In 1930, Northbrook opened Northbrook High School to serve its residents. But as Northbrook grew due to American suburbanization, more space to accommodate students was needed, warranting its closure and the construction of a new high school.[8]
Founding
Glenbrook North High School opened its doors in the fall of 1953 as Glenbrook High School, with its name being a combination of "Northbrook" and "Glenview".[9] After the opening of Glenbrook South High School in Glenview, the school was renamed to Glenbrook North.[10] Subsequently, the two schools formed Glenbrook High School District 225.
Glenbrook North has grown fourfold in the size of its student body since its founding. In 1979, the school opened the Sheely Center for the Performing Arts,[10] and in 1990, a fieldhouse was dedicated. In the spring of 1996, a three-year renovation and construction project involving the science facilities and the "A" wing was built. A second swimming pool was built in 2000 to accommodate the burgeoning growth in aquatics. A successful referendum in 2006 enabled renovation and addition to a second floor of the schools "F" wing, state of the art Fitness Center, complete renovation and additions to the Music Area, and a sun-filled main entrance, which were completed in 2009.[11]
Throughout the years, Glenbrook North High School has received state and national recognition for its academic excellence. In the late 1950s, when Glenbrook was less than 10 years old, it was named one of the top 44 high schools in the country by a survey in a national magazine. In 1984, GBN was named one of only four high schools in the state of Illinois to receive the United States Office of Education Excellence in Education Award from President Ronald Reagan. In 2008, GBN was selected again for the nation's top distinction as a Blue Ribbon School.[12]
John Hughes films
John Hughes was an alumnus who used exteriors of the school in his film Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Hughes also used other schools throughout the north Chicago suburbs for his "Shermer, Illinois" locations. Hughes used interiors of the school in his film The Breakfast Club.[13]
President Clinton visit
On January 22, 1997, President Bill Clinton visited the school to deliver a speech about education initiatives.[14] It was held in the school's fieldhouse and largely centered around mathematics and science. At the time, students in Northern Illinois were participating in a program called "First in the World." The program was to judge the level of knowledge in math and science against other schools around the world. Northern Illinois students scored 1st in the Science category and 3rd in the Mathematics category. Remarking about Glenbrook High School District 225, President Clinton said:
Can you imagine a school district or a set of school districts with more genuine local control than this one, with—more than these— more parental involvement, more committed teachers, more—you know, you've got local control. But you didn't use it as an excuse not to throw your hat in the ring. I think it's great that it came out this way. But if you had finished eighth and ninth, I would still be here to pat you on the back because you had the guts to do it.[15]
Less than a month later, Bill Clinton referenced his visit to the school and these achievements in his 1997 State of the Union on February 4, 1997.[16]
Student hazing incident
In May 2003, the school gained notoriety after an off-campus, non-school-sanctioned event involving students dressed in school colors turned into a major hazing incident that attracted national media attention. The event was a "Powder Puff" girls' football game between members of the junior and senior classes. The "game" took place on May 4, 2003, in Chipilly Woods, part of the Cook County Forest Preserve District. Although the annual Powder Puff game had been held at the school's football stadium in earlier decades, there was no football at the 2003 event. During the event, about 20 junior class participants were covered in paint, urine, feces, and animal guts. Some were shot with paintball guns, others were kicked and beaten. At least five participants sustained injuries requiring medical attention.[17]
Thirty-one students – twenty-eight females and three males – were suspended from school for 10 days. They were later expelled.[18] Some of the expelled students and their parents filed a lawsuit to allow the expelled students to graduate.[19] The plaintiffs and the school district reached an agreement where the expelled students would have their diplomas mailed to them but would not be able to participate in graduation ceremonies.[20] Local law enforcement authorities investigated the hazing incident and filed charges against 15 students for assault and battery.[21][22] Two mothers were charged with providing alcohol for the event. All were convicted and the sentences received were light, ranging from probation to community service.[23]
A community-wide task force was established by the Northbrook Police Department Community Services Division after the hazing incident.[24] Their final report stressed the needs for recognizing and preventing hazing incidents.
