Tibbott Elementary School: 'We're College Bound!'

More than 600 Tibbott Elementary School students, teachers and staff cheered Wednesday in the school's annual College Week pep rally. 

"We are JRT! JRT is college bound!" they shouted. 

For the past three years, the school has held college-related events for its students. On Thursday, parents will be invited to a lemonade tailgate party, where the school will offer mock dorm room visits, a guest speaker for parents, a financial planning booth and football and cheerleading activities for the students. 

College Week got its start when a first grade teacher talked to her students about her own college experience. One student asked, "What's college?" Later, a third grader told a teacher, "My dad said I'm not going to college."

"How can we make them college and career ready if they don't know what college is," Tibbott Principal Ana Wilson said. Or if they already believe it's not a consideration, she said. "The mindset has to be changed." 

Wilson and her staff researched No Excuses University, which promotes cultivating a culture of college readiness and exposing students to college symbolism.

Tibbott students list reasons why they would not be able to go to college and then discuss the importance of not letting obstacles ruin opportunities. 

Each year, students are able to visit a mock dorm room inside the school. Tibbott has organized visits from college recruiters, including from North Central College, Southern Illinois University and Concordia University.

Students have also been able to visit a college campus. Tibbott fifth-graders visited the University of St. Francis in Joliet. The second-graders visited Lewis University in Romeoville. 

Here was this year's College Week schedule:

Monday 

 Each class will list on a banner the excuses they may have as to why they can’t go to college. (ex: too expensive) Classes will discuss the importance of not letting obstacles ruin opportunities.

Tuesday 

Each class will work on a poster displaying colleges that start with a certain letter of the alphabet.

Wednesday 

All-school pep rally 

Thursday 

Pay a quarter to wear your pajamas to school! All money raised will be used to buy college banners for Tibbott. In the evening, lemonade tailgate, with mock dorm room visits, a guest speaker for parents, a financial planning booth and football and cheerleading activities for the students. 

Friday 

College Virtual Tours online in the classroom.