- Northside College Preparatory High School (commonly referred to as Northside College Prep, Northside Prep, or simply Northside; NCPHS or NCP) is a Chicago Public-Magnet School. Founded in 1999, it was the first new Chicago Public High School to be built in 20 years. It is a selective admissions school, teaching at the Honors and AP levels only (excluding the P.E. department). Northside quickly earned a reputation for academic excellence. In the years 2003-2007, it has scored highest in the state on the Prairie State Achievement Exam scores, administered to juniors. In 2003, Northside's Academic Decathlon ("acadec") team defeated Whitney Young High School to take first place in the state; it was the first time in 18 years Whitney Young had not gone home with this title. It went on to win the United States Academic Decathlon (USAD) Division III National Championship.
- The school's establishment, part of Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley's ongoing plan to reinvent the city's public school system, generated controversy in the city and in the education community. The facilities were built with a $52.5 million budget that critics said could better serve other, ailing schools.
- Approximately 1,000 students comprise the student body. Given its extremely competitive academic environment, in 2004, Northside successfully lobbied the Chicago Board of Education to eliminate class rankings. This effort was led by Dr. James Lalley.
- Facility
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Northside College Prep was designed by OWP/P, an architecture firm based in Chicago, IL. The school was completed and ready for occupancy in two years. The school's site, constricted on the west side by Kedzie Avenue, on the North by Bryn Mawr Avenue, and on the east by the North Branch of the Chicago River, resulted in a stacked linear floor plan. The three-story design provides an efficient use of available space. Northside is also home to a state of the art swimming pool, which will hopefully be heated by solar panels by fall of 2009. A club called CASE (Community for Alternative Sources of Energy) leads this effort.
- The school also has:
- A parking lot for student use (with a $200 annual fee)
- A Soccer field
- One gymnasium
- Two elevators (only for permissioned use)
- Three stairwells (one main in the middle, two on the sides)
- Three levels
- A school library that has two floors (entrance through 2nd floor) with 35 computers with internet access for student use
- Five Departmental wings (1st floor: Fine Arts wing, 2nd floor: Social Science/Language and Liturature wing, 3rd floor: Science and Math wing)
- Ranking
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Northside is often prominently featured in rankings of Chicago public schools:
- Newsweek, May 2008 #14 (nation-wide); #1 Chicago-wide
- Chicago Sun Times, Oct. 2008 #1 (state-wide)
- Chicago Sun Times, 2007 #1 (state-wide)
- US News & World Report, Dec 2007 #34 (national ranking; #1 in Chicago public schools)
- College Admissions
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Northside College Prep is well known for the success of its students in the college admissions process, with over a quarter of the senior class gaining admission to the nation's top 20 universities. Despite being a relatively new school with a small alumni base, many NCP students matriculate into Ivy League universities, as well as other well renowned research institutions and liberal arts colleges.
- Many colleges visit the school daily during lunch periods by the lunch room to familizarize students with the colleges, what they offer, ect.
- For the class of 2009 acceptances included: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Dartmouth, Columbia, Williams, Amherst, Wesleyan University, Rice, Duke, University of Chicago, Brown, Tufts, University of Pennsylvania, Pomona, Swarthmore, Bowdoin, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Notre Dame, University of California Berkley, Northwestern University, Vassar, Barnard, Bard, Vanderbilt, NYU, UCLA, USC, and the University of Michigan.
- Admission
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Northside, as well as the other Chicago selective enrollment schools, look at several factors when determining admission. Admission is based on a point system with the following factors being considered. (The points listed below are the maximum number of points a person can receive.)
- National Standardized 7th Grade Test = 300 points
- Seventh Grade Final Grades = 300 points (only core subjects, such as reading, math, science, and social sciences are considered) A=75 points, B=50, C=25, D & F=0)
- Seventh Grade Attendance = 100 points (2 points taken off for every absent day (if exceeds 21 days, all points deducted; 1 point off every tardy)
- Entrance Examination = 300 points (This is taken to get into ANY local magnet school to qualify)
- The Perfect Score is 1000 points
- The average score of accepted students for the 2008-2009 school year was 979 out of 1000. The scores of accepted students range from 895-1000 points.
