News and information from our district and schools
Scroll to view District updates and news from Meyer, Middleton, and McCracken!
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Building 73.5
Thank you!
Thanks to everyone who joined us for our first two Building 73.5 Community Engagement Sessions to learn about and discuss the facility challenges facing our schools.
Your feedback and participation is invaluable. We’ll continue the conversations next fall as we work together to develop a plan to move Skokie 73.5 schools forward.
In the meantime, find out more about this important initiative at SD735.org/Building735.
Stay tuned!
Follow Building 73.5 on Instagram for info & updates
SchoolKIDZ SUPPLY KITS FOR 2025-2026
The Caring Hearts Classroom Grants Committee invites all Skokie73.5 families to pre-order school supplies for the 2025-2026 school year. All proceeds from purchases of SchoolKidz supply kits will be returned back to the Caring Hearts Classroom Grants Committee to support classroom projects, equipment, class trips, and other specialty educational items.
Ordering is open until Friday, June 13, 2025. Late orders cannot be accepted. Click or tap a button below to view the lists and more information.
FOOD PANTRIES & PROGRAMS DURING SUMMER BREAK
The Greater Chicago Food Depository maintains a database of food pantries and programs in Cook County and the Chicago area. Check this quick list for locations that are within 5 miles of zip code 60076, serve Skokie/Niles Township, and are available during summer break.
Visit chicagosfoodbank.org/find-food to search for additional locations that offer free groceries or a hot meal at a food pantry, soup kitchen, shelter, or mobile distribution.
Also available...
- Skokie Public Library and Niles-Maine District Library offer free lunch for kids during summer break.
- We Got You Illinois Summer EBT Program provides families with school-aged children with an electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card to purchase groceries during the summer when school is out. Benefits are subject to eligibility guidelines and application requirements.
PTO NEWS
Thank you all who donated at the Middleton Fitness Night towards new recess soccer goals for Middleton! We are getting close to meeting our funding goal and hope to have the goals at the school this fall. Thank you to Annie Widlicka, the P.E. Staff, and teachers who helped make the popcorn portion of Fitness Night run smoothly—we’ve already begun discussion on future improvements for our popcorn process!
Thank you to parent and family volunteers for your work on the Middleton Chicago Bears Mini Monsters clinic—we could not have done it without you—thank you. Thank you to the Middleton P.E. Team for bringing this fun and educational event to the students!
If you are interested in joining the PTO Board, please contact us at [email protected].
JOIN THE PTO EMAIL LIST HERE.
Get your Meyer, Middleton, and McCracken gear for the end of the year, or prepare for next year! A portion of sales go to the PTO to help fund events, equipment, and wish-list items for our schools. Click below for each school:
Content posted on the PTO website is managed by the PTO
Visit district735pto.org and get to know your PTO!
Questions about this calendar or events? Please email [email protected].
DISTRICT DATES
AROUND TOWN
Summer 2025 Niles Township
Community Events
Registration is now open for summer baseball & softball league!
Incoming kindergarten parents/guardians attended On to Kindergarten on Thursday, May 21 to learn more about our Kindergarten program, meet staff, see some classrooms, and get to know one another. For parents/guardians who were not able to attend, please see the PRESENTATION SLIDES for more information about our kindergarten program.
JUMPSTART KINDERGARTEN
JumpStart Kindergarten registration is now open to incoming Kindergarten families. This one-week program provides incoming kindergarten students with the opportunity to practice routines, develop social skills, meet new friends, and begin a review of skills directly before the school year begins.
Students may attend ONE of two half-day sessions, August 11-15, from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. OR 12:00 to 2:30 p.m. Spots are limited. Please see the flyer for the program cost and link to register.
SPACE PROGRAMS @ MEYER
We are pleased to share that the Skokie Park District will run three programs at Meyer during the 2025-2026 school year. Register before all spots are taken!
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
Returning Meyer families, please mark your calendars with these important 2025-2026 dates:
- Thursday, August 21: Party on the Playground from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m.
- Monday, August 25: Meyer student classroom visit day
- Tuesday, August 26: First day of school for Kindergarten students
- Monday, September 2: First day of school for Preschool students
PK4 VISITS KINDERGARTEN
MEYER DATES
MEYER SUPERSTARS
Ms. Lancioni's Kindergarten Superstars
Ms. Swift's Preschool Superstars
Thank you to all of our families, staff, and students for a fun and fabulous Fitness Night 2025! Even with the weather, it was incredible to celebrate the end of the school year together with our Middleton community. From kids vs. grown-ups family dodge ball and Drum Beat to jump rope, and photobooth, it was a truly fun night. Special shout out to the PTO for the popcorn, and the P.E. team for all of their hard work in organizing such a great event!
