Thomas Dooley Elementary School - Schaumburg, IL

Dooley Elementary School in Schaumburg, Illinois, is dedicated to creating a safe and supportive environment where every child feels inspired to reach his full potential to meet the challenges of the 21st century. The mission involves the active partnership of students, parents and staff, who are committed to the academic, social/emotional and physical development of our children.

Dooley serves 455 diverse students in kindergarten through sixth grade. Only 43% of Dooley students are Caucasian and 30% are English Learners, from families speaking 25 different languages. Dooley embraces this diversity, as it instills cultural awareness in all of our students.

Dooley offers a comprehensive education for students living within the school boundaries, and is also home to students from throughout the district who enrolled in the Japanese-English Dual Language and Early Instrumental Music (violin) programs at Dooley.

Dooley's staff members work in cohesive teams, called Professional Learning Communities, to plan instruction to meet the needs of every child. The teams use data to structure instruction, as well as instruction delivered during daily blocks of accelerated math and literacy. During these blocks, students who demonstrate mastery of skills receive enrichment lessons while other students receive support to help them build essential knowledge. We believe differentiation is imperative to student success.

Student ownership during goal-setting drives Dooley students and leads to their success. All children, starting in kindergarten, reflect on their academic and social/emotional successes and challenges to set individual goals. Through this goal-setting process, Dooley students become intrinsically motivated to achieve.