De La Salle Institute

Academics
With our students being accepted to some of the finest, not to mention some of the hardest colleges and universities to get into across the United States, De La Salle Institute is proving itself as one of the premier college preparatory high schools in the Chicagoland area. Notre Dame, Stanford, the United States Air Force Academy, Boston College, Northwestern, the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois and DePaul are just some of the schools that have accepted our students.

With a diverse offering of classes, our students are enrolling in these institutions completely prepared. We also offer two ways for students to earn college credit while attending De La Salle: Advanced Placement Testing Program (AP classes) and the Program for Advanced College Credit (PACC) of St. Mary's University, Winona, MN.

Small class sizes, personalized attention from the teachers and high expectations in a single-gender Christian atmosphere give students the opportunity to fully develop their abilities in a structured yet non-threatening environment that fosters communication and self-expression.

With three academic programs, we are proud of the fact that we can offer an excellent education to everyone. Honors, college prep and LaSalle College Prep are curricula that offer a challenging academic program set at a rigorous pace for every student based on their individual ability.

Activities
De La Salle offers a wide variety of clubs and activities to our students. We want our students to experience as much as possible during their four years of high school. When students learn their likes and dislikes, they get an idea as to what they may want to do later in life. From writing for the school newspaper or yearbook to the Fine Arts clubs and from service organizations to athletic activities, De La Salle has something for everyone. With over 30 clubs and organizations, we want our students to become involved and take advantage of all the things De La Salle has to offer. More important, should you be interested in something we do not offer, the staff will do everything it can to help you start that club or activity.

Admissions
Eighth-grade students interested in attending De La Salle are required to take an entrance exam at De La Salle. The Archdiocese of Chicago requires an entrance exam for all Chicago-area Catholic high schools and has established the second Saturday in January as the date for the exam at 8:00 A.M. Pre-registration is not necessary, although a fee of $25 is due on the day of the exam.

Other factors influencing admission to De La Salle are a student's elementary grades and teacher recommendations. We consider these other factors also, because they provide us with a more comprehensive perspective of a student and his/her abilities.

De La Salle Institute admits students of any race, color, creed or religion. The school does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed or religion.

Due to the large number of students we have test here and the limited amount of space for the incoming freshman class, we give preference to those who consider De La Salle as a "first choice", rather than electing to test at another school and by default seek to transfer in.

Open House
Visit the school during one of its Open House dates. The girls' campus at 32nd Place and Aberdeen will host two Open House dates for girls only, and the boys' campus at 35th Street and Michigan will host two Open House dates for boys only. This is an excellent way for students and their parents to see what De La Salle is all about. You will take a tour of the campus and meet the faculty, students and staff while seeing and hearing all that De La Salle has to offer. For specific information about Open House dates, click here. An appointment is not necessary to attend an Open House.

Shadow Days
Visit the school on your own for the day. This is an excellent way to see what De La Salle is all about. We will set you up with a De La Salle host and then you accompany that host throughout the school day. You will attend the same classes and events your host does during the day. You will not only see what classes are like at De La Salle, but you also experience everything we offer during a school day. You will be encouraged to participate in the classroom discussions. You are treated no differently than the other students in the class. An appointment is necessary, so please call the Admissions Office at 312.842.7355.

Tuition
We strive to provide the highest quality education to all of our students while keeping the cost to parents as low as possible. No student pays the full cost of tuition. All students, regardless of their financial or academic status, are eligible for the Walter J. Clarke Scholarship, which provides about a 20% discount to all students who fill out an application. The only requirement to receive the scholarship is filling out the form. A registration/deposit fee, which is applied to the cost of tuition, is due upon registration. This does not include fees for courses in band, fine arts or applied technologies. Tuition may be paid monthly, semi-annually or annually.

Financial Aid
De La Salle offers financial aid to its students. This follows the mission of the school and its founders by offering a quality education to all students no matter what their economic situation is. Approximately 60% of the students receive financial assistance in addition to the above mentioned scholarships. A number of scholarships are given based on academics as well as need. We offer family discounts when more than one child attends. Our financial aid is limited. There are also a number of outside services, foundations and organizations which provide students with financial aid for secondary education. A few of those are Link Unlimited, High Sight, and the Daniel Murphy Foundation.

Following the rules established by the Illinois High School Association, De La Salle does not offer athletic scholarships.

