Community High School District 128

10/28/2026

REMINDER: Late Start Schedule - Wednesday, Oct. 28

Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, is a student late start day for D128. The Late Start Bell Schedule can be found at:

Late Start Bell Schedule Period Time 0 (PE) 9:14 - 9:50 Early Bird Science 9:37 - 10:00 1 10:00 - 10:36 2 10:41 - 11:19 (includes 2 min pledge) 3a 11:24 - 11:42 3b 11:42 - 12:00 4a 12:05 - 12:23 4b 12:23 - 12:41 5a 12:46 - 1:04 5b 1:04 - 1:22 6a 1:27 - 1...

10/27/2026

October DARING Champions

At tonight's Board of Education Meeting, the Board recognized and celebrated this month's D128 DARING Champion Award recipients who exemplify attributes of the DARING Mission:

Certified Staff: Brandon Murchison (Science, LHS)
Community: Tia Prokos (Marketing Director, Hawthorn Mall)
Education Support Professional: Diane Bauer (Drop-in Lab Supervisor, LHS)

Congratulations to this month's DARING Champions!

10/26/2026

Read about VHHS junior Aarnav Garg and how he developed an app to help support early detection of ovarian cancer.

Aarnav Garg is putting artificial intelligence to use to help solve a human problem with a personal connection. The Vernon Hills High School junior’s mother was diagnosed with Stage IV ovarian cance...

10/24/2026

D128 Students Compete in Future Educator Challenge

Students from LHS and VHHS competed in the annual Education Team-Based Challenge on Friday, Oct. 23, at Triton College. They joined 375 students from across the state at Illinois’ largest event of its kind. Teams from both schools earned awards in multiple competitions, showcasing their knowledge and passion for education. Congratulations to all who participated!

10/23/2026

D128 October Board of Education Meeting Location and Time Update

The Community High School District 128 Board of Education will hold its regular monthly meeting on Monday, Oct. 26, 2026, in the Vernon Hills High School West Gym.
The meeting will begin at 5:00 p.m. with a closed session, followed by the open session, which is expected to begin around 6:00 p.m.

The meeting agenda and related materials are available on the district website:

10/23/2026

Tickets on Sale for Disaster! A 70s Disaster Musical at VHHS

Vernon Hills High School Backlight Theatre Company presents DISASTER!, a musical comedy that brings the world of 1970s disaster movies to the stage. Join our student performers, musicians, and crew for an evening of music, laughs, and things going spectacularly wrong.

Four opportunities to catch the show at VHHS:
• Friday, Oct. 23 at 7:00 p.m. (Almost Sold Out)
• Saturday, Oct. 24 at 7:00 p.m.
• Friday, Oct. 30 at 7:00 p.m.
• Sunday, Nov. 1 at 2:00 p.m.

We’d love to see you in the audience!
Tickets are available online at https://vhfatickets.ludus.com/index.php

Parents cautioned: Some language and mature humor may be inappropriate for young children.

10/23/2026

October Cougar Class Act Award Recipients

Fourteen VHHS students received the Ellen Cwick Cougar Act Award this morning. Cougar Class Act recipients were nominated by VHHS staff for encouraging and positively engaging their peers and staff, being a quiet leader, being inclusive of others, seeing a need and finding a way to help, and being a positive peer mentor for underclassmen. We were reminded that moments matter, and VHHS Principal Andy Young encouraged this month's recipients to continue making moments matter and others feel seen.

Congratulations to this month's recipients:
Front Row (from left): Bhanusree Aginati (9), Eunhyo Choi (12), Foster Abern (11), Laroush Kazi (12), Alexander Cioata (11), Grace DeYoung (12)
Back Row (from left): Logan Damen (11), Daniel Sogolov (9), Tyler Rogan (11), Polina Dobrianska (12), Arya Vaswani (12), Caden Solorio-Alvarez (12), Madeline Franklin (9), Liliana Tawrel (9)

10/23/2026

D128 Students Explore Future Careers at Navig8 Lake County Career Fair

Students from D128 high schools and sender schools participated in the 3rd annual Navig8 Lake County Career Fair on Oct. 20 at the Lake County Fairgrounds. The hands-on experience connected 7,000+ students to more than 150 career opportunities. Many thanks to the schools and partners for their participation.

10/22/2026

D128 Students Selected for ILMEA District 7 Festivals

Congratulations to the VHHS and LHS students selected for the ILMEA District 7 Festivals:

LHS:
Jazz: Braden Weaver-Bass Trombone, Isaac Stone-Trombone, Caden Hutson-Piano
Band: Akshay Jaladi-Clarinet, Aisha Nudurupati-Flute, Jaxon Taylor-Bassoon, Sophia Rash-Clarinet, Paige Wheeler-Bass Clarinet, Sebastian Atencio-Trumpet, Isaac Stone-Trombone, Max Gardiner-Tuba
Choir: Owen Brown-Tenor II
Orchestra: Danielle Hwang-Violin, Braden Weaver-Bass Trombone, Riggs Mitran-Contrabassoon, Sofia Youtsey-Trombone
VHHS:
Jazz: Julius Catane-Jazz Alto Sax
Band: Connie Cai-Bb Clarinet, Ella Levin-Trumpet, Ethan Park-Bb Clarinet, Christopher Pesche-Euphonium, Issac Yun-Oboe, Ian Yun-Bass Clarinet, Joshua Zhang-Flute, Sofia Zych-French Horn
Choir: Hyunwoo Kim-Bass II, Laila Margolis-Alto I, John Ziegelbauer-Bass II, Irene Jang-Soprano I, Madison Kopin-Soprano I, Jade Marder-Soprano II, Amanda Miller-Alto I, Chloe Sirinsky-Alto II
Orchestra: Samuel Burton-Violin, Norah Galivan-Cello, Iris Kang-Bb Clarinet, Catherine Lin-Violin, Simon Manson-Trombone

The Illinois Music Education Association hosts nine different district festivals in the fall, each in a different region in Illinois. District 7 consists of Lake County, Northern Cook County and Eastern McHenry County. More than 50 high schools participate in ILMEA in District 7. The auditions take place in early October and the top students on each instrument and voice part are selected to perform with the District 7 Choir, Band and Orchestra in November. After the District Festivals in November, the top students from each of the nine ILMEA Districts will be selected to the ILMEA State Festival in January. For high school musicians, being selected to the ILMEA State Festival is the highest individual honor they can receive.

10/20/2026

Vernon Hills High School Named 2026 Governor's Blue Ribbon School

Vernon Hills High School has been named a 2026 Governor’s Blue Ribbon School, earning one of the state’s highest recognitions for educational excellence. The school is one of just 24 schools statewide to receive the distinction this year.

Read more at: https://app.smore.com/n/1fnjp