The Minuteman logo and mascot of Concord High School, in Concord Township, in Elkhart Illinois signals the clear connection to Concord, Massachusetts.
It was a short drive from South Bend Indiana, the home of my cousin Don, to Concord Township. Bill and I arrived the week before the school year opened, so the hallways were bustling with new teachers in the midst of orientation and older teachers getting their classrooms ready. Tim Tahara, the head of Concord High School was so generous with his time.
According to Tim, there is no center to the township of Concord. There are a few stores, but the school is the heart of Concord. Students are drawn from neighboring townships in Elkhart, but the middle and the high schools are the focus point of the community.
It hadn't always been that way. Back in 1948, Elkhart had been known as the trailer and RV capital of the world; there were over 100 manufacturers of trailers . Elkhart was also the home of Miles Laboratories, the makers of Alka-Selzer and One-A-Day Vitamin. So between Miles Lab and the RV manufacturers, generally one parent stayed home to look after the kids and they were well-prepared for school when they started in kidergarden. "Concord was pretty rural with many single family homes, but in the past 15 years, more apartment complexes were built and each of these included federally mandated subsidized housing. "Our demographics have changed. We are 35-45 % Hispanic and 10% Black. Our students speak 19 different languages. We are adjusting to the diversity."
It hadn't always been that way. Back in 1948, Elkhart had been known as the trailer and RV capital of the world; there were over 100 manufacturers of trailers . Elkhart was also the home of Miles Laboratories, the makers of Alka-Selzer and One-A-Day Vitamin. So between Miles Lab and the RV manufacturers, generally one parent stayed home to look after the kids and they were well-prepared for school when they started in kidergarden. "Concord was pretty rural with many single family homes, but in the past 15 years, more apartment complexes were built and each of these included federally mandated subsidized housing. "Our demographics have changed. We are 35-45 % Hispanic and 10% Black. Our students speak 19 different languages. We are adjusting to the diversity."
Denise Segan, the head of Human Resources at Concord High, spent over 1/2 hour with us. The conversation started on an optimistic note "What I like about Concord High School is it is right sized - 5400 students. It's a family atmosphere. Decisions are made for what is best for the students. We consider their emotional well-being as well as their academic, athletic and artististic side." Eventually the conversation delved into the woes of contract negotiations and the impact of limitations to school funding. Much of the benefits such as prep time and extra school resources have been stripped out of union negotiations by state mandates. The only things negotiable are salary and wage-related benefits. "Indiana is now in the bottom 1/3 of all the states regarding funding." "Per capita funding?"asked Bill. "Everything, per capita ,teachers salary, everything " replied Diane. "I serve on the Governor's Commission for Teachers' Salary Compensation.. and we are very low. .. There's a number of ways of looking at it , but we are always in the bottom 1/3." This commission was set up by the governor and he put eight business folks either CEOs or CFO of large corporations and then he created an advisor board, and I'm one of them. We gather information on where the money comes from - federal, state and present it to the Commission." The money they give out is based on student enrollment. Tim had explained that the needs in Concord are much greater than in much of Indiana. 35-45 % of the students are Hispanic and 10% Black, and generally they are not as well prepared for school when they enter the system. Some funding is distributed based on testing results, but but 19 different languages are spoken amongst the students and Tim is proud of the 70% passing rate on the state-wide tests."
Denise walked us through a labyrinth of halls to the new computer lab where we met Tim's wife, also named Denise.
Just months before COVID-19 was going to turn the education world on head, Concord had implemented five on-line courses. Denise was leading this effort and the new computer lab was set up in order to accommodate a variety of learning styles and teaching methodologies. "Asynchronous learning" was going to become a key component to education over the net 2-1/2 years. The school system was also implementing on-line learning because numerous snow days consistently extended the school's calendar year.
Bill and I left thoroughly impressed by the Concord High School in Elkhart, but a quick internet search revealed three interesting tidbits about CHS.
The Concord High School Marching Band is one of the finest in the state. They have won numerous state championship, and I hope we can arrange to have them perform on Patriot's Day In Concord MA in the near future.
Shawn Kemp, future six-time NBA all-star, played his high school hoops in Concord. Kemp led his team to the state championship finals and was drafted in the first round by the Seattle Super Sonics.
Barack Obama held two rallies at Concord High School in 2009 and 2016. Boy did the presidency age him.
Bill and I drove around to see what else existed in Concord. There were a few businesses.
As Tim had mentioned, the township of Concord had seen better days.
The mall was closed.
We found lunch at Grandma's House of Pancakes, where we had a pleasant chat with Kelly and Donna.
"The best part of living in Concord? The housing is reasonable and there's plenty of work. There are lots of factories. Did you know we are the RV capital of the world?"
"We are near a lot of places like South Bend and Lake Michigan and Chicago. The best part ofliving in Concord is you can go other places!"
Nay, the best part of Concord Township, in Elkhart County, Indiana is the schools that form the heart of the community.
"The best part of living in Concord? The housing is reasonable and there's plenty of work. There are lots of factories. Did you know we are the RV capital of the world?"
"We are near a lot of places like South Bend and Lake Michigan and Chicago. The best part ofliving in Concord is you can go other places!"
Nay, the best part of Concord Township, in Elkhart County, Indiana is the schools that form the heart of the community.
