Student petition says too much pressure to succeed at Naperville North
Suzanne Baker

A student petition criticizing Naperville North High School for putting too much pressure on students to succeed academically quickly gained attention Thursday, and District 203 officials said they are reviewing the issue.

Just one day after being posted on change.org, nearly 700 people had signed an online document by Thursday afternoon calling on schools to treat students like people with dreams and not just test scores.

After being shared on social media, comments have been pouring in from Naperville students as well as students and adults from neighboring districts and other states, including Arizona, Texas and Utah.

The 1,437-word essay that accompanies the petition says students are pushed to take college-prep and Advance Placement courses and urged to participate in extracurricular activities where they can take leadership roles in order to add items to their resumes and improve their chances of getting into a good college.

"At Naperville North there is one path to success," the petition said. "This path is made clear from the day high school anticipation begins, and is reiterated until graduation. From the age of 13 every prospective Naperville North student understands that this path makes no exceptions, and those who wander off or fall behind are left for failure. Everyone here understands that there is no worse fate than failure."

The petition calls on administrators to, "Start defining success as any path that leads to a happy and healthy life. Start teaching us to make our own paths, and start guiding us along the way."

Naperville School District 203 officials are taking the petition under advisement, said Michelle Fregoso, the district's director of communications.

"We are aware of the change.org petition and are reviewing many of the comments and suggestions," Fregoso said. "Our student and Naperville 203 community feedback is important. By sharing their opinions, they are raising awareness of mental health. We will continue to look for ways to engage our students and community on this important issue."

The petition comes just days after the Naperville North school community was rocked by the loss of one of its own. It was the second unexpected death of a student this year; the first occurred in January.

"Any loss of life, especially one of our students, is tragic. Our community has certainly been impacted this year," school officials said in a statement.

The district is making plans for a roundtable discussion with mental health experts to review current practices and explore ways to better serve students, the statement said.

District 203 has taken steps to address student issues and concerns through the health curriculum, groups for students in need, and weekly school-based, problem-solving teams.

Speakers also have been brought in to discuss strategies to manage anxiety and stress.

In January, nearly 100 members of the community listened to Naperville School District 203 officials explain the new social and emotional learning curriculum that's being launched at all grade levels and into all academic areas.

As such, the District 203 staff has participated in professional development in the area of social and emotional learning.

So what caused the unexpected death?

Fucking Millenials

What is Bill Clinton's hobby?

Do you have to ask?

Kids start offing themselves people need to blame something.

What is Bill Clinton's hobby?

It was refreshing to meet a New Trier graduate at the Avis rental counter at Logan Airport Monday.

Man, we had some really stupid kids when I was there. The kind where Daddy sends them to Michigan Tech for a year because he can't bear to go to the country club and admit that Junior can barely spell his name when he's sober, which isn't often.