User:Maffrunti1/TwinGroves

Twin Groves Middle School is part of Kildeer Countryside Community Consolidated School District 96 located on 2600 N Buffalo Grove Rd in Buffalo Grove, Illinois. It serves 6-8th grade students and feeds into Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois. The school’s colors are blue and gold, and the mascot is the Kolt. The school runs both educational and sports programs in the Patriot Athletic Conference. This conference includes other feeder schools that lead into Stevenson High School. The schools currently in the Patriot Athletic Conference are: Twin Groves Middle School, Aptakisic Junior High School, Daniel Wright Junior High School, Woodlawn Middle School, Fremont Middle School, and West Oak Middle School.

The facility operates as one of the chief middle schools of District 96, along with Woodlawn Middle School. Both Ivy Hall Elementary School and Prairie Elementary School feed into Twin Groves. Students who live in Buffalo Grove, IL and parts of Long Grove, IL attend this school.

In 2007, Twin Groves Middle School was officially certified as part of the Blue Ribbon Schools Program. Following this, the school earned the Academic Excellence Award in 2008.

History
In 1946, following WWII, four one-room school districts near Lake County were merged to form school District 96, of which Twin Groves is included. The school initially served grades 7-8 and was fed into by Ivy Hall Elementary School, which served grades 5-6. In 1999, there was a district-wide structural reorganization. Two new schools (Woodlawn Middle School and Country Meadows Elementary School) were built and the age range changed to its current setup. Twin Groves began serving grades 6-8, and Ivy Hall began serving grades 1-5, with Willow Grove used as a Kindergarten-only school.

Curriculum and Extracurriculars
According to the school’s website, curriculum includes Spanish and French classes. There are also extra classes for those whose second language is English. Additionally, it has many advanced mathematic classes (Pre-Algebra, Algebra 1, Algebra 2). These courses, along with others, are specifically designed to prepare students for similar challenging courses encountered while attending Stevenson High School.

Twin Groves hosts a variety of athletic sports for both girls and boys, as well as numerous extracurricular clubs and activities. Athletically, the school offers basketball, soccer, volleyball, cross-country, track and field, poms, and wrestling. Some notable extracurricular activities include scholastic bowl, band, orchestra, technology club, and Spanish National Honor Society.

Academic Awards
On October 2, 2007, Twin Groves Middle School was officially named a Blue Ribbon School by U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. Among the most prestigious education awards in the country, this honor was presented for the students’ very high levels of achievement. The Blue Ribbon Schools Program distinguishes private and public elementary, middle, and high schools that are either academically superior or demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement. Twin Groves students regularly achieve in the top ten percent of Illinois on state tests.

Former principal Marie Schalke released a statement saying"It takes everyone--the students, the teachers, and the parents--working together as a team to bring about results like these. We continue to be amazed at the ever higher levels at which District 96 students can achieve, year after year. We know that the collaboration between Twin Groves and Woodlawn Middle Schools teachers and administrators contributes significantly to our students' learning. The Professional Learning Community that we foster continues to bring measurable increases in student achievement district-wide."

In 2008, The Illinois State Board of Education recognized five District 96 schools, including Twin Groves, as Illinois Honor Roll Schools earning the Academic Excellence Award. In 2008, a total of 388 Illinois schools received the award. To receive Academic Excellence recognition, a school must have had at least 90% of students meeting or exceeding state standards in both reading and mathematics for at least the past three consecutive years.

Demographic Information
There are currently 565 total students attending the school. There are 173 sixth graders, 200 seventh graders, and 192 eighth graders. The demographics for Twin Groves are as follows: Ethnicity (82% white, 1% black, 2% Hispanic, 15% asian) Gender (51% male, 49% female). There are 36 teachers and the teacher-student ratio is 1:16.

The school has a reputation of high test scores relative to the state. In 2010, the school performed well in the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) with 96 % of the students meeting state standards for reading and 98% for math (the state averages were 81% for reading and 85% for math).