Naperville Central High School
Encyclopedia
Naperville Central High School (Naperville Central or NCHS) is a public four-year comprehensive school ranked in the top 3% of high schools nationally by US News and World Report, covering grades nine through twelve in Naperville
, Illinois
, a suburb southwest of Chicago in the United States
. The school is a part of the Naperville Community Unit School District 203
.
The school is notable for its strong academic standing and history of athletic accomplishments. Several of its alumni are notable across a variety of fields, and the school is unique in that it is the only high school in the United States to have its own Ancient Egyptian mummy
.
The present NCHS structure is on Aurora Avenue just outside the downtown business district in Naperville. The building is within walking distance of the Naperville Riverwalk park/trail network, and is just north of Knoch Park and the Edward Hospital campus. The school is across the street from the historic Naper Settlement
. The oldest part of the current building, known by some as the "Three-Story Wing," was constructed in 1950, and was dedicated in 1952. The previous building which had housed the Naperville Community High School (or sometimes just Naperville High School) was built in 1916 and stood on Washington Street, just east of the present location of Washington Junior High School. This same building was used as the original Washington Junior High School until it was replaced in 1977.
The current Naperville Central building has received a number of building additions, in 1955, 1963, 1968, 1987 1992 and 2009. For the 1992–93 school year, three projects in three independent locations added a Student Services wing in the northeast part of the building (demolished in summer of 2010 to make way for addition), in front of the original structure, an auditorium in the northwest part of the building and a natatorium
(swimming/diving facility) in the southern part of the building. Prior additions included a field house and renovations to the student cafeteria area in the late 1980s, the current school library, and a large single-story classroom wing, known as the Flat Wing. As of the 2004–05 academic year, this gives the building a size of 439,660 square feet (41,000 square meters), not including the use of eight mobile classrooms in two modular units. Additionally, the school is currently undergoing a massive renovation to completely restructure the "Three Story Wing". The entire inside of the "Flat Wing" is also undergoing a more minor renovation. This renovation includes the relocation of the library and the reconstruction of the administration. The only sections of the school that are not being modified at all are the Auditorium and Aquatics Center, part of the physical education's department. For more details, see the district's Building the Future Page.
There has been an increasing concern about the safety and reliability of Naperville Central. Complaints of asbestos, leaky roofs, and unorganized structure cause it to be the main focus of Naperville School District 203's "Facilities Task Force". Renovations began during the 2008–09 school year after successful passage of a local referendum.
The mummy was donated to the school in the 1940s by local doctor, who had purchased it in a curio shop. The mummy was wrapped up and forgotten in an attic at the school until it was accidentally rediscovered by a teacher in 1975. The mummy underwent restoration in the 1990s at the University of Chicago's
Oriental Institute
.
In 2002 the National Geographic Channel
visited the school and featured the school's mummy on an episode of its Mummy Roadshow television series. The mummy dates to approximately 55 BCE.
In 2008, Naperville Central had an average composite ACT
score of 24.9, and graduated 96.6% of its senior class. Naperville Central has not made Adequate Yearly Progress
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievement Examination, which with the ACT, are the assessment tools used in Illinois to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
. One student subgroup failed to meet expectations in mathematics. In 2010, Naperville Central's junior class had a record 14 perfect ACT scores.
In 2009, Naperville Central was ranked #1353 on the annual Newsweek Magazine
listing of their top 1500 American public high school (based on AP test results and the size of the graduating class). The school had been ranked #1015 in 2008.
(DVC), and is a member of the Illinois High School Association
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic athletics and competitive activities in the state. Teams are stylized as the Redhawks
.
The school sponsors the following interscholastic teams for young men and women: basketball
, cross country
, golf
, gymnastics
, soccer, swimming
& diving
, tennis
, track & field, volleyball
, and water polo
. Young men may compete in baseball
, football
, and wrestling
, while young women may compete in badminton
and softball
. While not sponsored by the IHSA, the Athletic Department also oversees a competitive poms
team for young ladies.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournament or meet:
In 2010, the Naperville Central football team was chosen to be featured in Kenny Chesney's music video, "The Boys of Fall."
and the Math Team. These teams and others have placed well in conference, regional, and state competitions.
