APRIL 2026                                                                                                                     THE EPCHS MONTHLY 

Dear EPCHS Families: 

It may be hard to believe, but we have entered the final full month of the 2025–2026 school year at Evergreen Park Community High School. April is a pivotal time—one that can set the tone for a strong and successful finish as we look ahead to many of our favorite end-of-year activities and celebrations.

As these final weeks approach, we encourage all students to remain focused and maintain the consistency and dedication they have demonstrated since the first day of school in August. This has been a year filled with accomplishments worth celebrating, and we invite you to read below to learn more about our recent successes, as well as what lies ahead in April and May.

Spring Break is just a few days away. We hope this time provides your family with an opportunity to rest, recharge, and refocus. We look forward to welcoming students back on Monday, April 13, ready to finish the year strong.

For families of our junior students, please note that the ACT will take place on Wednesday, April 22. Our curriculum team has worked diligently to prepare students for success on this important assessment. We ask for your support in ensuring your child is well-rested, prepared, and ready to perform their very best on test day.

Thank you, as always, for your continued partnership and support.

Sincerely, 

Thomas O'Malley, Superintendent 

👨‍⚖️MOCK TRIALS: American Law students in Mr. Gallagher's class held their mock trials. Students took on the roles of prosecutors, defense attorneys, witnesses and jury members as Mr. Gallagher served as the judge. 

🎨STEAM SUCCESS: In another successful STEAM project at EPCHS, students in Mrs. McArthur’s Graphic Design class first learned about a variety of plants and animals that they would later make colorful using their Wacom boards. They also used the boards to create an environment based on their animal of choice to add to their digital biomes. 

🔬FORENSIC SCIENCE CHAMPIONS! A team from Mrs. Papasideris' Forensic Science class finished in first place at a forensic science competition held at Argo Community High School this past month. 

A big congratulations goes out to Mustang team members Janisha Hubbard, Mace Hurley, Jasmine Ortiz, Aidan Shorts and Syniah Thomas.

EPCHS students, faculty and alumni shared their amazing talents at the annual National Honor Society Talent Benefit Concert on March 13.

The Evergreen Park community raised $1,135 for the I AM ALS Foundation, which raises money to help end Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease.

"This is my absolute favorite event of the entire EPCHS calendar," said NHS sponsor Ben Nesler. 

The night kicked off with history teacher Mr. Flannigan playing music with three alumni, and other acts included multiple dances from the EP Folkloric Dance Club, a song from the student a capella choral group Unaccompanied Minors, members of the rock band class, the uncanny identification of musical notes and pitches by Adam Bosch, and a whole host of other EP students sharing their amazing singing, dancing and musical abilities

The event was emceed by NHS members Julia O'Hare and Paula Rodriguez-Acevedo.

"The amount of dedication our students show in both performing in front of a large audience, and in turn, that audience showing out to support these young people on stage," Mr. Nesler said. "There are so many people who go into putting on a performance like this, and it is a true testament to the students, staff, and whole EP community."

EPCHS is proud of the hard work and dedication our students put in outside the classroom

🔭Science Olympiad: Our Science Olympiad team had a great showing at the South Suburban Conference competition held at Oak Forest High School, bringing home a number of medals and top four finishes. Congratulations to the following students for their outstanding performances:

🎤Choir: Four of EPCHS' choir events were recognized as "Best of Day" at the IHSA Solo and Ensemble Contest. Best of Day awards mean that, out of all the events the judge heard that day, they deemed these the best. Recognized from EPCHS in these were:

In all, our Music Department received 75 medals at the IHSA Solo and Ensemble Contest. 

Pictured, from left: Charlie Avros, Jamari Jeffries, Adrian Buenrostro and Isaiah Matthews.