Campus
Glenbrook North is located at 2300 Shermer Road adjacent to Maple School.[25] Glenbrook North is home to the Forrest S. Sheely Center for the Performing Arts (where the Northbrook Symphony performs)[26] and has an additional "little theater" located in the schools basement. Within the athletics wing exists multiple pools,[27] several gyms including a climbing and gymnastics gym, a fieldhouse, a fitness center, and outdoor tennis courts, fields (including for football), and tracks. There are two cafeterias; one for students and one for staff. Weather permitting, the central courtyard is open during lunch. At the back of the property is a 1.5 acre prairie.[28]
Diversity
For the 2021 school year, 71.4% of students were White, 0.5% were Black, 5.4% were Hispanic, 17.9% were Asian, 0% were Native American, 0.1% were Pacific Islander, and 4.8% were of two or more races.[29] The school also has a large Jewish population.
SAT Scores for Glenbrook North High School
[33][34]
School Year
SAT ELA
SAT Math
SAT Mean
2021-2022
577.5
586
1177
The academic school year consists of 37 weeks divided into two semesters. It has a block schedule with classes meeting on alternating days and each school day consists of four blocks of 90 minutes each. The summer school program is six weeks in length.
In 2021, the school graduated 96% of its senior class, and 98% enrolled in college.[35][36] The 2021 class included 14 National Merit Semifinalists and 176 Illinois State Scholars.[37] The student-to-teacher ratio is 11.54 to 1.
In 2022, it was ranked the 48th best public high school in the United States by Niche.[38] In 2016, it was ranked 23rd on the public high schools with the best teachers in America by Business Insider.[39]
Since 1974, it has won at least one national championship in debate in fourteen individual years. It has also won an Illinois High School Association (IHSA) state championship in 18 of the 35 years since 1982, and has placed as runner up in three of those years.[42]
In 2005, the school became the first large-enrollment high school in Illinois to have won a state championship in each of football, basketball and baseball.[44] The following GBN teams have won IHSA sponsored state championship tournaments in the listed years:[45]
Baseball (2): 1966, 1974
Basketball (boys) (1): 2005
Football (1): 1974
Golf (boys) (1): 2021
Golf (girls) (2): 2023, 2024
Hockey (5): 1984, 1985, 2007, 2008, 2015
Soccer (boys) (1): 1983
Swimming and diving (girls) (1): 1978
Tennis (boys) (3): 1981, 1999, 2006
Volleyball (boys) (2): 1993, 2021
Field hockey (girls) (1): 2023
Basketball
On December 28, 2005, the school's basketball program gained national media attention[46] when Jon Scheyer scored 21 points in the final 75 seconds of a comeback attempt against Proviso West. Scheyer fell one point short of the Glenbrook North basketball record for most points in a game, scoring 52 points.
Hockey
Glenbrook North Hockey,[47] a club team, won back-to-back state titles in 1984 and 1985, becoming the first varsity hockey team in Illinois to do so, and repeating the feat in 2007 and 2008. In 2011, 2013, and 2014, the team returned to the title game but lost to the New Trier Trevians. In 2015, it defeated Benet Academy in the state title game in overtime, 3–2. The Spartans hockey program has won five Illinois state championships.[48]
Clubs
Glenbrook North is home to many different extracurricular clubs. An accurate, up-to-date list is difficult to keep, as clubs are added and dropped as students graduate or lose interest. However, some clubs include Key Club, Scholastic Bowl, World Languages Honor Society, Environmental Club, Student Government Association, Open Forum, PAWS (Protection of Animal Welfare by Students), and Spartan Buddies (an affiliate of Best Buddies International).
Vladimir Pyshnenko was the head senior coach for the district-operated Glenbrook Aquatics program. He won a gold medal and two silver medals in swimming at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics.[63]
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