In 2004, the marching band
was selected to perform as extras in the 2005 film The Weather Man
, shown briefly in a scene depicting a Thanksgiving Day
parade
.
(JETS) TEAMS's
team placed first in the nation in 2006; the JV JETS team placed second. In 2009, the Varsity JETS team took 1st place at the regional competition held at IIT (Wheaton Campus), while the JV team took 2nd.
In 2006, four students from NCHS competed in the Toshiba/NSTA Exploravision Competition and were recognized as 2nd Place National Finalist Winners for their design of a Wireless Information Integration network.
, the high-school journalism version of the Pulitzer Prize
. The CT also tied for first in the 2006 IHSA Journalism State competition as well as maintaining their title in 2010. CT staff members have received national awards for their writing, as well as awards from Columbia University
.
In 1996, Naperville Central put together an alumni committee to recognize outstanding graduates of NCHS and offer effective role models for students. This includes students who attended the high school before the construction of Naperville North
. The committee is made up of a group of administrators, teachers, and students. A ceremony is held at the end of each school year to recognize the new inductees. Some of the above-named alumni have been honored by this committee.
Naperville, Illinois
Naperville is a city in DuPage and Will Counties in Illinois in the United States, voted the second best place to live in the United States by Money Magazine in 2006. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 141,853. It is the fifth largest city in the state, behind Chicago,...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, a suburb southwest of Chicago in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The school is a part of the Naperville Community Unit School District 203
Naperville Community Unit School District 203
Naperville Community Unit School District 203 is a school district headquartered in Naperville, Illinois, United States.-History:District 203, established in 1972 through the merger of elementary and high school districts, serves central Naperville...
.
The school is notable for its strong academic standing and history of athletic accomplishments. Several of its alumni are notable across a variety of fields, and the school is unique in that it is the only high school in the United States to have its own Ancient Egyptian mummy
Mummy
A mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...
.
History
Naper Settlement
Naper Settlement, established in 1969, is a , open air museum accredited by the American Association of Museums that consists of a collection of thirty historical buildings from the Naperville, Illinois area. Many buildings were moved here from their original locations and refurbished in a style...
. The oldest part of the current building, known by some as the "Three-Story Wing," was constructed in 1950, and was dedicated in 1952. The previous building which had housed the Naperville Community High School (or sometimes just Naperville High School) was built in 1916 and stood on Washington Street, just east of the present location of Washington Junior High School. This same building was used as the original Washington Junior High School until it was replaced in 1977.
The current Naperville Central building has received a number of building additions, in 1955, 1963, 1968, 1987 1992 and 2009. For the 1992–93 school year, three projects in three independent locations added a Student Services wing in the northeast part of the building (demolished in summer of 2010 to make way for addition), in front of the original structure, an auditorium in the northwest part of the building and a natatorium
Natatorium
A natatorium is a term given for a building containing a swimming pool. In Latin, a cella natatoria was a swimming pool in its own building, although it is sometimes also used to refer to any indoor pool even if not housed in a dedicated building...
(swimming/diving facility) in the southern part of the building. Prior additions included a field house and renovations to the student cafeteria area in the late 1980s, the current school library, and a large single-story classroom wing, known as the Flat Wing. As of the 2004–05 academic year, this gives the building a size of 439,660 square feet (41,000 square meters), not including the use of eight mobile classrooms in two modular units. Additionally, the school is currently undergoing a massive renovation to completely restructure the "Three Story Wing". The entire inside of the "Flat Wing" is also undergoing a more minor renovation. This renovation includes the relocation of the library and the reconstruction of the administration. The only sections of the school that are not being modified at all are the Auditorium and Aquatics Center, part of the physical education's department. For more details, see the district's Building the Future Page.
There has been an increasing concern about the safety and reliability of Naperville Central. Complaints of asbestos, leaky roofs, and unorganized structure cause it to be the main focus of Naperville School District 203's "Facilities Task Force". Renovations began during the 2008–09 school year after successful passage of a local referendum.
