Option 1: ONLINE TICKET INFORMATION SALES THROUGH 5 STAR from NOW - 2/7/25 (Card ONLY). Every student who attends this dance will need their PHYSICAL Student ID so it can be scanned for entry. If you need an ID, please see the Librarians.
• Option 2: IN-PERSON TICKET SALES during ALL LUNCH PERIODS on February 3, 4 & 7 (Cash ONLY). Every student who attends this dance will need their PHYSICAL Student ID so it can be scanned for entry. If you need an ID, please see the Librarians.

As a reminder, all attendees must arrive to the dance by 8:00 PM and must stay until 9:00 PM.

Glenbard West Summer School Registration Is Now Open!

Summer school registration is available HERE.

You can also review our course offerings at Glenbard West Course Offerings

We encourage all students to enroll in a course this summer. Credit courses are available to satisfy graduation requirements and if a course needs to be repeated. Also, our noncredit (Bridge) courses help students prepare for a course they plan to take and provide an opportunity to explore areas of interest. Please note: Summer credit courses for incoming freshmen will only be available during Semester 2 due to technology and registration. The only summer credit courses available for incoming freshmen students are Speech and Consumer Management.

If you have any questions, please contact our in-year Summer School Principal, Mrs. Lauren Meister-Norton: lauren_meister-norton@glenbard.org or 630-942-7478.

Here is Volume Two of our AP Guide for Families in English and Spanish. You’ll find all relevant information about exam registration for second semester-only AP courses, exam order changes, and answers to frequently asked questions about exam registration. Please contact the office of the Assistant Principal for Instruction with questions: 630-942-7471. For AP-related updates, please join our Remind by texting @gbwaptest to the number 81010 or clicking here.

It is important to note that, beginning in the 2024-25 school year, the state of Illinois will require students to take the school-day ACT as a graduation requirement. This will necessitate some changes to the testing calendar for the class of 2026:

• Wednesday, April 9, 2025: preACT testing for freshmen and sophomores

• Thursday, April 10, 2025: School-day ACT for Juniors *Students will be automatically registered at no additional cost.

We are confident this plan will help students to both prepare for the ACT in their Junior year and understand their own strengths in the knowledge and skill targets that are central to the exam. Both the ACT and SAT are aligned with Glenbard West’s curricula.

Our Glenbard West Related Services Team is dedicated to providing interventions and support for all students. If your child is struggling from emotional barriers that are preventing them from succeeding in class, please do not hesitate to contact any of our dedicated staff members. I am excited to introduce our team!

Back row: Max Hufnagle, Nisa Gabbidon, Jaclyn Reeves, Pam Hagstrom, Deandra Bass

Front row: Lisa Cunningham, Jessica Walters, Peter Baker, Amanda Meyer, Bridget Mazzone

December Attendance

December was an incredible month for our students' attendance. Our average daily attendance was 94% for the entire month, which is an increase of over 2% from November. Thank you from all of us in the Dean's Office for all you did to get our students to West each day and help them finish strong!

Deans Office Attendance Tip

Tardies Add Up! For students to have a successful day at school, it is vital that they arrive on time each day and are punctual for every class period. Ten minutes late might not seem like a lot, but as this table shows, it adds up significantly.

2025-2026 Parking Applications

The applications for parking at Glenbard West will be sent to students via Schoology as we near Spring Break. Parking at Glenbard West is extremely limited and we do our best to provide the spots equitably through a careful and thoughtful process. Please have your student on the lookout for the application if you believe parking at West during the 2025-2026 school year may be of interest to them. Students awarded parking spots will be notified by the end of the school year. Reach out to Nick Billone at nicholas_billone@glenbard.org with any questions.

Remember!

All absences must be communicated with our Attendance Office by 10:00 a.m. that day. Call (630) 858-5060 anytime, day or night to speak with one of our Attendance Office Assistants or leave a voicemail.

Stay warm and Go West!

Left to right front row: Beatriz Ferreria, Mary Yangas, Rhiannon Sieck, Natalie Rubino, and Lissete Ochoa. Second row: Patty Fanella, Kate Culloton, Jeremiah Weincek and Matt Brodhead. Back row: Tad Keely, Mike Neberz, and Tony Bergantino.

When: Thursday, February 27th at 6:00 PM

Where: Auditorium

Who Should Attend: Junior students and their parents/guardians are encouraged to join us…families in their first time through the admissions process will especially appreciate the material presented.

Special Guest Speaker: Julie Nelson, Assistant Dean of Admission, Xavier University - Cincinnati, OH

Event Highlights:

• Introduction to the College Selection Process: Learn about application timelines and how to get started.

• Overview of Holistic College Admissions: Understand the factors considered in applications and begin your college search.