- Curriculum
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Northside was cited in the 5/22/06 issue of Newsweek Magazine as among the top 25 "Elite of the Elite" public high schools nationwide. Controversy was sparked over this due to the fact that Northside only selects its students from among applicants. In 2007, Northside was recognized by US News and World Report as the "24th best public high school in the country." The next year, Newsweek recognized Northside as the 14th best school in the country. However, currently Northside occupies the #34 ranking, with some blaming the change in administration for the slip in standing. Northside is nationally recognized for its exemplary statistics program (ranked best in the world by the College Board) {{ Source} and its unusual approach to math; the school utilizes the problem-based Interactive Mathematics Program. The school is also renowned for its Physics-first program, where all freshmen are required to take Honors Physics. The school also has rich visual art, music, english, science, and social science programs. Other features of the school's curriculum include the Constitutional Law Project and the Senior Project program. Northside also offers six foreign languages (Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Latin, and Spanish), more than any other Chicago Public School. All languages except Latin offer overseas Study Abroad and Exchange experiences; the Latin program is renowned for its success at national and state competitions, having won the past six Illinois Junior Classical League conventions. Northside also has 24 Advanced Placement classes. Northside is one of the few schools to offer an after-school journalism class, which produces the The Hoof Beat.
- Classes
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Northside offers many class choices, depending on received credit.
- All classes in Northside are Honors and higher (AP) (Advanced Placement).
- Incoming freshmen can have approved credits in many subjects, and move onto more advanced classes:
- Math: Geometry rather than Algebra
- Social Studies: Honors US History rather than World Studies
- Literature: American Literature rather that Survey of Literature
- Science: Chemistry rather than physics
- Without credits, students can still place into advanced classes with a placement test:
- Language (all languages have placement testings)
- Math (Geometry rather then Algebra)
- Band/Orchestra (with successful audition)
- Graduation Requirements
- 1 Consumer-Education Credit (taking AP Microeconomics will exclude you from the Consumer Ed requirement)
- 1 Music Credit (ie, Chorus, Band, Orchestra, etc.)
- 1 Art Credit (ie, Art I)
- 2 Physical Education Credits (ie, P.E. I & II)
- 3 Science Credits (ie, Physics, Chemistry, Biology)
- 3 Social Science Credits (ie, World Studies, APUSH/HUSH, Psychology)
- 3 Math Credits (ie, IMP II [2], IMP II [3], IMP III [4])
- 4 Literature Credits (ie, Survey of Literature, American Literature, British Literature, Journalism)
- 40 Service Learning Hours (up to half of which can be in-school Recycling Club)
- Most credits are from classes that are year-long (except driver's ed lasts 1 quarter, health [which alternates every quarter between health (classroom) & P.E. (in the gym or outdoors), adding up to 2 quarters/1 semester in the classroom, and 2 quarters/1 semester in the gym) and Service Learning Hours)
- Scheduling and Colloquium
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Northside has college-like Block Scheduling: classes are 100 min. a block, 50 per half block (most students get half block of lunch, and half block P.E.) (for underclassmen)but meet twice a week: Mondays and Thursdays or Tuesdays and Fridays; classes start at 8:55am, end at 3:14pm; in between each period, there is a 8 minute passing period. Wednesdays are reserved for a three-hour non-credit class (except Consumer-Ed, in which credit is given) called Colloquium that start at 9:30 am, ending at 12:45pm. Dozens of colloquia are offered, with a wide range of interest such as motorcycle repair, computers, consumer-education, sewing, art, photography, paper craft, asian colligraphy, and each relates to one specific theme that changes every year. Classes are chosen by students twice a year (every semester, or otherwise it is year-long); availibility is dependent on popularity and year ranking: seniors get first pick, then juniors, sophmores, and lastly freshmen; all of this is done online, with student portals opening at 7am for students to start registering; different dates for different year students. These are the only classes in which students either pass or fail. Colloquium is a unique component of the school that allows students to explore areas of interest outside of the typical school curriculum on a regular basis. Colloquium clubs vary from year to year.