Athletics
De La Salle participates in 22 sports for boys and girls, while making use of the most impressive facilities in the city of Chicago. Two gyms house four full-size basketball courts, four volleyball courts, two batting cages, an indoor track, wrestling room and weight room. On top of that, we also have a baseball diamond, football field and soccer field. We want you to get the most out of your time at De La Salle and between the number of sports we offer and the college-like facilities, we only want the best for our students.

De La Salle understands the importance that sports play in the lives of young people. Athletics allow student-athletes to learn discipline, teamwork, dedication, and perseverance. Participating in sports also develops confidence.

De La Salle men take part in the Chicago Catholic League and our women are in the Girls Catholic Athletic Conference. Participating in these two highly competitive leagues has allowed our student-athletes to go on to play at the most highly acclaimed universities and colleges in the nation, such as Notre Dame, Louisiana State, Tulane, Georgia Tech, Loyola, and Arizona State just to name a few.

Spirituality
De La Salle believes a Catholic high school should be more than students taking religion classes. If religion were looked at in this manner, people would merely go to church once a week and be done with it until the next week. Faith, service and community are the three words that encompass the Lasallian tradition.

We have liturgies that bring both campuses together as one school at least once during each academic quarter. Students are allowed to celebrate their faith in weekly liturgies at each campus. Both campuses have a chapel where students can go to meditate, reflect and share in prayer.

Service and community go hand-in-hand and they are a large part of what De La Salle is all about. We feel that it is necessary to help those that are less fortunate. Giving back to the community is what De La Salle was built upon. Students are required to do community service through their religion classes. The service hours can be performed in a variety of ways from tutoring students to volunteering at a soup kitchen. The staff at De La Salle helps facilitate these service hours for the students.

Teachers
As you have read, our students are attending some of the finest institutions after graduating from De La Salle. What you don't know is that our faculty is coming to De La Salle from those very same colleges and universities. Northwestern, the University of Chicago, DePaul, the University of Missouri, the University of Michigan, New York University, and Notre Dame are just a few of the schools our faculty has attended.

Twenty percent of the teachers are graduates of De La Salle. Their pride in the school is what brought them back to share their knowledge and experience in assisting in the development of the next generation of Meteors.

If you ask our students what they like best about De La Salle, more often than not they will say the teachers. Our teachers spend countless hours working individually with students to help them succeed academically, while making learning fun. The dedicated staff is what makes De La Salle different than other high schools.

Transportation
De La Salle is one of the easiest places to get to in the city. We run our own bus service, so we do not have a third party running it for us. That has many advantages. The bus drivers are employees of De La Salle and it allows us to run the routes more efficiently and cheaper than other schools. We run routes before school, immediately after school and after sports and activities in the evening. Our bus stops go to the furthest reaches of the city and into the suburbs.

The boys' campus is located at 35th Street and Michigan Avenue which is by a CTA Red Line stop and Green Line stop. Getting to De La Salle couldn't be easier and on top of that, we run shuttle buses between the two campuses in the morning and afternoon.

Facilities
De La Salle understands the importance that technology plays in education in the 21^st century. All of the classrooms are equipped with the Internet and all of our teachers have laptop computers to assist them in educating our students. Five computer labs between the two campuses allow our students ample access to computers.

Our two Media Centers have computerized card catalogues, CD-ROMS, and Internet access that allow our students to look up anything they may need for homework, essays or term papers. We also have the traditional library materials such as volumes of books, periodicals and audio/visual material.

The largest gym in the city of Chicago is at De La Salle. The 52,000-square-foot Parmer Activity Center has three full-size basketball courts, which in turn hold 18 basketball hoops, three volleyball courts, an indoor track, a weight room, two batting cages, a wrestling room, a training room for our full-time athletic trainer, five locker rooms and much, much more.

Two Campuses, One School
When we say De La Salle Institute is unique, we can back it up. How many high schools do you know that have two campuses? None! De La Salle has it all. We have single-gender education and a co-educational environment. How is that?

Single-gender classrooms at two separate and distinct campuses allow students to concentrate on their academics. Studies from such noted institutions as the University of Michigan and Harvard have shown that students excel in single-gender classrooms. There is less peer pressure and students are more willing to participate and express themselves.

A co-educational environment is brought about by the one-school concept. Only the academics are separate at De La Salle; everything else is combined. Activities, pep rallies, sporting events, and Masses provide more than enough opportunity for our students to get together.

We truly are the only school in the Chicagoland area that has the best of both worlds!