Mascot
From 1939 until 1992, the mascot was the Redskin. A series of public protests over "Redskins" as a mascot began in the 1980s and continued into the early 1990s. Each time such a protest started, the student body was polled over keeping the mascot, and each result ended with the student body voting overwhelmingly to keep it. The community, too, rallied to keep "Redskins" as the nickname; despite this, the District 203 School Board decided during the summer of 1992 that it would be appropriate to end the use of the term "Redskins." Nearly all uses of the previous Native American logo and references to "Redskin," or other names deemed to be "Native American"-themed, such as the former "Arrowhead" yearbook, were removed from the building that summer (although students may still see some remainders of the Redskin today). The "Redhawk" was chosen in the fall of 1992 as the new school's mascot, after a vote by students, and went into effect in the 1993–94 school year.The mummy
One of the most notable displays at the school is an Egyptian mummy. Though not claimed or confirmed, Naperville Central may be the only high school in America to house such an artifact. Known as "Butch", it is stored in a glass case on the second floor of the school.The mummy was donated to the school in the 1940s by local doctor, who had purchased it in a curio shop. The mummy was wrapped up and forgotten in an attic at the school until it was accidentally rediscovered by a teacher in 1975. The mummy underwent restoration in the 1990s at the University of Chicago's
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
Oriental Institute
Oriental Institute, Chicago
The Oriental Institute , established in 1919, is the University of Chicago's archeology museum and research center for ancient Near Eastern studies.- History and purpose:James Henry Breasted built up the collection of the Haskell Oriental Museum...
.
In 2002 the National Geographic Channel
National Geographic Channel
National Geographic Channel, also commercially abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo, is a subscription television channel that airs non-fiction television programs produced by the National Geographic Society. Like History and the Discovery Channel, the channel features documentaries with factual...
visited the school and featured the school's mummy on an episode of its Mummy Roadshow television series. The mummy dates to approximately 55 BCE.
Academics
ACT (examination)
The ACT is a standardized test for high school achievement and college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in November 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist as a competitor to the College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test...
score of 24.9, and graduated 96.6% of its senior class. Naperville Central has not made Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP, is a measurement defined by the United States federal No Child Left Behind Act that allows the U.S. Department of Education to determine how every public school and school district in the country is performing academically according to results on standardized...
(AYP) on the Prairie State Achievement Examination, which with the ACT, are the assessment tools used in Illinois to fulfill the federal No Child Left Behind Act
No Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
. One student subgroup failed to meet expectations in mathematics. In 2010, Naperville Central's junior class had a record 14 perfect ACT scores.
In 2009, Naperville Central was ranked #1353 on the annual Newsweek Magazine
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
listing of their top 1500 American public high school (based on AP test results and the size of the graduating class). The school had been ranked #1015 in 2008.
Athletics
Naperville Central competes in the DuPage Valley ConferenceDuPage Valley Conference
The DuPage Valley Conference is an organization of eight high schools in northeastern Illinois, representing seven communities in Chicago's suburbs. These high schools are all members of the Illinois High School Association. The Conference, organized in 1967, exists primarily for inter-school...
(DVC), and is a member of the Illinois High School Association
Illinois High School Association
The Illinois High School Association is one of 521 state high school associations in the United States, designed to regulate competition in most interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level. It is a charter member of the National Federation of State High...
(IHSA), which governs most interscholastic athletics and competitive activities in the state. Teams are stylized as the Redhawks
Red-tailed Hawk
The Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West...
.
The school sponsors the following interscholastic teams for young men and women: basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, soccer, swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
& diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, track & field, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
, and water polo
Water polo
Water polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...
. Young men may compete in baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
, and wrestling
Scholastic wrestling
Scholastic wrestling, sometimes known in the United States as Folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practised at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially Collegiate wrestling with some slight modifications. It is currently...
, while young women may compete in badminton
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
and softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
. While not sponsored by the IHSA, the Athletic Department also oversees a competitive poms
Pom-pon
A pom-pon is a fluffy, decorative ball or tuft. Pom-pons may come in many colors, sizes, and varieties and are made from a wide array of materials, including wool, cotton, paper, plastic, and occasionally feathers....
team for young ladies.
