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See What Makes Pilgrim So Great
Come for a visit on Tuesday, January 23rd at 9:30am for an introduction and tour of Pilgrim Lutheran School. Continuing school tours are held on Tuesdays at 10am. Don’t miss the opportunity to see our school in action at the LEARNING FAIR, which is held for current and prospective parents on March 8th at 6:30pm. All the classrooms will be sharing and demonstrating their recent projects. Also a few music groups will be performing throughout the night in Maring Hall. For all prospective parents and guardians, please rsvp to office@pilgrimchicago.org.
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Academic excellence with a heart
- Individual attention with small class sizes (averaging 14 students, compared to a CPS average of 30)
- Academic excellence driven by the best of current educational practices
- An experienced and energized staff who inspire a love of learning
- A safe and intimate setting where the individual can flourish
- A high level of parental involvement
- Service to the community
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Comella Among Nation’s Best K-8 Principals
Pilgrim Lutheran School Principal Chris Comella has been named a 2018 National Distinguished Principal by the National Association of Elementary School Principals.
Each year the NAESP honors elementary and middle-school principals from across the country who set high standards for instruction, student achievement, character, and culture for their students, families, and staff members. Comella was one of only four private school principals to be recognized this year.
“Chris helps all of us to focus on how we can better teach to the whole child, and how we can enroll parents into a role of utmost support and engagement,” said Kristian Johnson, Pilgrim Lutheran Church’s pastor. In October, Comella will travel to Washington, D.C., for two days of activities planned to bring recognition to the elementary and middle-level educators chosen by the states, the District of Columbia as well as private and overseas schools.
Comella was nominated for the award by his fellow principals in the Evangelical Lutheran Education Association. His “persistence, professionalism and ministry have been acknowledged and affirmed throughout the nomination and selection process by [his] school, congregation, peers and national education leaders,” said Gayle M. Denny, executive director of the Evangelical Lutheran Education Association of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.
At Pilgrim he has focused on strengthening academic opportunities for all students as reflected in the hiring of a math specialist, the implementation of academic coaching, the fine-tuning of the 4th-8th grade instructional model, and a schedule that allows differentiated instruction across grades. Under his leadership, Pilgrim students engage in service learning at every age – be it helping out at the local food pantry, supporting a refugee family or baking cookies for the homeless.
Comella has served Pilgrim Lutheran as principal since 2013. A graduate of Wabash College in Indiana, Comella earned his Teaching Certification at DePaul University in Chicago and has a Master of Arts from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago.
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As Featured In Chicago Parent Magazine
At Pilgrim Lutheran Church and School in Chicago, the staff is incorporating theories they learned at an in-service workshop by Wheatridge Ministries to help increase students’ learning. That workshop taught that “brain breaks” are essential to student learning, and therefore, teachers are regularly leading their students in kinesthetic activities in the classroom to help them boost their performance, says Pilgrim Principal Chris Comella.
“Especially before we do any testing, teachers will be doing stretching or dancing or some kind of physical activity to get the blood flowing to the brain,” he says. “In other activities, teachers will musically chant things, or make up raps for prayers. Or they get up in math class and sing and dance the math rules, which helps ingrain them on the brain.”
They also use things like sign language and “reader’s theater” performances during chapel time to reinforce learning and engage the brain, he says.
“Anecdotal evidence shows us that kids are happier and more enthusiastic about learning if it’s fun,” he says. “It’s fun to do raps and chanting and reader’s theater. And in terms of test results, we think their scores spike by at least a few points because the physical activity helps keep them mentally focused.”
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Spotlight
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We're a community of learners in the heart of Ravenswood.
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We enable students to achieve a positive place for themselves in society.
Just a few of our community partnerships
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Ready to learn more?
