Metea Valley High School

Metea Valley High School
Address
1801 N. Eola Rd. Aurora, Illinois, 60502 United States
Coordinates	N 41° 47'28.37" W 88° 14' 19.71"
Information
School type	public secondary
Motto	Live with integrity, Inspire passion for learning, Foster positive relationships, and Expect equity and excellence for all.
Opened	2009
School district	Indian Prairie SD 204
Superintendent	Kathryn Birkett[1]
Principal	Jim Schmid[2]
Grades	9–12
Gender	co-ed
Enrollment	3684
Campus	suburban
School Colour(s)	black      athletic gold[3]
Athletics conference	Upstate Eight
Mascot	Marty the Mustang
Nickname	Mustangs[3]
Website	http://mvhs.ipsd.org

Metea Valley High School (Pronounced Ma-Tay-Uh) is a high school in Aurora, Illinois that opened in August, 2009 in DuPage County.^[4] The school is one of three high schools operated by the Indian Prairie School District; the others are Waubonsie Valley High School, also in Aurora, and Neuqua Valley High School, in Naperville.

Preparations

Serving Indian Prairie School District 204, and opened for the 2009-2010 academic year for freshman and sophomore classes (grades nine and ten), Metea Valley cost $124.7 million to build, and can hold 3,000 students.^[5] The school met its full enrollment of students for grades 9-12 during the 2011-2012 academic year. The school began its first Prairie State Achievement Exams (used as a standardized testing measure of academic achievement) during the 2010-2011 academic year, and per Illinois High School Association Policy, the school was not fully recognized for interscholastic sports until that same academic year.

The school's namesake, a chief of the Potawatomi tribe, was selected during 2006. The school's colors are black and gold (maintaining a tradition of '<color> and gold' in all three high schools) and the school's mascot is the 'Mustangs'. The colors were announced in February 2007, and the mascot selection in March 2007.^[6] Both were chosen by those middle school students who began attending the school in 2009, as well as the current Neuqua and Waubonsie students in 2007.^[7] The School joined the Upstate Eight Conference in the 2010-2011 school year.^{[citation needed]}

Metea Valley High School's principal is Jim Schmid, formerly principal of Waubonsie Valley High School.^[8]

District controversies

The school first had trouble getting land because they couldn't find the right size in the right location. They were in the process of taking the land at the intersection of 75th St. and Route 59, but the owner of the land increased the price and district 204 refused to buy. The administration took some more time to find suitable land. The school's parent district faced criticism centered on estimates of future enrollment numbers, which were used by supporters of the referendum to build Metea Valley.^[9] The court process, and attempts at receiving special powers from the state legislature for acquiring the remaining land required for the construction, has also been criticized in local letters to the editor.

Construction

One of the companies contracted for the school's construction was Commercial Mechanical Inc (CMI) from Dunlap, Illinois. The school was designed by the Chicago office of DLR Group. The construction manager was Turner Construction Company.

Construction began on May 7, 2008. It began with an extensive earth moving operation. For months, as the landscape changed, there was no discernible structure, although one could see the flattened "footprint" where the building would be located and massive sewer pipes and basins dotting the land. Then, early in August 2008, steel structural beams started to rise up near the southwest corner of the property.

The musical hallway opened on January 4th, 2010. The auditorium was completed in early February of 2010.

References

1. ^ accessed 31 January 2010
2. ^ Metea Valley Principal Announced; press release; 28 February 2008; Indian Prairie SD 204; accessed 20 June 2009
3. ^ ^{a b} School info for MVHS; ihsa.org; accessed 20 June 2009
4. ^ Metea Valley HS homepage; accessed 21 June 2009
5. ^ "District 204 challengers want backup for Metea", Sara Hooker, Chicago Daily Herald, March 16, 2007
6. ^ "Metea Valley Colors and Mascot", Indian Prairie School District, February 7, 2007
7. ^ Metea students to cheer for Mustangs, Britt Carson, The Naperville Sun, March 14, 2007
8. ^ Jim Schmid Tapped as New School's 1st Principal, IPSD News Article, March 11, 2008.
9. ^ "Supporting the 204 Referendum", Rick Klau's weblog, March 19, 2006