At a Glance | Elm

Elm Middle School provides a comprehensive, standards-based public education to students in grades 6-8 as part of Elmwood Park Community Unit School District 401.

Our school is located in Elmwood Park, Ill., a Near West suburb of Chicago with a population of about 25,000. Our nickname is the Cougars, and our school colors are red and black. We are District 401's only middle school. Elm offers a rigorous three-year curriculum organized within the framework of our College & Career Pathways program.

Our final total enrollment for 2021-22 was 675 students.*

6th Grade: 212
7th Grade: 243
8th Grade: 220

*PLEASE NOTE: All enrollment figures were final for 2021-22 as of May 26, 2022.

Elm's Mission Statement

The faculty, staff, students and community of Elm Middle School are devoted to academic excellence. In addition, we feel it is important for students to develop a sense of self-esteem and confidence in order to ensure success in high school and to enable them to make the correct decisions that will guide them later in life. We believe in individual differences, responsible behavior and an obligation of students to serve their community.

Address and Map

Elm Middle School, 7607 W. Cortland St., Elmwood Park, IL 60707

Administration

If you would like to email any of the individuals listed below, please click the name of the person you want to reach. The main office phone number is 708-452-3550.

Title	Name	Phone
Principal	Ms. Ashley Groeneveld	708-452-3550
Assistant Principal	Mr. David Parolin	708-452-3550
Dean of Students	Mr. Michael Goodman	708-452-3550

Office Staff

To email any of the individuals listed below, please click the name of the person you want to reach. The main office phone number is 708-452-3550.

Title	Name	Phone
Principal’s Secretary	Ms. Maria Vargas	708-583-6225
Attendance Office Clerk	Ms. Jean Tito	708-583-6226

Main Office Contact Information

If you want to reach us by email, please use the general information email address listed below, or send your message to the appropriate individual listed elsewhere on this page.

Phone	Fax	General Email	Office Hours
708-452-3550	708-452-0662	elminfo@epcusd401.org	7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays (Closed during winter and summer breaks)

Reporting Absences

Each day a student is absent from school, the absence must be reported to Elm's attendance clerk. To do this, parents/guardians have two options:

OPTION 1 — Contact the attendance clerk by phone or email.
OPTION 2 (new) — Submit an absence form via PowerSchool's parent portal or app.

Please scroll down for information about each option.

► OPTION 1: PHONE OR EMAIL

To report an absence by phone or email:

If calling, use the attendance voicemail at 708-583-6600 before 9 a.m. on the day of the absence.
If emailing, use elmattendance@epcusd401.org before 9 a.m. on the day of the absence.

Parents/guardians should leave the following information:

Student name and year in school (please spell your child's last name).
Student ID number.
Date of absence.
Reason for absence, and the name and daytime phone number of the parent.

► OPTION 2: POWERSCHOOL

To report an absence via PowerSchool's parent portal or app, follow the directions in this video:

Instructions for Submitting PowerSchool's Student Absence Form

As noted above, a parent or legal guardian is required to contact Elm's attendance clerk every day the student is absent from school. If the contact is not received before 9 a.m. on the day of the absence, the absence will be considered unexcused.

When In-Person Instruction Is Not Possible

When weather conditions become too severe for in-person instruction, remote learning days will be used in lieu of canceling school.

With this in mind, families are advised to make it a habit for their students to bring their Chromebooks home every night.

In the event of a remote learning day due to severe weather or other emergency, we will post notifications to students, parents, employees and community via multiple media sources.

If You Visit Elm

All visitors to Elm Middle School during hours when students are present must sign in and out at the visitor check-in area and obtain a visitor’s badge.

School-age visitors are not permitted during school hours.

School Hours for Students

Full Day	Breakfast	Entrance	Start of Classes	Dismissal	Bus	Late Bus
Tuesdays-Fridays	7:35 a.m.	7:45 a.m.	7:55 a.m.	3:09 p.m.	3:15 p.m.	4:15 p.m.
Early Release	Breakfast	Entrance	Start of Classes	Dismissal	Bus	Late Bus
Mondays	7:35 a.m.	7:45 a.m.	7:55 a.m.	2:09 p.m.	2:15 p.m.	TBA