District 128, consisting of Libertyville High School and Vernon Hills High School, was rated as one of the top 100 workplaces in the Chicagoland area by the Chicago Tribune in their annual ranking on Nov. 14, 2014.
With 465 employees in the region and approximately 3,400 students at its two high schools, the ranking was based on a 30-minute survey created by WorkplaceDynamics that was completed by employees about their workplace last spring. Questions were centered around being valued as an employee, quality of management, and quality of employee benefits.
Among the 100 workplaces ranked, only four were schools. Out of those four, three were high school districts. Also, D128 was ranked 6th overall among all mid-sized companies. Members of D128 take pride in the fact that they share many of the positives found at high-quality corporate work places.
“I thought that the article would be focusing more on businesses and corporations, so I suppose I was surprised that they were looking at schools, but the fact that people work in this district are happy working here doesn’t surprise me at all, “ said English department supervisor, Mr. Paul Reiff.
Faculty members at D128 admire the amount of resources given to them by the highly supportive communities of Libertyville and Vernon Hills because it helps them help the students.
“I am very proud of our students, teachers and support staff, administrators and our wonderfully supportive communities,” stated Dr. Prentiss Lea, Superintendent of D128.
Dr. Lea feels very privileged to be the superintendent of what he calls, “the best overall high school district in the country.”
“There’s teachers that I’ll hire to work here coming from other districts and they’ll say things like ‘the kids are really nice’ or ‘everybody does their homework’ and those are just two things we take for granted,” said Mr. Reiff.
Faculty members feel that their co-workers are committed and dedicated to their work, making them a part of a great team. Besides the amazing leadership, students in D128 have academics among their highest priorities, creating a great environment to work and learn.
“There is a wonderful sense of family in our district, and everyone who works here is committed to living our district mission,” said Dr. Lea.
The “family feel” in D128 helps the staff grow and learn, while maintaining a sense of humor and always remembering to have a good time.
