Upper School
My favorite class so far has been Algorithms and Data Structure. It's a computer science elective.
During the upper school years, our students make deep connections with their teachers and their peers. They become part of a tight-knit community committed to learning and discovering their talents and passion.
Latin students actively shape their academic program. The upper school curriculum begins with everything you would expect in a college preparatory high school—literature and history surveys, biology, chemistry, physics, algebra, calculus, geometry, language. But Latin takes it a step beyond. We offer our students exceptional educational opportunities and ask them to dig deep, think critically and commit themselves to fully pursuing their intellectual passions both inside and outside the classroom.
Latin’s educational approach is student-centered and individualized. By understanding how each child learns best, our teachers help students identify their passions and take on new challenges.
Latin students love learning. They are encouraged to do, to create, to try and to fail. The focus is on the process, not the outcome, which helps students build resilience, remain intrinsically motivated and succeed.
Around the Upper School
Lower School Computer Science and Tech Integration Specialist Fiona Deeney, Middle School Technology Coordinator Mike Demopoulos and Upper School Innovation Studio Manager Shane Enderle offered an inside look at Latin's maker spaces for parents/guardians.
At the start of the event, the team shared information about each division's maker space and projects created in them. Then they gave a tour of the upper school maker space to show some of the equipment and supplies students can access in all three divisions.
Upper School
EQUIPMENT
3D Printers
Vinyl Cutters
Laser Cutter
CNC Router
Soldering Irons and accessories
iPad Pro’s with Apple Pencils
VR Headset
SOFTWARE
Adobe Suite
Illustrator
Photoshop
In Design
Fusion 360
Sketchbook Pro
Procreate
Silhouette Studio
Mint Studio
Middle School
EQUIPMENT
3D Printer (x3)
Vinyl Cutter (x2)
Laser Cutter
CNC Router
MacBook Air (x2)
SOFTWARE
PrusaSlicer
Silhouette Studio
Mint Studio
iMovie
Lower School
EQUIPMENT
3D Printers
Vinyl Cutter
Laser Cutter
Digital Embroidery Machine
Sewing Machines
LittleBits Pro Library and STEAM Kits
SOFTWARE
Doodle 3D
TurtleStitch
Silhouette Studio
Mint Studio
Drawing Pad
Afterward, parents/guardians got the opportunity to laser engrave on a pre-cut wood roman head. They also visited stations to make leather key chains, play with Little Bits electronics from the lower school, see embroidery and sewing machines in action, and a few physical projects that students have created.
The maker spaces at Latin aid students with designing and problem-solving, as well as develop skills, talents, thinking and mental rigor.
Academics
- Academics
- Around School
- lower school
- middle school
- upper school
After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, upper school project week is back! Students chose to spend the week on one of the 25 in-town projects or 11 out-of-town projects.
The in-town offerings included:
- Ad-RAP-tation: the Latin School and Q Brothers' Collective
- Art and Anatomy
- Chicago: Walking, Food, and Art
- Code Your Own 2D Games and Build a Mini Arcade Cabinet
- Curling in Chicago
- Cycle Chicago: Riding & Wrenching
- Dancing with culture
- Design a Chicago Bike Tour
- El mundo Latino in Chicago: An Exploration of Chicago's Latinx Community
- Exploring Chicago’s Queer History
- Find Your Inner Chef
- Habitat for Humanity
- Just for Kicks
- Make Your Escape (Room)
- Making Music
- PADI Scuba Diving Certification and Training
- Sports Marketing: A Strategic Perspective
- Survivor
- Theatre in Chicago
- The Greatest City in the World Chicago Gospel
- Treemendous Forest Preserves
- Urban Agriculture
- Wellness: Mind & Body
- What Makes a Neighborhood?: Art, Advocacy, and Food
- Yarn Bombing
The out-of-town offerings included:
- Canyoneering & Rock Climbing Adventure
- Civil Rights Trail 2022
- Coral Reef Experience in Florida Keys
- Cycling Through the Sonoran Desert
- Detroit: Invention and Reinvention in a Great American City
- Exploring the Pacific: Oceanography of Southern California
- Latin Iditarod: Dogsledding
- Mountain Biking in Moab
- The Ancestral Heritage of The Land of Enchantment
- The Raw & The Cooked: A Literary Feast in Michigan
- There is No Business Like Show Business!: LA TV & Film
Check out more photos and videos from our PWeek take over on Latin's Instagram @latinschoolofchicago at #latinpweek.
Around School
- Around School
- Community & Traditions
- upper school
Congratulations to our student-athletes who have committed to playing a sport in college next year!
Margot B. ’22 is playing ice hockey at Gustavus Adolphus College. Zachary W. ’22 is rowing at Lehigh University. Mehak D. ’22 is playing squash at Colby College. Lauren V. ’22 is playing water polo at Pomona College. And Mia W. ’22 is swimming at Mount Holyoke College.
Go Romans!
Athletics
- Around School
- Athletics
- upper school
Ben Orlin, acclaimed math educator and author, visited the lower, middle and upper school math departments on Thursday, March 3.
He popped into Upper School Math Teacher Zach McArthur's calculus class and fielded questions on Gabriel's horn, a mysterious figure that has infinite surface area yet finite volume, as well as Koch's snowflake and the coastline of California, which both turn out to have infinite length.
