Lake County Gazette

Mundelein High School Principal Alex Taylor received a Latinx Community Award on September 30, recognizing her contributions to the school community. The award, presented by Wintrust Banks in partnership with Fig Factor Media Publishing, honors local Latinx leaders who work or live in the banks' suburban areas and are seen as making a positive impact.

Taylor was nominated by Herbert Juarez, an MHS alumnus and Assistant Vice-President of Personal Banking at Mundelein Community Bank. Juarez met Taylor during Freshman Orientation Night. “I was very impressed with her and with the interaction we had with the staff at the school,” Juarez said. “When I see her motto for the school year, ‘Yes we can / Sí se puede’, that goes a long way for us. As a parent, it was very refreshing for me to see that. The beauty of it is that she is the first Latina principal we’ve had in our community.”

Award recipients were honored at the annual ceremony held at Wintrust headquarters in Rosemont. Taylor joins Irma Garcia of IG Tax and Accounting in Mundelein, who also received the award this year, and MHS Security Director Fred Kliora, who was recognized two years ago.

“I was humbled to receive the award,” Taylor said. “Out of the accolades I've received, this was the most significant to me because it came from a community member who happens to be a parent.”

Mundelein Consolidated High School District 120, which includes Mundelein High School, serves Lake County. According to the Illinois State Board of Education, the district employs 130 teachers with an average salary of $91,610; about 52.6 percent are women and 47.4 percent are men. There are no teachers in the district with more than 10 absences in a school year. The student population is 41.1 percent White, 2.3 percent Black, 45.2 percent Hispanic, and 5.7 percent Asian. In 2020, the district spent $29,799 per student, totaling $61,653,428. More information is available on the Illinois Report Card website: https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/