Indian Prairie School District 204

The Indian Prairie School District 204 was formed in August 1972 when the residents of Wheatland Elementary District 40, Indian Plains Elementary District 182, and Granger Elementary District 90 voted 359 to 44 to merge into a single, unit district. The district educated its kindergarten-eighth graders in the four original schools, Wheatland, Indian Plains, the original Granger, and Longwood. The high school students attended what are now Naperville Central and North until the completion of Waubonsie Valley High School in 1975. This building also accommodated students in grades seven and eight until Thayer J. Hill Jr. High opened in 1981.

Since the inception of the Indian Prairie School District, school building principals and administration have encouraged active participation by parents. The parents formed Home & School Associations to organize volunteers and raise money for extra school programming and amenities. Superintendents met regularly with the Home & School Association presidents to get feedback and listen to their concerns. An early favorite meeting place was the IHOP restaurant at Rt. 59 and 75^th Street.

In 1987, an elementary student was seriously injured at a Home & School event.  Superintendent Thomas Scullen, in consultation with parent leaders, decided that the Home & School Associations be discontinued in favor of the national Parent Teacher Association. The PTA affiliation would require bonding of the money-handling officers and insurance to cover volunteers at functions. All existing elementary and middle school units converted to PTAs except Waubonsie. The high school kept its Home & School Association until Neuqua Valley High School opened in 1997. Waubonsie parents then elected to convert to a PTA.

District 204 PTAs were placed in Illinois PTA District 32 that encompasses most of Dupage County. In 1989, the PTAs formed a PTA council that became known as the Indian Prairie Parents’ Council (IPPC). Each unit sent its president to meet monthly with the superintendent and other key administrators. The council’s monthly meeting location rotated between the schools until the Crouse Education Center administration building opened in 1998. IPPC then was given a consistent meeting site in the upstairs boardroom. 

In the 1990's, District 204 was one of the fastest growing in the United States. The district built 14 buildings to accommodate a student population that would triple from less than 7000 in 1990 to over 21,000 by 2000. Another three buildings were opened from 2001-2002, an additional elementary school opened in 2007, and a third high school is planned to open in 2009. Currently, the district operates 34 buildings and leases additional building space.  There are 31 schools and nearly 29,000 students.

As the district’s population exploded in the 1990's, the size of the IPPC group grew as new schools opened. By 1995, when Gail McKinzie took over as superintendent, the Indian Prairie Parents’ Council consisted of the PTA president and a parent representative from each school.  Larger meetings meant a diminished opportunity for the superintendent to know each president. Dr. McKinzie, in collaboration with the council leaders, instituted the IPPC presidents’ meetings with a less formal setting in which to discuss local unit issues and parents concerns.

Today, IPPC consists of the PTA president and parent representative from each school and Indian Prairie Special Needs PTA, for a total of 31 local units. Indian Plains alternative high school does not have a separate local unit; parents join their student's home high school PTA. IPPC is lead by an at-large elected executive committee consisting of a president, two vice presidents, treasurer and secretary. The PTA umbrella continues to offer safeguards to protect each group’s money and volunteers, and training for officers and members to run an inclusive organization. IPPC and the local unit PTAs follow national PTA guidelines. Our members work on behalf of all children to promote healthy and safe school and home environments.

IPPC Past Presidents

District 204 Superintendents

Preschool/Elementary Schools:

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Middle Schools

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High Schools

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