The following teams have finished in the top four of their respective IHSA sponsored state tournament or meet:
- Badminton: 4th place (1993–94, 98–99, 2004–05)
- Baseball: State Champions (2005–06, 2009–10)
- Basketball (girls): State Champions (2002–03, 03–04)
- Cross Country (boys): 4th place (1970–71, 93–94); 2nd place (1966–67, 87–88)
- Cross Country (girls): 4th place (1990–91); 3rd place (1987–88)
- Football: Semifinals (1997–98, 2011-12); 2nd place (1995–96, 2001–02); State Champions (1999–2000)
- Golf (boys): 3rd place (1974–75)
- Golf (girls): 4th place (1997–98)
- Gymnastics (boys): 3rd place (1993–94)
- Gymnastics (girls): 4th place (2002–03); 3rd place (1995–96, 96–97); 2nd place (1985–86)
- Soccer (boys): 2nd place (1988–89, 2011-12)
- Soccer (girls): 2nd place (1993–94, 94–95)
- Softball: 2nd place (1988–89)
- Swimming & Diving (boys): 4th place (1998–99); 2nd place (2004–05, 05–06); State Champions (2001–02,2009–10)
- Swimming & Diving (girls): 4th place (1990–91, 95–96); 3rd place (1993–94); 2nd place (1994–95); State Champions (2004–05, 05–06)
- Tennis (boys): 4th place (2003–04); 3rd place (2000–01); 2nd place (1983–84)
- Tennis (girls): 4th place (1991–92, 2002–03); State Champions (1993–94)
- Track & Field (boys): 2nd place (1939–40)
- Volleyball (boys): State Champions (1997–98)
- Volleyball (girls): 2nd place (1998–99); State Champions (2005–06, 07–08)
- Water Polo (boys): 3rd place (2008–09); 2nd place (2004–05, 07–08,09-10)
- Water Polo (girls): 4th place (2007–08); 2nd place (2008–09); 3rd place (09-10)
- Wrestling : Individual State Champion (Doug Chirco, 145 lbs) (1976–1977)
In 2010, the Naperville Central football team was chosen to be featured in Kenny Chesney's music video, "The Boys of Fall."
Clubs and activities
The Naperville School District is notable for its sponsorship of non-athletic extracurricular activities. Naperville Central has used this support to produce numerous award winning academic teams such as The Scholastic Bowl Team, The Science Olympiad TeamScience Olympiad
Science Olympiad is an American elementary, middle, or high school team competition which tests knowledge of various science topics and engineering ability. Over 6,200 teams from 49 U.S. states compete each year. Most teams compete in three levels of competition: regionals, states, and nationals...
and the Math Team. These teams and others have placed well in conference, regional, and state competitions.
In 2004, the marching band
Marching band
Marching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...
was selected to perform as extras in the 2005 film The Weather Man
The Weather Man
The Weather Man is a 2005 American comedy-drama film, directed by Gore Verbinski. Written by Steve Conrad, it stars Nicolas Cage, Michael Caine and Hope Davis and tells the story of a weatherman in the midst of a mid-life crisis....
, shown briefly in a scene depicting a Thanksgiving Day
Thanksgiving (United States)
Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a holiday celebrated in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. It has officially been an annual tradition since 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday,...
parade
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...
.
Science
The NCHS Science Olympiad Team, founded in 2004, ranked third in the state in 2005 and 2006 and second in state in 2007 and 2008(thus advancing to the national tournament). The Worldwide Youth in Science and Engineering Team won the State Championship in 2006, ending rival Naperville North's multiple-year winning streak. In 2009, Central's WYSE team captured first place at the regional competition held at Naperville North. The Varsity Junior Engineering Technical SocietyJunior Engineering Technical Society
Junior Engineering Technical Society is a national non-profit organization dedicated to promoting engineering and technology careers to America's young people. JETS engages students in various engineering education programs that are designed to encourage secondary school students to pursue...
(JETS) TEAMS's
TEAMS (academic competition)
Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics, and Science is an annual competition originally organized by the Junior Engineering Technical Society...
team placed first in the nation in 2006; the JV JETS team placed second. In 2009, the Varsity JETS team took 1st place at the regional competition held at IIT (Wheaton Campus), while the JV team took 2nd.
