Staff issues as well as ideas for building changes in Morton schools are similar throughout the district.
Superintendent Dr. Roger Kilpatrick said that he and Assistant Superintendent Craig Smock met with principals from Grundy, Lettie Brown and Lincoln elementary schools as well as architects and engineers to discuss the classroom addition project.
“We actually took a look at the three buildings and the physical layout of the three classrooms and I think what we’ve arrived at is a pretty consistent implementation from one building to the next,” Kilpatrick said.
Morton School District 709 was honored by School Search with the Bright Star A+ award for 2011. This award recognizes the top 5 percent of Illinois school districts.
As Mortonites voted down District 709’s $12.5 million referendum to make improvements to three of the district’s elementary schools April 5, school board members were focusing on lunch.
Orchestra students at Morton High School listened to the music and the life story of violin prodigy Saeka Matsuyama last week.
The Morton village board discussed the fate of Jefferson School pending the April 5 election Monday night.
The band directors at Morton High School and Morton Junior High were students alongside their own students last week when a nationally acclaimed band director came to Morton.
Each spring juniors at Morton High School take the Prairie State Achievement Exam.
This exam tests for college readiness as well as career readiness
Living Independently for Everyone is more than what the acronym “LIFE” stands for in LIFE Academy; it’s the goal of District 709’s director of special education, Dana Ashby.
Members of the student-named organization, along with Ashby, had the chance to show off a key factor in reaching that goal at an open house Friday.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the city of Friedrichshafen, Germany’s relationship with the city of Peoria.
Since 1976, the two cities have been considered “sister” cities and local high school students have been selected to travel to the German city as part of the Friends of Friedrichshafen program.
In today’s society, schools may not seem to be as safe as they once were, but local district officials continue work to help put parents and students at ease.
Crisis management plans are being updated and reviewed in local districts to ensure the schools’ staff and students know what to do in the event of an emergency situation.
Some Lincoln Elementary School students will soon have the chance to take a more hands-on approach in their studies.
Amanda Rickenberg, Lincoln’s primary instructional program teacher, received a $473.60 grant from PNC Bank. She has used the money to purchase science theme centers and a science library book set for her kindergarten to fourth-grade special needs students.
Fourth-grade students at Jefferson Elementary are thinking about giving instead of receiving this time of year.
While Morton and Notre Dame high schools may be rivals when it comes to sporting events, that rivalry did not stop MHS students from helping out when one of the Fighting Irish was fighting for her life.
Kate Owens and Brittany Ryva, both 16-year-old MHS juniors, pioneered a fundraiser, which brought in more than $1,600 in less than a week. The money was raised to benefit Sarah Park, 16, who was the victim of an alleged drunk driver Oct. 9. Park has never met Owens or Ryva.
“If it happened to anyone in Morton, I think other high schools should help out,” Owens said.
Students at Morton High School learn how to speak Spanish but they also learn about the culture of countries that speak that language.
“We do grammar and vocabulary but we want to learn about the people of the language we are learning,” Vonda Zehr, a Spanish teacher at MHS, said.
Dîa De Los Muertos — Day of the Dead — is a tradition in Mexico that is often misunderstood.
It isn’t every day that Central Illinois schoolkids get a chance to interact with a bestselling author. It also isn’t every day that owls,a snake, and an eagle show up at a movie theater. However, Thursday wasn’t just any day at the Morton Cinema.
For the past few weeks, theater manager, substitute teacher, and part-time librarian John Howard had been hard at work crafting an unforgettable event for local children. Howard’s goal was to “...use the storytelling power of movies to point back to books, inspire kids to read, and support education.”
The “Boy in the Striped Pajamas” in marching band uniforms.
That’s what spectators can expect during Morton High School football games half-time shows and various band competitions this year.
The 2010 MHS Marching Band’s performances are inspired by the popular novel written by John Boyne.
“We’re doing a pretty powerful show this year,” said Morton’s marching band director of 10 years, Jeff Neavor. “We’re telling a story. It’s something that is multi-layered educationally.”
District 709 School Board members gave district administrators the go-ahead Tuesday to pursue a contract agreement with the two architectural firms selected to design renovations at three elementary schools.
Representatives from Keach Architectural Design of Morton and PSA-Dewberry of Peoria made a presentation about their firms' strengths and their plans for the project and expected April referendum before board members made their decision.
