# East Aurora Public School District 131

East Aurora Public School District 131 (also known as Aurora Public Schools: East Side) is a public school district serving preschool through high school students in Aurora, Illinois, United States. It is considered the state's first public school district.
According to the 2016 Illinois State Report Card, the district had a total enrollment of 14,659 students. There are 12 elementary schools, three middle schools, one magnet academy (grades three through eight), two early childhood centers and East Aurora High School, all within Aurora city limits. The superintendent of East Aurora School District 131 is Dr. Jennifer Norrell. The school board president is Annette Johnson.
The district is bounded by the county line between DuPage County and Kane County to the east, the county line between Kendall County and Kane County to the south, the Fox River to the west, and the border with the neighboring West Aurora and Batavia School Districts to the north.

## History

According to "The Educational History of Illinois", private subscription schools were taught by various teachers on the East Side starting in 1834. The first school in what would later become East Aurora School District 131 opened in 1836 at East Galena and Broadway. The school was subscription based. In 1839, a new school was built near Broadway and Claim Street.
East Aurora became a charter district on April 30, 1847, and was officially recognized by the state in 1851. The district became the first free school system in Illinois under a special act of legislature in 1851, two years before the state's free school laws passed. That same year, a two-story school was built with Merwin Tabor as principal. The first grade schools were built four years later.
The first class from East Aurora High School graduated in 1867. In 1878, East Aurora High School formed the first high school orchestra in the country. The first kindergarten opened in 1890 and, in 1903, the district started a school for deaf children.
There are several East Aurora School District 131 schools that no longer exist, including: New York Street School (1851-1864), Center School (1866-1957), First Indian Creek School (1870-1899), Indian Creek School (1899-1957), D.W. Young School (1875-1956), First Oak Park School (1887-1923) and Marion Avenue School (1889-1929).

## District information

According to the 2016 Illinois state report cards, there were 14,659 students enrolled in East Aurora School District 131. Of those students, 86.6 percent were Hispanic, 7.7 percent were black, 3.2 percent were white, .6 percent were Asian, .4 percent were American Indian and 1.4 percent were categorized as one or more races.
According to the 2016 Illinois state report cards, 62.7 percent of East Aurora School District 131 students were considered low income and 34.3 percent had limited English proficiency. One-third receive bilingual services.
The student-to-staff ratio at the elementary school level was 19 to 1 and at the high school it was 22 to 1, according to the 2016 report cards. The average East Aurora School District 131 teacher had more than 11 years' experience. More than 55 percent of teachers had a master's degree or higher.

## Elementary schools

| School | School's namesake | Team name | Colors | Principal | Year opened |
| Allen Elementary | Olney C. Allen, former Kane County judge and school board member | Panthers | Royal and white | Jalitza Martinez | 1951 |
| Bardwell Elementary | Conrad Bardwell, superintendent 1896-1928 | Bears | Forest green and white | Armando Rodriguez | 1929 |
| Beaupre Elementary | William S. Beaupre, banker and school board member from 1882-1927 | Pumas | Royal and gold | Amanda Clark | 1916 |
| Benavides STEAM Academy | Anne Garcia Benavides, former East Aurora principal, administrator | Bengals | Orange and blue | Patricia Rangel | 2014 |
| Brady Elementary | Lorenzo D. Brady, Illinois legislator, mayor and East school trustee | Bobcats | Blue and white | Elizabeth Vivanco | 1923 |
| Dieterich Elementary | George N. Dieterich, former school board president | Bobcats | Royal and white | Lauren Holland | 1922 |
| Gates Elementary | John W. Gates, former superintendent | Tigers | Red and black | Isaias Martinez | 1956 |
| Hermes Elementary | Nicholas A. Hermes, school board member | Panthers | Red and white | Christopher Heath | 1956 |
| Johnson Elementary | Clifford I. Johnson, pharmacist and school board member | Jaguars | Kelly and gold | Ines Sem | 1956 |
| Krug Elementary | Rose E. Krug, East Aurora nurse, World War I veteran | Cougars | Royal and white | Sheila Conrad | 1965 |
| Oak Park Elementary | School was originally surrounded by oak trees | Tigers | Purple and white | Annette McMahon | 1924 |
| O'Donnell Elementary | Mable O'Donnell, East reading supervisor and nationally published author | Bobcats | Royal and gold | Tonetta Davis | 1965 |
| Rollins Elementary | Edna Rollins, director of finance and administrative services | Cougars | Red and gold | Laura Sandoval | 1990 |

## Middle schools

| School | School's namesake | Team name | Colors | Principal | Year opened |
| Cowherd Middle School | Henry Cowherd, Aurora resident and East High class of 1945 | Cougars | Royal and orange | Jacqueline Gibson | 1992 |
| Simmons Middle School | Clifton F. Simmons, former school board president and East High quarterback | Panthers | Black and white | Mechelle Patterson | 1961 |
| Waldo Middle School | K.D. Waldo, former superintendent of East Aurora 131 | Wildcats | Red and white | Kelly Hills | 1912 |

## High schools

| School | Team name | Colors | Principal | Year opened |
| East Aurora High School | Tomcats | Red and black | Jonathan Simpson | 1957 (current building) |
| East Aurora Extension Campus | Tomcats | Red and black | Taveras Crump | 2014 |

## Magnet academy

| School | School's namesake | Team name | Principal | Year opened |
| Fred Rodgers Magnet Academy | Fred Rodgers, longtime community activist | Puma | Dr. David Ballard | 2013 (current building) |

## Early childhood centers

| School's name | School's namesake | Principal |
| Early Childhood Center | N/A | Kathleen Kogut |
| Child Service Center | N/A | N/A |

## Special education

| School | School's namesake | Team name | Principal | Year opened |
| Hope D. Wall School (run in cooperation with West Aurora Public School District 129) | Hope D. Wall, special education teacher | Rockets | Dr. Terry Collette | 1969 |