In 2006, four students from NCHS competed in the Toshiba/NSTA Exploravision Competition and were recognized as 2nd Place National Finalist Winners for their design of a Wireless Information Integration network.
Chess
The NCHS Chess team placed in 10th in 2010 and respectably in 2005 and 2006, and student Jason Duncan was the Individual State Champion in 2005.Journalism
The Central Times (CT) student newspaper has won many national National Pacemaker AwardsNational Pacemaker Awards
The National Pacemaker Awards are awards for excellence in American student journalism, given annually since 1927. The awards are generally considered to be the highest national honors in their field, and are unofficially known as the "Pulitzer Prizes of student journalism."The National Scholastic...
, the high-school journalism version of the Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
. The CT also tied for first in the 2006 IHSA Journalism State competition as well as maintaining their title in 2010. CT staff members have received national awards for their writing, as well as awards from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
Notable alumni
- Matthew John ArmstrongMatthew John ArmstrongMatthew John Armstrong is an American actor.-Career:He was most recently seen in the television series Heroes as Ted Sprague and a single episode of House. He also had a long running role on American Dreams...
, 1991, actor - Sudip Bose is a medical doctor, retired majorMajor (United States)In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...
in the U.S. Army and veteran of the Iraq War. He treated Saddam HusseinSaddam HusseinSaddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
after his capture. - Owen DanielsOwen DanielsOwen Daniels is an American football tight end and emergency backup quarterback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League...
(class of 2001) is a tight endTight endThe tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...
for the NFL Houston TexansHouston TexansThe Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston, Texas. The team is currently a member of the Southern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
(2006–present). - David EigenbergDavid EigenbergDavid Eigenberg is an American actor. He is known for his role of Steve Brady on the HBO comedy Sex and the City.-Personal life:Eigenberg was born in Long Island, New York and grew up in Naperville, Illinois...
is an actor, perhaps best known for his role as Steve BradySteve BradySteven 'Steve' Brady is a fictional character on HBO series, Sex and The City, played by David Eigenberg.-Background:Introduced in the second season, Steve is a bartender who has an unconventional on-again, off-again relationship with Miranda throughout the remainder of the series.-Season...
on the television series Sex and the CitySex and the CitySex and the City is an American television comedy-drama series created by Darren Star and produced by HBO. Broadcast from 1998 until 2004, the original run of the show had a total of ninety-four episodes...
. - Harry KalasHarry KalasHarry Norbert Kalas was an American sportscaster, best known for his Ford C. Frick Award-winning role as lead play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies...
(class of 1954) was a Ford C. Frick Award winningFord C. Frick AwardThe Ford C. Frick Award is presented annually by the National Baseball Hall of Fame in the United States to a broadcaster for "major contributions to baseball." It is named for Ford Christopher Frick, former Commissioner of Major League Baseball...
sportscaster, most notably with the Philadelphia PhilliesPhiladelphia PhilliesThe Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
(1971–2009). - Gary MillerGary Miller (sportscaster)Gary Miller is an American sportscaster and radio host.-Education:Miller graduated in the same high school class, in Naperville, Illinois, as former CNN news anchor Paula Zahn....
(class of 1974) was a sportscaster for ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, and now works at KCBSKCBS-TVKCBS-TV, channel 2, is an owned-and-operated television station of the CBS Television Network, located in Los Angeles, California. KCBS-TV shares its offices and studio facilities with sister station KCAL-TV inside CBS Studio Center in the Studio City section of Los Angeles, and its transmitter...
and KCALKCAL-TVKCAL-TV, channel 9, is an independent television station in Los Angeles, California, USA, owned by the CBS Corporation. KCAL-TV shares its studio facilities with KCBS-TV inside CBS Studio Center in the Studio City section of Los Angeles, and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson.-Digital...
in Los Angeles. - Anthony ParkerAnthony ParkerAnthony Michael Parker is an American professional basketball player who last played with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association . After graduating from Bradley University with a major in liberal arts, he entered the 1997 NBA Draft and played briefly in the NBA before...
(class of 1993) was a first round draft pick in the 1997 NBA Draft1997 NBA DraftThe 1997 NBA Draft took place on June 25, 1997 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Although the Celtics had the second worst record in the 1996-97 season and the best odds of winning the lottery with two picks, the Spurs, usually a model of winning and consistency, lost David Robinson to an injury early...
