Kate Thayer, TribLocal reporter
Parents who want their children to concentrate on math and science and be involved in an intergenerational garden, creating a prairie or building a weather station may get the chance under a new District 54 proposal.
The idea of an open-enrollment math and science academy at Herbert Hoover Elementary School in Schaumburg will be discussed Thursday night at a school board meeting. Students would be able to apply for admission from all over the district for the 2011-12 school year.
Hoover would continue to serve early childhood through sixth-grade students within its boundaries. Principal Jake Chung said he expects to have room for about 15 to 20 students outside the school’s boundaries if the plan is approved.
The district already has a sign language open-enrollment program at Blackwell Elementary School in Schaumburg and Lincoln Prairie Elementary School in Hoffman Estates is totally open-enrollment and offers learning in classrooms of students of various ages.
Chung said the staff at Hoover began considering how the school could grow a year-and-a-half ago and decided on offering more math and science. Sixth grade teacher Carol Metzke said the school had a pilot advanced math program that led to creation of math and science labs.
Staff also wanted to focus on community-based learning opportunities, Chung said. That led to working with Friendship Village retirement community in Schaumburg to build a greenhouse and garden. Toward the end of last school year, the seniors helped students plant a variety of fruits, vegetables and flowers as part of the science curriculum.
Jeff Rose, volunteer coordinator at Friendship Village, said the effort allowed seniors to remain active.
“A lot [of people] in the community feel they should come help us, but we feel we have so much to give back,” Rose said. “This was an opportunity to give back to the community.”
The greenhouse was funded through a grant from the district’s foundation, as well as a grant from Lowe’s, Chung said.
Creation of a prairie is a new project that also is part of the environment-friendly curriculum, he said. Second-grade science classes will study the native plants in the area, and help restore part of the school’s land to its original state, he said.
Other future math and science projects include weather stations, solar panels, and Skyping or video conferencing through the internet, Chung said.
The board will discuss the possibility of the academy at its meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, at the Administration Center, 524 E. Schaumburg Road, Schaumburg. District 54 has 27 elementary and junior high schools in Schaumburg, Roselle, Hoffman Estates, Hanover Park, and Elk Grove Village.