- Northside recently implemented and utilizes online student programming, in which students access and select their schedules through internet programming for both classes and colloquim. Courses for the upcoming school year are programmed at the end of the first semester of the current school year.
- Sports
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Northside currently offers a wide variety of sports, including Boys' Baseball (which recently accepted a female member, making it one of the few, if not the only, CPS school to have a girl on the boys' baseball team), Basketball, Bowling, Cheerleading, Chess, Cross Country, Golf, Men's and Women's Lacrosse, Pom Pom, Soccer, Boys' 16" Softball, Girls' Softball, Swimming & Diving, Tennis, Track, Water Polo, Wrestling, and Volleyball. But Northside does not have football, and the reason why is, "Because we care for your children," (Mr. Rodgers, 2008 Freshmen Orientation).
- In February 2000, the first year Northside opened, the Boy's Sophomore Swim Team won the school's first Chicago City Championship in Swimming under Head Coach Barry Rodgers.
- The following school year, November 2000, Northside Women's Sophomore team won another Chicago City Championship under Coach Steve Arnam
- In November 2001, Northside’s Sophomore Women’s Swimming and Diving team won its second Chicago City Championship. The Sophomore team went undefeated in that season under Head Coach Steve Arnam and Sophomore Coach Carlos Ceja.
- In November 2002, Northside won its first Women’s Swimming and Diving Chicago City Championship under Coach Steve Arnam
- In 2002, Northside had the choice between a football team or a rock-climbing wall. A rock-climbing wall was erected in the gymnasium soon after. Due to the absence of a football team at Northside, the school holds a homecoming dance centered around a homecoming basketball game in the winter.
- In 2004, Girl’s Water Polo won its first Chicago City Championship under Coach Carlos Ceja.
- In 2005, Girl’s Water Polo won its second Chicago City Championship under Coach Carlos Ceja.
- In 2006 Girls Volleyball swept the Chicago City Championships; with all three teams (Varsity, JV, Freshmen) winning their championship games under the instruction of head coach, Nicole Flores. The Varsity Team then went on to win the 2006 IHSA Regional Championship, making it their second year in a row (2005,06). In 2007 Girls Freshmen Volleyball Team won the Chicago City Championship for the third time (2002,06,07).
- In 2007, the Girls' Junior Varsity Softball team went undefeated, ending their season with a title as the Chicago City Champions.
- In 2007, Girl’s Swimming and Diving team won the Chicago North Conference title, Chicago City Relay Championship as well as the Chicago Sophomore City Championship under Coach Carlos Ceja.
- In 2007, Varsity Cheerleading won the Chicago City Championships at the small division level as well as first place in the Chicago Twisters Spirit Challenge.
- In 2008, The Men's Varsity Volleyball team won the Chicago City Championship by defeating Whitney Young 25-12,25-21, once again under the instruction of head coach, Nicole Flores. The Mustangs dominated the public league, ending their season with a 29-3 record.
- In 2008, the Varsity Girl's Swimming and Diving team won City Championship under Coach Carlos Ceja, and swimmer Monica Pinkus continued on to compete in state competition.
- In 2008, the Varsity Men's Cross Country team won IHSA Regionals under Coach Jon Gordon.
- Two highly touted alumni from Northside's Women's basketball program, Rory Staiger and Kevin Hom, decided to skip college and sign on with the European team Cibona. They are currently bench players. Natalie Pedroza, a former player, went on to become a student manager at the University of Connecticut during the Women's Basketball NCAA championship run in 2004.
- In 2009, The Women's Varsity Lacrosse team, lead by a new head coach Lynn Merrill, took third place in their division. Players expected to move on to college lacrosse include: Hannah Shier, Katrina Capapas, Katherine Ceisel, and Angelina Delgado. Despite this loss of valuable seniors the team is expected to increase in state rankings in the coming season.