. He is a guard for the Cleveland CavaliersCleveland CavaliersThe Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
. - Candace ParkerCandace ParkerCandace Nicole Parker is an All-American basketball player for the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks and is also the younger sister of NBA player Anthony Parker. She was drafted to the team from Tennessee in 2008...
(class of 2004) was the 1st overall pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft2008 WNBA DraftThe 2008 WNBA Draft is the league's annual process for determining which teams receive the rights to negotiate with players entering the league. The draft was held on April 9, 2008....
and currently plays for the Los Angeles SparksLos Angeles SparksThe Los Angeles Sparks is a professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association . The team was founded before the league's inaugural 1997 season began...
. She twice won the Wooden Award while in college. Naperville Central retired her #32 jersey. - Sean PaytonSean PaytonPatrick Sean Payton is the current head coach of the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. Payton was a quarterback at Naperville Central High School and Eastern Illinois University and played professionally in 1987 and 1988...
(class of 1982) is the head coachHead coachA head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
of the NFL New Orleans SaintsNew Orleans SaintsThe New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
and won Super Bowl XLIVSuper Bowl XLIVSuper Bowl XLIV was an American football game between the American Football Conference champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference champion New Orleans Saints to decide the National Football League champion for the 2009 season. The Saints defeated the Colts by a score of...
. - A. George PradelA. George PradelArthur George Pradel was elected mayor of Naperville, Illinois in 1995 and re-elected in 1999, 2003, 2007, and 2011 making him the longest-serving mayor of Naperville...
(class of 1955) is the mayor of Naperville. - Jim SonefeldJim SonefeldJim "Soni" Sonefeld, full name James Sonefeld , is an American musician and one of the founding members of Hootie & the Blowfish. In September 2008 he went solo with his solo debut album Snowman Melting on Aquarian Nation Records / The Orchard record label...
is a founding member and drummer for Hootie & the BlowfishHootie & the BlowfishHootie & the Blowfish is an American rock band that enjoyed popularity in the second half of the 1990s. They were originally formed in 1986 at the University of South Carolina by Darius Rucker, Dean Felber, Jim Sonefeld, and Mark Bryan. The band has recorded five studio albums to date, and has...
. - Paul SerenoPaul SerenoPaul Callistus Sereno is an American paleontologist from the University of Chicago who discovered several new dinosaur species on several continents. He has conducted excavations at sites as varied as Inner Mongolia, Argentina, Morocco, and Niger...
(class of 1975) is a noted paleontologist. - Paula Zahn (class of 1974) is a television newscaster.
- Robert ZoellickRobert ZoellickRobert Bruce Zoellick is the eleventh president of the World Bank, a position he has held since July 1, 2007. He was previously a managing director of Goldman Sachs, United States Deputy Secretary of State and U.S. Trade Representative, from February 7, 2001 until February 22, 2005.President...
(class of 1971) was the United States Trade RepresentativeOffice of the United States Trade RepresentativeThe Office of the United States Trade Representative is the United States government agency responsible for developing and recommending United States trade policy to the president of the United States, conducting trade negotiations at bilateral and multilateral levels, and coordinating trade...
(2001–05), United States Deputy Secretary of StateUnited States Deputy Secretary of StateThe Deputy Secretary of State of the United States is the chief assistant to the Secretary of State. If the Secretary of State resigns or dies, the Deputy Secretary of State becomes Acting Secretary of State until the President nominates and the Senate confirms a replacement. The position was...
(2005–07), and is President of the World BankWorld BankThe World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
(2007–present).
In 1996, Naperville Central put together an alumni committee to recognize outstanding graduates of NCHS and offer effective role models for students. This includes students who attended the high school before the construction of Naperville North
Naperville North High School
Naperville North High School is a public four-year comprehensive high school located at the corner of Ogden Avenue and Mill Street in the northern-central part of Naperville, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States...
. The committee is made up of a group of administrators, teachers, and students. A ceremony is held at the end of each school year to recognize the new inductees. Some of the above-named alumni have been honored by this committee.