Mattoon Community Unit School District 2

Mattoon Community Unit School District 2 is a unified school district located in the city of Mattoon, which in turn is located in Coles County, Illinois.

History
Today, Mattoon's chief school district is composed of six schools: Franklin Preschool, serving as a prekindergarten program for Mattoon residents with children ages 3-5;  Riddle Elementary School, which serves grades K-5; Arland D. Williams, Jr. Elementary School, another elementary school that parallels Riddle in terms of grades; Mattoon Middle School, the district's bridge between the elementary and high schools, serves grades 6-8. Mattoon High School serves grades 9-12, finalizing education for students in the community unit school district. The newest edition to the district is Leaders Innovating for Tomorrow (LIFT) Central Illinois, a regional high school innovation center that teaches vocational and hands-on learning.

Mattoon CUSD #2 is proud to support families from diapers to diplomas. Birth-to-3 is a free program that provides parent education, resources, and support  to anyone in the Mattoon Community Unit #2 School District, expecting or having children aged 3 or younger. Little Leaders Childcare Lab is another resource available to the community, serving not only as cost-effective childcare, but also providing training to high school students. Little Leaders has helpers from the Childcare Pathway at LIFT serving area juniors and seniors with real-world training and experience.

The current superintendent is Tim Condron, the mascot of Mattoon High School is the greenwave, while the mascot of Mattoon Middle School is the wildcat.

Academics
In MCUSD2, staff and students partner to achieve high-quality results. Desired outcomes are aligned to state standards and articulated by subject area and grade level. Their instructional model balances whole- and small-group approaches, as well as individual conferencing.

Teachers incorporate student strengths and interests and build strong relationships in their classroom communities, while leveraging the transformational power of technology to prepare students for their futures.

MCUSD2 also focuses on developing leadership skills at a young age. By partnering with Leader in Me, grades PK-12 have the opportunity to develop and hone their leadership skills. All six schools in the district are certified as a Leader in Me Lighthouse school by FranklinCovey Education. This recognition is evidence that the district has produced outstanding results in schools and student outcomes.


 * There are over 7,000 Leader in Me Schools in 60+ countries around the world. 718 of those schools have earned the Lighthouse designation (including the MCUSD2 6).
 * MHS & LIFT are only the 6th and 7th Lighthouse High Schools in the world.
 * Franklin Preschool is currently the only Lighthouse designated Preschool in the world.
 * MCUSD2 is the third district to have all of its schools designated; they are the first district to do it on the same day and as a district system, rather than as individual schools.

Extracurricular activities
Mattoon CUSD #2 offers a host of extracurricular activities. From athletics to student leadership groups to band, scholastic bowl, JROTC, and team massive, MCUSD2 offers over 90 opportunities among their school buildings for students to participate in sports, clubs, and other extracurricular activities.

Notable alumni

 * Brett Alan August (1970), recipient of the French Legion of Honor in 2015
 * Otis F. Glenn (1898), U.S. Senator
 * Kyle Hudson (2004), professional baseball player, Illini football and baseball
 * Joe Knollenberg (1951), U.S. Congressman
 * Will Leitch (1993), writer
 * Chad Moutray (1987), Chief Economist, National Association of Manufacturers
 * Dale Righter (1984), Illinois State Senator
 * Bill Tate (1948), Wake Forest football coach, ILLINI 52 Rose Bowl MVP
 * Craig Titley (1985), movie writer
 * Arland D. Williams, Jr. (1953), a hero of Air Florida Flight 90 in January 1982, who gave his life and died to help five other survivors of the plane crash, all of whom lived.