Will County Gazette

Community members recently voiced their support for renaming an Indian Prairie school building after Dr. Gail McKenzie, a former superintendent, at a Board of Education meeting. 

During McKenzie’s time as superintendent at Indian Prairie, the district built ten elementary schools, three middle schools and Nequa Valley High School. Throughout her tenure, the district's student population more than doubled, and the number of school buildings nearly doubled as well. 

"Without the leadership that we had in the Thames Scully, Howie Crouse and Gail McKenzie, none of what we accomplished in the district today would be possible. We’ve honored Dr. Scully, we’ve honored Mr. Crouse, and now it’s time we honor Dr. McKenzie," community member Mark Metzler said at the June 6 meeting.

"Thank you for your consideration of a proposal to rename Wheatland Academy after Dr. Gail McKenzie, a long-time superintendent who played an instrumental role in leading and managing tremendous growth in our district, including programs known as Wheatland Academy," community member Katie Popp said in support of the renaming. "Dr. McKenzie served in the role of superintendent of our district at a time when very few women were in the position in our state, and she was an outstanding mentor and a model for other upcoming leaders, both in and outside of our school district."

Wheatland Academy is a credit-recovery program for fourth-year high school students who have fallen behind the mark to graduate on time. The program guides the students through credit requirements in a nontraditional, high school setting to help them graduate. The academy also has a program that assists and mentors students with an IEP who need smaller structured environments to learn.