TICKETS ON SALE FOR SANTA’S TROLLEY EXPRESS
It’s Christmas in June, with tickets already on sale for this winter’s Santa’s Trolley Express offered by the Fox River Trolley Museum in South Elgin.
Rides boarding at Blackhawk Station in the Jon J. Duerr Forest Preserve, 35W003 Route 31, are available for select weekend times and dates between Friday, Nov. 28, and Sunday, Dec. 20, according to the museum’s website. The rides on a 1959 subway train will include holiday stories, complimentary hot chocolate, singalongs and a visit from Santa.
Tickets are $38 per person through July 31; $45 from Aug. 1 through Oct. 31; and $50 per person starting Nov. 1. For tickets and more information, go to foxtrolley.org/visit/special-events/santas-trolley-express/#schedule.
U-46 MAKES THREE ADMINISTRATOR APPOINTMENTS
The District U-46 School Board has appointed three people to administrative roles for the upcoming school year.
Luis De León has been named principal at Streamwood High School, according to a news release. He has more than 20 years’ experience in education, and since 2023 has been an assistant superintendent for Oak Park Elementary School District 97. Prior to that, he worked for U-46 as principal of Tefft Middle School in Streamwood, principal of Laurel Hill Elementary School in Hanover Park, administrative intern at Harriet Gifford Elementary School in Elgin and a bilingual teacher at Nature Ridge Elementary School in Bartlett.
Rafael Martinez-Ortiz has been named principal of the Dream Academy in Elgin, where he has been working as associate principal since 2023. Prior to that, he worked at Elgin High School in roles that included assistant principal for freshman success, a divisional chair and dean of students. He also was a bilingual teacher at Elgin and Larkin high schools from 2007 to 2016, teaching biology, chemistry, geometry, health and environmental science.
Angela DeMay has been named assistant director of specialized student services compliance. She has served in similar roles for the past eight years, including director of student services for Skokie School District 73.5 since 2021.
ECC LAUNCHING TWO NEW CERTIFICATE PROGRAMS
Elgin Community College will offer two new basic vocational certificate programs this fall, one for pipe welding and the other for quality control technician.
The pipe welding certificate program will focus on gas tungsten arc welding, gas metal arc welding and shielded metal arc welding, according to the ECC website.
As part of the quality control technician certificate program, students will learn how to interpret engineering drawings, apply precision measurement techniques and use tools needed for the job. It can be completed in two semesters and requires no prerequisites.
For more information, go to elgin.edu/manufacturing.
