The most recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in the Chicago area, called “Operation Midway Blitz,” started this fall on Sept. 6, and enforcement of current government mandates continue now into 2026. According to the nonprofit journalism group The Marshall Project, around 1,600 people have been taken during these raids so far. The impact is felt here in Oswego, far beyond Chicago city limits.
“We are not safe," said OH senior Sidney Blanco simply. "Especially because there is so much that is not being said in the news, or out in the media that people know. Not that long ago, I found out that... Renee [[Good]] got killed [[from the raids]],” referencing the Jan 7 death of Renee Nicole Good who was shot in Minneapolis, in her car, by an ICE agent.
“[[In]] Oswego specifically, I know that we have a lot of scared people and a lot of scared citizens... a lot of scared friends and family," said an OH anonymous resident. "They are afraid to live their daily lives. They [[are]] afraid to go to the store. They're afraid to go home at night.”
Residents are impacted in different ways by the enforcement of the current ICE mandates, and each person sees the situation through a different lens.
OH is already halfway through its '25-26 school year, and students are looking forward to ending the year strong. Seniors and early graduates are especially looking forward to graduating and moving on to the next chapter of their lives.
“I graduate in May this year,” said OH senior Victor Sanchez, “[[and]] I’m pretty excited to move on.”
As good as these celebrations sound, there are some final hurdles seniors have to overcome to receive their diplomas and a handshake. There are some graduation requirements that are not course-based.
“[[One]] of the graduation requirements [[that]] students need to complete [[is]] a FAFSA form," said OH counselor David Mattes. "[[Students]] can either complete the FAFSA or [[they]] can opt out.”
The announcement of Homecoming Court nominees through the OH speakers during the 2nd period on Friday marked the official start of Homecoming Week. Students got excited when they heard familiar names through the speakers, and the nominees proudly make their way to the OH main office.
Every year, there are 10 members of the court, all of whom are seniors. This year, the Homecoming King nomination winners are: Kobe Jones, Chase Berkenson, Kam Jenkins, Anthony Mullen, and Michael Holmstrom. Homecoming Queen nomination winners are: Mia Medina, Ashley Cook, Gia Smith, Ali Bauman, and Morgan Pawlisz.
These nominees are chosen by who received the most votes via an online form.
“I posted on my Snapchat story, like, mostly every day, just telling people to vote,” said Cook.
OH’s National English Honor Society (NEHS) empowered local literacy efforts by organizing and hosting a school book drive in the past weeks by working with school and local community partners to ensure the event's success.
The book drive ran from Jan. 19 to Jan. 30, and as donations came in, NEHS members orchestrated the event with a meaningful objective.
“The purpose of our book drive is to support literacy in our communities… We're trying to get as many books out to young students as we can so that everyone has an equal opportunity to keep reading,” said NEHS President and senior Gabrielle Baier.
On Jan 6, at the beginning of second semester, OH implemented a new Chromebook policy that had been underway since August. The main difference is that Chromebook chargers are no longer available to be borrowed by students. The new policy aims to solve one of the main problems the tech hub has seen.
“Since we can’t track chargers, we decided to try something new,” said OH Instructional Technology Coach Jaclyn King. “Instead of loaning chargers, we charge devices and provide a loaner device to students.”
If a student brings an uncharged Chromebook to school, they just need to trade it in for the day, and will swap the loaner for their (now) charged Chromebook later in the day.