He also spent the afternoon playing math games with the math teachers in preparation of the release of his new book, "Math Games with Bad Drawings."
Orlin is the author of "Math with Bad Drawings" and "Change is the Only Constant."
Around School
- Academics
- Around School
- lower school
- middle school
- upper school
How We Approach Teaching and Learning
We are a community of learners. We strive to grow as students, as educators, and as caring and engaged members of our Latin community and the amazing city of Chicago. Our students learn from the past, focus on the present, and prepare for the future.
Experience Academic Excellence
A Wide Variety of Courses and Innovative Electives
We offer more than 160 courses each year.
Small Classes
Small class size encourages continual interaction and sharing of ideas.
- average class size: 14
- student-to-faculty ratio is 8:1
Strong Teacher/Student Relationships
Teachers are passionate about their subject areas and are available to students inside and outside the classroom.
Freedom to Pursue a Passion and Create Your Own Class.
If you have a passion for languages, for instance, you can double up. Take French and Chinese, Latin or Spanish for example.
Students can develop independent study courses where they work one-on-one with a faculty member on a self-designed curriculum.
I understood the value of this education first hand when I went off to college. My persistence and strong desire to learn and connect with my professors was a reflection of the close relationships I made with my teachers at Latin.
Experiential Learning
Learning at Latin is experiential and project-based, including simulations, mock trials and hands-on lab work.
Examples of experiential learning:
- Antigone performance for Global Cities
- tenth grade Nuremberg Trials simulation
- senior projects
- Project Week
When students are conscious and proactive about learning, it provokes a more personal response to engaging with the material.
seeing stars
The upper school Advanced Acting Company class performed the play “Silent Sky” by Lauren Gunderson during the 2018-19 school year. This true story of 19th-century astronomer Henrietta Leavitt, whose quest to measure the distance of stars begins at Harvard Observatory and ends up changing our understanding of the universe.
Advanced Acting Company is made up of juniors and seniors who have taken classes in the upper school acting curriculum. The course culminates in a production fully produced and managed by students. With the rehearsal process embedded into class time throughout the semester, it allows the cast and crew to delve deeper into the play, spending more time on script and character analysis, ensemble building and dramaturgy, while also providing students opportunities to oversee behind-the-scenes work like costume and makeup design.
At Latin, I value the project-based learning where students are able to take their own interests outside of school and bring them into the classroom and share their passions with others authentically.
I love the way that Latin accepts everyone. No matter race, gender identity, sexual orientation, etc., Latin is always accepting and welcoming to everyone.
Latin emphasizes self-advocacy and empowers students to ask questions and explore, not to study and regurgitate answers.
I chose to become a student at Latin because I am interested in a wide range of topics that expand far beyond the traditional academics curriculum, and Latin has fulfilled that expectation vey well.
FAQ
- How do you support students new to the school?
- How are parents kept apprised of their child’s progress?
- There are so many course possibilities! How do students choose what is best for them?
- What is Latin’s schedule?
- How big are classes?
- How many AP courses does Latin offer?
- Do students have the opportunity to focus on one specific area of study?
- Can students receive college credit for work done at Latin?
- What opportunities for leadership exist for my child?
How do you support students new to the school?
How are parents kept apprised of their child’s progress?
There are so many course possibilities! How do students choose what is best for them?
What is Latin’s schedule?
How big are classes?
How many AP courses does Latin offer?
Do students have the opportunity to focus on one specific area of study?
Can students receive college credit for work done at Latin?
What opportunities for leadership exist for my child?
Do you have questions? We would love to hear from you.

Suzanne Callis
Titles:
Dean of Community Learning, Upper School English
Degrees:
B.A. Keene State College
M.A. Middlebury College
M.A. Middlebury College

Timothy Cronister
Titles:
Director of Student Life, Interim Director of Athletics
Degrees:
B.A. Haverford College
M.A. New York University
M.A. New York University

Joseph Edwards
Titles:
Dean of Students, Grades 11 and 12
Degrees:
B.A. University of Chicago
M.A. University of Chicago
EdD Creighton University
M.A. University of Chicago
EdD Creighton University

Bridget Hennessy
Titles:
9th and 10th Grade Dean of Students, Upper School History
Degrees:
B.A. Loyola University-New Orleans
M.A. University of New Orleans
M.A. University of New Orleans

Karen Horvath
Titles:
Assistant Director of the Upper School
Degrees:
B.A. DePaul University
M.A. Argosy University
M.A. Argosy University

Kristine Von Ogden
Titles:
Upper School Director, Mary Gertrude White Endowed Principalship
Degrees:
B.A. University of Chicago
M.A. New York University
M.A. New York University
upper school
Excellence. Integrity. Community.