1st-2nd GRADE RUNNING CLUB
Running Club’s 5K(ish) race was on Saturday, May 17t at 10:00 a.m. on McCracken’s field! Students had a wonderful time celebrating all of their running accomplishments with friends, family, and community!
MIDDLETON COUNTDOWN
Our Middleton Countdown continues on Tuesday of next week with “L” for “LEGO/Let’s Play Day!” where students have extra free choice time. Check out the flyer for the rest of our spirit days counting down towards the end of the year.
On to 6th Grade Survey and Information. Please access all of our On to 6th Grade digital resources on our school website at SD735.org/mccracken/on-to-6th.
Save the date for the 6th Grade Meet and Greet on Tuesday, August 19 at 4:00 p.m. when students and parents/guardians can set up their lockers, meet their advisory teacher when possible, and go on a journey to find their classrooms using their new schedule. Stay tuned for more information over the summer!
The 6th grade team is seeking feedback about our On to 6th Grade Parent/Guardian Information Night in order to plan for next year’s programming. Please complete this SURVEY to help us meet your needs for this event!
8th GRADE GRADUATION UPDATES
UPDATED MAY 23, 2025: Graduation is right around the corner and we are excited to celebrate our 8th graders' accomplishments with families and students next week on Wednesday, May 28! The parent/guardian letter from April and dates for upcoming events are linked below for reference. Our office has been reaching out to families about any missing forms and teachers have been reminding students about needed permission slips. Please reach out to the McCracken office or administration with any questions at 847-673-1220.
- 8th Grade Graduation Parent/Guardian Message 5/22/2025
- 8th Grade April Graduation Letter
- Graduation tickets, gowns, tassels, t-shirts, yard signs, and yearbook distribution: All graduation items were distributed to students at school on Thursday, May 22
- 8th Grade Clap Out: Tuesday, May 27 at dismissal (last full day of school for 8th grade)
- Graduation Rehearsal at Niles North High School: Wednesday, May 28 (Students will be dismissed to go home after graduation rehearsal when they return to McCracken at approximately 11:00 a.m.)
- Graduation Ceremony: Wednesday, May 28 at 6:00 p.m. at Niles North High School (Students MUST arrive no later than 5:30 p.m.)
McCRACKEN NO REFERRAL CHALLENGE
We are getting closer to the end of the school year and we want to reward students for displaying respectful, responsible, and ready behaviors. Students who do not earn any behavior referrals at McCracken from May 9 through the end of the school year will have the opportunity to be entered into grade-level raffles for fun prizes! Please reinforce the importance of following behavior expectations at school with your child and contributing to a safe and positive learning environment.
LAST DAY OF SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
Our last day of school for 6th and 7th grade students is on Monday, June 2. Students will participate in a variety of fun teamwork activities during our Field Day event in the morning hours. Students should dress appropriately for the weather, as many of the Field Day activities are outdoors on the soccer field. They will also meet several 7th and 8th grade teachers to hear about next year’s programming and participate in our final Hornet’s Hive Assembly recognizing trimester accomplishments and playing a fun game show funded by our PTO!
McCRACKEN GARDEN SNAPS
McCRACKEN DATES
McCRACKEN GAMES
McCracken Games have concluded for the 2024-2025 school year.
District Priorities
WELCOMING ENVIRONMENT. We will welcome and engage staff, students, families and community members in our schools.
HIRING & RETENTION. We will recruit, hire, and retain a diverse workforce and improve our human resource processes, procedures, and materials.
INFRASTRUCTURE & FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY. All financial decisions and investments will meet the needs of our diverse learners and staff and promote academic and social growth. We will provide a safe, inclusive, flexible, and innovative space for teaching, learning, and growing.
TEACHING & LEARNING. All students will engage in learning experiences that are cohesive and articulated across PreK-8, flexibly designed to engage all learners and leading to rigorous outcomes for all. We will be a future-focused, real-world learning environment that is responsive, accessible, and meaningful for all. We will become a model district on the use of data for making instructional, curriculum, and programmatic decisions.
Equity Mission Statement
WE BELIEVE that inclusivity and belonging is the foundation for equity.
ALL CHILDREN CAN LEARN, at high achievement levels, when equity is infused into every aspect of education.
WE ACKNOWLEDGE the systemic inequities present in school systems and recognize the impact they continue to have on marginalized communities.
WE COMMIT to teaching, learning, and growing in order to identify and dismantle inequitable systems and to create a community where barriers are removed so that everyone can reach their full potential.
WE BELIEVE that students succeed when they can see themselves represented in our staff, curriculum, opportunities, and our shared environment. We accomplish this through professional development, curriculum revision, community engagement, and systems evaluations.
WE RECOGNIZE the need to teach our students to identify the origins of unjust systems and empower them to use their critical thinking skills and agency to responsibly disrupt the policies and practices that perpetuate inequalities.
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