Boarding
HISTORY |
GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE Wheaton Academy is a global school that provides its students opportunities to study, experience, understand and appreciate the rich diversity of peoples and cultures from all over the world. Trips and visits to foreign countries allow faculty and students to taste, touch and experience different cultures. The Teacher Exchange Program and growing international student population continues to expand the school community's international perspectives. COLLEGE PLACEMENT ● College Guidance Department provides application and recommendation assistance ● 97% of graduating seniors pursue college ● Access to ACT preparation courses ● Nearly 90% of our graduating seniors get accepted to their first college choice ● Partnership with Northwestern University to prepare students to apply to Ivy League Schools such as Harvard, Yale, Stanford & MIT or other highly selective universities ● Wheaton Academy graduates annually attend 50-60 different colleges including recent enrollment at University of Chicago, Wheaton College, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell, Yale, Brown, Julliard, New York University, Pepperdine, Taylor and Gordon "I can always identify Wheaton Academy students in my class because they write and think." College Professor |
BOARDING PHILOSOPHY ● Wheaton Academy believes and validates that the international student's experiences and values are just as valid as that of an American student. ● To develop community, WA teaches host parents and host students to listen to the international students' needs and seek to understand their life story prior to their time in the States. ● The desire of WA is to make students bicultural--understanding one's own culture while simultaneously understanding and practicing values of another culture. GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS ● Wheaton Academy works with each individual student to build a personalized graduation plan given their academic background and preparation. ● WA graduation requirements of 56 semester credits is 30% higher than the Illinois standard. ACADEMICS & AP CLASSES ● Two-thirds of the student body are in Honors or Advanced Placement classes including Biology, Calculus, Chemistry, English and Literature, French, Government and Politics, Spanish, European History and U.S. History ● World languages classes offered include Spanish, French, Latin, and Chinese ● National Honor Society ● ELL- English Language Learner tutoring support ● College credit available (recent graduates have earned up to a year of college credit) CLASS SIZE ● Teacher to student ratio is 1:15 ● Average class size is 21 CO-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES Current WA boarding students hold leadership roles on the basketball and soccer teams, homecoming court, improvisation team, choir, band, newspaper staff and class office. 88% of Wheaton Academy students participate in over 1,800 co-curricular spots for 650 students including Scholastic Bowl, Academic teams, Science Bowl, Band, Orchestra, Chess Club and 34 sports teams. |
| WINTERIM (Innovative January Term) In addition to two traditional semesters WA features a unique curricular experience called Winterim. This interim of two weeks during January allows for intensive in-depth study. Students receive 30 hours of classroom instruction in each of two courses. In addition to upper level and practical arts courses, students are also encouraged to travel or serve internships in the work environment of their choice. Various classes include: Internet Broadcasting, Introduction to Biblical Greek, Shakespeare, Starting your own Business, World Cultures & Cross Cultural Communication, Chicago Then--Chicago Now, Dian Ying! (Asian Film Study), Illustrated Journaling and Interior Design. |
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| 122 internships in the work environment including: Marketing/Design, Real Estate, Equestrian, Physics, Architecture, Physical Therapy, Video Production, Broadcasting, Filmmaking, Legal, and Orthopedics |
Multiple Trips including: Sailing the coast of Florida; Guatemala & Honduras; Habitat for Humanity; Italy & Greece; Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic |
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BOARDING STUDENT PLACEMENT |
WA COMPARED TO OTHER BOARDING SCHOOLS
**WA intentionally maintains a modest % of international boarding students to insure boarding students experience the benefit of full immersion into Western educational culture and build new relationships. |
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| RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION ● Wheaton Academy is both a private and Christian educational institution. WA cares deeply about the holistic development of our students -- academically, socially, physically and spiritually. As a non denominational school, our students regularly come from 50-60 different Christian churches. Students study religious history and doctrine, participate in school chapel services and attend church with their host families. ● International curiosity and a spirit of humility is evident among school assemblies, events, and global initiatives. Biweekly school assemblies also often feature international visitors who challenge the student body and faculty. FACILITIES The WA campus features state of the art wireless educational buildings equipped with multiple computer labs. The Fine Arts Center boasts a 700 seat auditorium which is also used by a congregation of the internationally known Willow Creek Church. The park-like outdoor space has tennis courts, baseball diamonds, soccer/football fields and a new 50,000 sq. ft. field house. ● International curiosity and a spirit of humility is evident among school assemblies, events, and global initiatives. Biweekly school assemblies also often feature international visitors who challenge the student body and faculty. FACILITIES The WA campus features state of the art wireless educational buildings equipped with multiple computer labs. The Fine Arts Center boasts a 700 seat auditorium which is also used by a congregation of the internationally known Willow Creek Church. The park-like outdoor space has tennis courts, baseball diamonds, soccer/football fields and a new 50,000 sq. ft. field house. |
NOTABLE WA ALUMNI The following are a few of our nearly 5,000 active alumni all over the world: C. William Pollard, Chairman of the Board and former CEO of ServiceMaster; Randy Hultgren, State Senator of Illinois; Dr. William Wood, Chairman, Dept. of Surgery at Emery University Medical School; Dr. Wess Stafford, President of Compassion International and Faith Willard co-founder of The Widow's Friend, which sponsors several projects in Bangladesh to help widows and orphans. APPLICATION PROCESS ● Students are granted F1 Visas for academic study that begins in August of their acceptance year through their high school graduation. ● All necessary materials and forms can be found at wheatonacademy.org under the Admissions and Boarding tabs. ● Feel free to contact us with any questions. BOARDING CONTACTS Brenda Vishanoff Boarding Program Director, Director of Admissions 630.562.7576 Jon Keith Lead Host Parent, Chief Operating Officer 630.562.7502 Rachel Swanson Admissions Assistant 630.562.7501 CEEB Code: 144385 |
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