- Clubs
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Northside offers a wide variety of extracurricular clubs, including:
- Academic Decathlon
- African American Club
- All For Christ Club
- Ancient European History Club
- Animal Rights Club
- Anime Club
- Art Club
- Asian Club
- Beatles Club
- Black Student Union (BSU)
- Chicago Teams Discussion
- Creative Writing
- Debate
- Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA)
- Fencing (épée)
- Gay-Straight Alliance
- Global Initiative
- History Club, Coalition of Gamers (C.O.G.)
- Hypnotik (Hip Hop Dance)
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship Club
- Jama'ah Club
- Jewish Students Union
- Journalism
- Junior Statesmen of America
- Key Club
- Klub Polski
- Knitting Club
- Latin Club
- Latino Club
- League of Extraordinary Seamsters
- Left of the Dial (radio/podcast)
- Mahjongg Club
- Martial Arts Club
- Math Team
- Middle Eastern Club
- Model UN(United Nations)
- Mustang Motion Pictures (filmaking)
- National Honor Society
- No More Silence
- Northside Conservatives
- Northside Poetry Slam Team
- Pep Club
- Pottery Club
- Sabor Latino (Latin Ballroom Dancing)
- Star Wars Club
- Student Council
- C.A.S.E. (Community for Alternative Sources of Energy)
- Vocal Jazz
- Fees
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Every year, students are expected to pay all school fees during orientation (different dates for upper and lower classmen) by money order, personal check, or cash. Fees listed below are subject to waiver (the conseling department will refund all fees listed below if students qualify for free or reduced lunch; refunds are given back at the end of the 1st quarter at report card pickups)
- Activity Fee: $260 (Newspaper, Adgendas, Field Trip Insurance, paper, ink)
- Technology Fee: $110 (computers, softwear; 35 of which are availale for student use in the school library; most advisories/classrooms also have additional computers)
- Departmental Fee: $125 (all other fees not covered by the Board of Education: Counseling, Fine Arts, and all other departments)
- Testing Fees: (fees subject to waiver)
- For Sophmores and Juniors only: PSAT(Practice Standardized Testing)/ NMSQT(National Merhit Scholar Qualification Test) $15
- Advance Placement Tests (for any student taking any AP class): $90 per exam/per AP class (after waiver: $7 per exam)
- Other fees include: (all these are not subject to waiver)
- Yearbook: $35
- CTA Cards: $5 (valid until June 30 of the end of the school year; money needs to be put into the card)
- Locks: $5; All students have to pay for their school locks every year, and freshmen have to buy an additional gym lock (one time purchase)
- Parking Permit: $200 per school year; parking lot located in front of the school
- Band/Orchestra Rentals: $35 per school year
- Studend ID cards (replacement): $5
- Misc.
- Northside has its own newspaper, called the Hoofbeat
- Northside has an annual yearbook
- Red Eye is delivered to the school daily
- Sudents are expected to check their emails daily—announcements and other news are all through the CPS First Class email system.
- Student IDs are required for lunch and tardies
- Northside does not have open campus lunch (normally)
- Some annual events at Northside include the Back to School Dance, Prom, Cubby Walk (5-mile walk to Wrigley Field), and Orientation.
- Northside opens its doors at 7am, closing at 5:30 pm (the library closes at 5pm)
- Students without an ID to get a tardy slip needs to pay $1 for a temporary ID
- All locks to be used are to be school-issued
- Lock combinations can be retrived from the security desk if forgotten
- Cell phones ARE allowed in the school on the first floor atrium (by the doors)
- Music is played during passing periods instead of the typical bell
- Northside hosts many exchange students throughout the school year
- External links
- Northside CPHS Home Page
- Student Council of Northside Prep
- OWP/P - Architecture and Engineering Firm for Northside College Prep
- Interactive Mathematics Program
- Profile from CPS
- Mustangs Cross Country
- Mustangs Track and Field
- Mustangs Swimming, Diving, and Water polo
- Mens Lacrosse
- NCP Latin Club
- http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12551652/site/newsweek/
- Northside Math Team
- 2007 US News and World Report Gold Medal Listing of America's 100 Best High Schools
- Academic Decathlon Win
- About the Selective Enrollment process
- Source: Wikipedia; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.
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