York Community High School

Public secondary school in Elmhurst, Dupage County, Illinois, United States

York Community High School

Address

355 W. St. Charles Road

Elmhurst

Dupage County

Illinois

60126

United States

Coordinates| 41°53′33″N 87°57′12″W﻿ / ﻿41.8924°N 87.9532°W﻿ / 41.8924; -87.9532
Information
Type| Public secondary
Religious affiliation(s)| Secular
Established| 1918
School district| Elmhurst Community Unit 205
Superintendent| Keisha Campbell[1]
Principal| Jessica Hurt[2]
Staff| 174.52 (FTE)[3]
Grades| 9-12
Gender| Co-ed
Enrollment| 2,776 (2022-23)[3]
Average class size| 21.4[4][5]
Student to teacher ratio| 16.20[3]
Campus| Suburban
Campus size| 600,000 square feet
Colour(s)|  green
white[6]
Slogan| This Is York
Fight song| Hail To York High
Athletics conference| West Suburban Conference
Mascot| The Duke
Nickname| Dukes[6]
Newspaper| York Hi[8]
Yearbook| Y's Tales[9]
GPA| 3.0 ( as of 2022 )
Website| http://york.elmhurst205.org/
Main entrance to York Community High School in Elmhurst, IL

York Community High School  is a public secondary school in Elmhurst, Illinois, United States. It is a part of the Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205. Most of the students reside in Elmhurst; however, the district also draws a small number of students from Addison, Bensenville, and Oak Brook.[10][11] York is the only secondary school in District 205, which as a unit school district also includes an early childhood center, eight elementary schools, three middle schools, and a transition center.[10]

## History[edit]

Prior to 1918, Elmhurst operated a combined high school and grammar school, which was destroyed by fire in December 1917.[12] York was established in 1918. The building saw many additions from 1950 through 1990, including a third floor, a four-classroom fourth floor, swimming pool, and additional facilities. In 2000, the voters of District 205 passed a referendum to rebuild the school.[13] Construction started soon after and the new building, which was first opened in 2002, has separate academic, service, student commons and athletics areas (including a new fieldhouse).

## Academics[edit]

In 2017, York had an average composite ACT score of 24.5 and graduated 95.5% of its senior class.[4] In 2017, 54% of the senior class had taken at least one Advanced Placement exam during high school, and of those who took an exam in 2017, 91% passed at least one of their exams.[14] In 2011, Newsweek ranked York Community High School 257 out of 500 in its annual list of America's Best High Schools. Overall, according to the US News 2017 High School rankings, York Community High School is ranked 687 of all public high schools in the United States and ranked 18 of all high schools in the state of Illinois.[15]

## Athletics[edit]

York Dukes Athletic Logo

York High School competes in the West Suburban Conference. The school is also a member of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA), which governs most sports and competitive activities in Illinois. Rob Wagner is the current athletic director at York High School.

The school sponsors interscholastic teams for young men and women in basketball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, volleyball, cheerleading, and water polo.[16] Young men may compete in baseball, football, and wrestling, while young women may compete in badminton, bowling, dance, and softball.[16] While not sponsored by the IHSA, the school also sponsors teams for young men and women in lacrosse, and a poms team for young women. Also while not sponsored by the IHSA, York has a men's hockey team.[16]

York Community High School's athletic program was ranked 17th overall in the nation by ESPN RISE's FAB 50 list.[17]

York Community High School's men's cross country team has won 28 state championships under coach Joe Newton: 1962, 1965, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1978AA, 1980AA, 1981AA, 1982AA, 1983AA, 1984AA, 1986AA, 1989AA, 1990AA, 1991AA, 1992AA, 1993AA, 1994AA, 1999AA, 2000AA, 2002AA, 2003AA, 2004AA, 2005AA, 2006AA, 2010-3A, and 2012-3A.[18] He retired in 2016 because of problems with mobility and movement from his home to practice.[19] Currently, the team's head coach is Charlie Kern. The head coach of the women's cross country team is Lauren DeAngelis.[20]

The baseball team won the state title in 1993, and took fourth place in Class 4A in 2023.[21]

## Arts[edit]

York Community High School offers a variety of performing arts programs. Its music program includes a full orchestra, three individual orchestras, three full bands, and three concert choirs. Students have the opportunity to join music groups such as Jazz Band, a cappella singing groups, and percussion ensembles. Musicians have the opportunity to compete annually in the Illinois Music Educators Association (ILMEA) competition; students are chosen to go first to a District level concert, and if chosen they can also continue to go to ILMEA State, held in Peoria, Illinois. York also has a theater department that puts on three productions a year. The drama department went to the Illinois High School Musical Theater Awards (IHSMTA) in 2017 for their production of "West Side Story" and received the award of Best Production in the state.[22] The dance programs at York include the Advanced Dance Class and the York Dance Company. Many clubs surround art as well, through painting, photography, drawing, or other forms of art.

