In the 1950s, the population of Proviso High School (East) began to exceed its capacity and the solution was the building of a new high school. In 1953, researchers from the University of Chicago recommended that the school district begin planning to expand and school district officials began examining the purchase of land for a new school. By 1955, the school population had grown to over 3,400 students, with an estimated increase to over 6,500 students by 1956. In June 1955, the board accepted a recommendation to purchase a 60 acre site in the town of Hillside and planned a bond issue for the autumn. In November, the bond issue was approved by a 5900-626 vote. In the summer and autumn of 1956, the district began accepting bids for construction of the new school which was to be designed by Perkins and Will. The original designs for the school called for a maximum capacity of 2,500 students. The school would have two 3-story academic wings, a two story wing that would house a library and administrative offices, a single story wing for maintenance, cafeteria, shops, and art rooms, as well as a two story gymnasium. As construction neared, there were changes made to the designs. The school was now designed to be expandable up to a maximum of 4,000 students. The gymnasium area was now to consist of four smaller gyms that could be combined into a spectator gym with seating for 4,000, in addition to a wrestling room, an orthopedic gym, a dance studio, nine locker rooms. The cafeteria, auditorium, and boiler rooms were specifically designed for expansion. The cost at the start of construction was $5 million. The school opened after a cost of just under $7.5 million. In 1958, Proviso West rose on the fairways and greens of the old golf course in Hillside, Illinois. It seemed more like a corporate campus than a suburban high school. It was built in the suburban-boom-town days of the 1950s...it was built to endure. Proviso West was more than a school: it was a symbol. The dedication ceremony was on November 16, 1958. Later on, at the punch-and-cookie tours arranged by volunteers, several thousand people came to admire the place their tax dollars had built. And what a place it was, with floor-to-ceiling windows and sweeping curves and airy space, with touches like the outdoor mall what could be used for student dances and the mosaic mural of Sioux Indian themes that arched way along the western facade. The grounds, at first glance are just as lovely; well-kept wooden benches, an outdoor stage, the Senior Circle courtyard so filled with the chirping of birds. All the shrubbery impeccably manicured and flat topped. In one corner of the Senior Circle there is an elegant sundial. Near the sundial is a stone bench with an inscription that says, "The Future Belongs to Those Who Prepare for it." The Chicago newspapers heralded the school's opening. The first graduating class was in 1961. Since then, every class that has entered its doors has carried on the tradition and spirit that is of,
PROVISO WEST HIGH SCHOOL. Ours is a beckoning future
Ours is the future of Proviso West