Breakout Sessions:
Engage with school counselors on topics including:

• Overview of SchooLinks

• Scattergrams

• Finding your Fit

• Navigating College Websites

• Q&A Session

The Dupage County Health Department is coming to Glenbard West March 27th for FREE dental exams for all students who return a completed signed consent form. This exam will meet the state mandated requirements for 9th grade students if they have not completed the necessary dental examination yet. If the student meets the necessary requirements, in addition to the exam, they will receive a dental cleaning, fluoride treatment and sealants. All high school students are welcome to participate. Health forms are available in the Glenbard West Health Office and are attached in English & Spanish. Forms must be turned into the health office or emailed to stephanie_brezwyn@glenbard.org by Monday March, 24th.

Glenbard uses the SchoolMessenger system to deliver text messages to your mobile

phone with important information about events, school closings, safety alerts and more.

You can participate in this free service by sending a text message of “Y” or “Yes” to our

school’s short code number, 67587.

You can also opt out of these messages at any time by replying to one of our messages

with “Stop”.

Thank you to all who helped make our annual Pack the Place event a huge success. It was a great day full of athletic events watching our Hilltoppers compete at a high level. The Boosters play such an important role in bringing the Glenbard West community and it is always great to see everyone together.

We look forward to hosting the following IHSA Girl's Gymnastics Sectional on Wednesday February 12th starting at 6:00pm in Biester Gym.

All schedules will constantly be updated on our athletic website as we look forward to following the Hilltoppers as they advance through the postseason at the following website: https://schools.snap.app/glenbardwest

Spring sports are right around the corner. The first day of practices for Boy's Gymnastics is February 17th, and Girl's Badminton, Boy's Tennis, Girl's Soccer, Girl's and Boys' Lacrosse, Baseball, Softball and all begin on March 3rd with Boys Volleyball beginning on March 10th. Please make sure all current physical forms are turned into the athletic office prior to the first day of practice.

Make sure to follow us on Instagram @glenbard_west_hilltoppers

GO WEST!!!

Glenbard District 87 is pleased to partner with OrganicLife as our food service provider. Information regarding OrganicLife, menu offerings, and nutrition/allergen information will be available on your high school’s website this summer.

Visit www.pushcoin.com to sign up for the prepayment option with their easy-to-use system.

Please note that for the 2024-2025 school year, free meals will be available to those who qualify. Please see the “Residency, Fees, and Financial Assistance Information” page for more information.

Glenbard West Boosters is primarily a fundraising organization with more than 350 members and 125+ Board members that plans various Booster-sponsored events and fundraising activities. The funds raised enhance academic programs, athletic programs and extra-curricular activities that enrich the student experience at Glenbard West.

West Nation proudly supports Glenbard Parent Series (GPS). Visit www.GlenbardGPS.org for information on the nationally recognized speaker series for parents, students, educators and community members. The series is free and open to the public.

Please visit www.gbwnation.com to purchase a membership, make a donation and to volunteer. We invite all students and parents to be a part of WEST NATION!

Follow us on Twitter/@GWWestNation or Facebook/GlenbardWestNation

You can keep up with Glenbard information throughout the year by signing up for Glenbard News, our district-wide enewsletter, at this link.

Each week, you will receive district-wide news about students’ achievements in school-sponsored activities; upcoming events; fund-raisers; school board information and more.

Schools across the nation are experiencing more and more students who have latex allergies. Often, students with this allergy can have severe and even life-threatening reactions if exposed to latex resins and powders. For their safety, there are certain latex products we no longer allow on campus. Latex balloons and “Silly String” pose a significant health threat to students with a latex allergy. These products are not allowed on campus at any time, including after school, evening, and weekend events. With this in mind, we request your help: Please talk with your children about this health and safety issue. Some students might not understand the reason for a “balloon ban.” At West, we want all parents to know that their children are safe on campus.

Crisis Text Line - Text REACH to: 741741

This sends information to a Crisis Counselor, a real-life human being trained to help individuals return to a healthy/stable level of functioning.

Safe2Help Illinois Call 844-472-3345 or Text 72332(SAFE2)

Safe2Help Illinois offers students a safe, confidential way in which to share information that might help prevent suicides, bullying, school violence or other threats to school safety. This program is intended to get students to “Seek Help Before Harm.”

Students who wish to report a potential act of school violence at Glenbard West may also leave an anonymous message with our School Resource Officer at (630) 681-3177 or call the Bullying Hotline Call (630) 942-7406

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Call/Text 988

This number has trained staff to answer calls and respond to texts from individuals at risk for suicide as well as those experiencing other mental health and substance use-related emergencies. Specialized services will be available for veterans, LGBTQ+ individuals, and other groups.

Email: gw_news@glenbard.org
Website: glenbardwesths.org
Location: 670 Crescent Blvd.
Phone: 630-469-8600
Twitter: @GWHilltoppers