NEAR NORTH SIDE — It's been an exhilarating week for the Skinner North Classical School community: The selective-enrollment elementary school was one of three Chicago schools to win this year's National Blue Ribbon award.
At a pep rally held in the school auditorium, 640 W. Scott St., Thursday afternoon, students, staff and public officials, including Mayor Rahm Emanuel, CPS CEO Forrest Claypool and CPS chief education officer Janice Jackson, pointed to the school's "family-like" environment as one of the many reasons for its success in just seven years of existence.
"When it first started, there were only four classroom and I basically knew each teacher and student on a first-name basis," eighth grader Katie Krebs said at the pep rally.
"Even though we have widely expanded since then, I still feel like we're a very family-like community. We respect each other, care for each other and help each other out when we're struggling."
Skinner North opened in 2009 when Skinner Classical School was so crowded that it had to expand into two campuses, one on the Near North Side and one in the West Loop.
Principal Ethan Netterstrom has been at the helm of the school since it was created. At the pep rally, Netterstrom said the school has always put the emphasis on social and emotional growth, which he said is even more important than academic growth.
"It's really an award about academic excellence, that we're really doing a good job going above and beyond. But more important for me, always, is social and emotional learning," he said.
"It's not just about doing well on tests or reading well. It's about: How do you build a community? How do you make friends? How do you learn from your mistakes and grow? All of those things are more important to me."
Skinner North was one of three Chicago schools to receive the honor. St. Daniel the Prophet School in Garfield Ridge and St. Juliana in Edison Park were also recognized.
Across the country, 329 schools were honored.
Since 1982, the honor has been awarded to schools that achieve overall academic excellence or progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups, according to the award's website.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel addressing the Skinner North community at a Thursday pep rally. [DNAinfo/Mina Bloom]
After congratulating the school community, Emanuel stressed that the award is a symbol of success throughout the district.
"This is an example of not only your accomplishment nationally, but I want to also say it's an example of what's going on throughout the city," he said, touting the city's improved graduation rate, fourth grade reading scores across the city and more.
The mayor's remarks come a day after the teachers union announced an Oct. 11 strike date if further negotiations with the city did not produce a labor contract.
After the pep rally, Emanuel told reporters that a strike is "totally unnecessary."
"I believe first and foremost we had a basic agreement that outlined the 13-percent pay raise. It not only secured their pay raise, it secured their pension. That's why they agreed to it. When it was taken to a third party arbiter, that arbiter said it was a fair deal and that's why they agreed to it," Emanuel said.
The mayor went on, saying "We can work this out. Put politics aside, and put focus on the energy and enthusiasm in this room," referring to the pep rally.
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