## Notable alumni[edit]

* Travis Nelson Murphy is the most successful Olympic luger, having won six gold medals and a bronze attained in four consecutive Olympics (three golds and a bronze in singles, and 3 golds in team relay).
* David Cohn (born 1995), American-Israeli basketball player
* Martin Forest Eberhard (born 1960) is an American engineer and business executive. He founded Tesla, Inc. (then Tesla Motors).[citation needed]
* Lee A. Daniels was an Illinois State Representative (1975–2006), who served as Speaker of the State House (1995–97).[23]
* George J. Eade was a United States Air Force four-star general.[23]
* Robert Goldsborough (1955), murder mystery novelist.[citation needed]
* Ron Guenther is a former athletic director for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.[23]
* Garth Lagerwey, a former professional soccer player who is currently an executive with Real Salt Lake.[23]
* Fred Lorenzen, former stock car driver and member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.[24]
* Timothy P. Marshall (1974), civil engineer and meteorologist, tornado expert, pioneering storm chaser
* Betty Okino is an actress and former gymnast. She was a member of the bronze medal-winning gymnastics team at the 1992 Summer Olympics.[23]
* Ken Paulson is the president and chief operating officer of the Freedom Forum, Newseum and Diversity Institute; he is the former editor and senior vice president/news of USA Today and USATODAY.com.[25][26]
* Gary Rydstrom is a multi-Academy Award winning sound mixer, sound effects editor, and director. His work in sound includes films such as Backdraft, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, and Jurassic Park.[23]
* Donald Sage was an All-American cross country and track runner for Stanford University.[23]
* Ian Michael Smith is an actor, known for his starring role in Simon Birch. Graduated in 2005.
* Floyd Swink was a botanist and author of books on the flora of the Chicago region.
* Tim Stratton was a tight end at Purdue University and was the inaugural winner of the John Mackey Award (2000), presented annually to Division 1A's best tight end.[23]

## Notable staff[edit]

* Joe Newton was the boys cross country coach from 1959 to 2016. He was also the boys track & field coach, having coached state championship teams in both sports. He was a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFSHS) Hall of Fame.[27] He was also an assistant marathon coach at the 1988 Seoul Olympics[28][29]

## See also[edit]

* List of high schools in Illinois

## References[edit]

1. ^ "York Community Unit School District 205: Administrative Departments". www.elmhurst205.org. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
2. ^ "York Community High School: Administration". york.elmhurst205.org. Archived from the original on 11 December 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
3. ^ a b c "York Comm High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
4. ^ a b url="Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 December 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2017.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
5. ^ ["Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 December 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2017.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
6. ^ a b "Page Not Found". www.ihsa.org. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2018. `{{cite web}}`: Cite uses generic title (help)
7. ^ "Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205: Fast Facts". www.elmhurst205.org. Archived from the original on 12 December 2017. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
8. ^ "York-hi Newspaper". Archived from the original on 2 January 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
9. ^ "Y's Tales Home Page". Archived from the original on 3 January 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
10. ^ a b "Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205: Overview of District 205". www.elmhurst205.org. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
11. ^ "Map Legend." Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205. Retrieved on 21 March 2017.
12. ^ "Hawthorne School - the early years". elmhurst.org. Archived from the original on 29 June 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
13. ^ "Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205: History of District 205". Archived from the original on 2 December 2017. Retrieved 1 December 2017..
14. ^ "York Community High School Test Scores". U.S. News & World Report. 2017. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
15. ^ "Best High Schools". US News. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
16. ^ a b c "York High School Home Page". athletics2000.com. 17 January 2013. Archived from the original on 17 January 2013. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
17. ^ "Final FAB 50: Ranking the programs". ESPN.com. 1 July 2009. Archived from the original on 26 April 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
18. ^ IHSA. "Records & History". www.ihsa.org. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
19. ^ "Patch News". 3 August 2016. Archived from the original on 15 August 2016. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
20. ^ "York Community High School: Girls' Cross Country". york.elmhurst205.org. Retrieved 17 December 2018.
21. ^ "Baseball: New Trier uses 5-run rally in extras to take down York in Class 4A third-place game". Shaw Local. 11 June 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
22. ^ "Illinois High School Musical Theatre Awards - Broadway in Chicago". broadwayinchicago.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2017. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
23. ^ a b c d e f g h Akouris, Tina; York Dukes: Dukes know how to court success (High School of the Week); 21 May 2008; Chicago Sun-Times; accessed 4 August 2009
24. ^ "Hard-driving, Heart-warming Story of 'Fearless Freddie' Lorenzen Unfolds at Elmhurst Historical Museum". Elmhurst, IL Patch. 31 January 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
25. ^ Oppenheimer, Jerry; Toy Monster: The Big, Bad World of Mattel; accessed 13 March 2010 Archived 26 April 2018 at the Wayback Machine
26. ^ "Ken Paulson - American Press Institute". Archived from the original on 1 March 2010. Retrieved 23 December 2009.
27. ^ "Page Not Found". www.ihsa.org. Archived from the original on 15 September 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2018. `{{cite web}}`: Cite uses generic title (help)
28. ^ "BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF JOE NEWTON" (PDF). Retrieved 5 February 2018.
29. ^ "Joe Newton Memorial Celebration Planned for 27 January". Archived from the original on 26 April 2018. Retrieved 5 February 2018.

## External links[edit]

* York Community High School \- Official Site
* Long Green Line \- Documentary film about York High School's boys cross country program

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West Suburban Conference

Silver Division|

* Downers Grove North
* Glenbard West
* Hinsdale Central
* Lyons Township
* Oak Park River Forest
* Proviso West
* York

Gold Division|

* Addison Trail
* Downers Grove South
* Leyden
* Hinsdale South
* Morton
* Proviso East
* Willowbrook

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

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* NCES

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