Lake County Gazette

Students in Mr. Micetich’s Woods 3 “Fab Lab” class at Coal City Community Unit School District 1 are engaging in practical projects that serve both their school and the broader community. The course involves students in activities such as creating gifts for senior night athletics and constructing props for the marching band, allowing them to apply their skills to real-world tasks.

The Fab Lab program is designed to emphasize service, encouraging students to take pride in producing high-quality, functional work that benefits others. According to the district, these experiences help foster a sense of contribution among participants.

Coal City Community Unit School District 1 includes schools across Grundy and Will counties, serving a diverse student population through its various educational centers: Coal City Early Childhood Center, Coal City Elementary School, Coal City High School, Coal City Intermediate School, and Coal City Middle School (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/).

Data from the Illinois State Board of Education shows that the district employs 153 teachers with an average salary of $69,297 before pension contributions; most teachers are women (77.9 percent), while men make up 22.1 percent. The district also reports no teachers with more than ten absences per year (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/).

Demographically, the student body is primarily White (86.9 percent), with Hispanic students making up 9.6 percent; Black and Asian students each represent 0.6 percent of enrollment (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/).

In terms of spending, the district allocated $21,619 per student in 2020 for a total expenditure of $47 million (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/).