Elgin students attending Central High earn perfect ACT scores
Caleb Goldenstein and Sanay Gulati, Elgin residents who attend Central High School in Burlington, have earned perfect composite scores of 36 on the ACT test.
Just 0.2% of students nationwide annually achieve a perfect score, according to a Central High School news release.
“I was in utter disbelief staring at the 36,” Gulati said in the release. “I even had to check a couple of times to make sure I was reading it right. It was an incredible moment I’ll never forget.”
Gulati is the school’s student council president, National Honor Society president and Key Club vice president. He’s earned national recognition through SkillsUSA, math team and NIU Business Olympics, and co-founded the school’s coding and debate clubs.
In the release, Goldenstein said he spent so much time taking PSATs and preparing for the SAT that he didn’t take the ACT too seriously.
“I was on college visits and working on my ‘promposal’ instead of studying,” he said. “It was a complete shock when I opened up the score report.”
Goldenstein has been a member of the school’s soccer and lacrosse teams, belongs to the National Honor Society and German Honor Society, and is a state champion with Central’s SkillsUSA team. He participates in Academic Bowl and the debate, German, service and investment clubs.
Census data shows Elgin still No. 6 in population in Illinois
Elgin remains the sixth most populous city in Illinois, according to recently released numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The city’s population has increased from 113,922 in July 2023 to 114,710 in July 2024, census data shows.
Despite the increase, Elgin remains at the sixth spot for total population outside of Chicago. Aurora is no. 2 with 180,710 residents, followed by Naperville,153,124; Joliet, 151,837; and Rockford, 147,486. Following Elgin is Springfield, Peoria, Champaign and Waukegan.
Naperville’s growth over the period was enough to move it from fourth most-populous state to third, surpassing Joliet.
For more information, go to www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-total-cities-and-towns.html.
Fox Valley Theatre staging ‘Green Day’s American Idiot’
The Fox Valley Theatre Company will present the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical “Green Day’s American Idiot” this weekend and next at Elgin Community College’s Blizzard Theater.
Featuring songs from Green Day’s 2024 “American Idiot” album and its 2009 release “21st Century Breakdown,” the show will be staged June 13-15 and June 20-22. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are $18 for adults, $12 for students and seniors.
According to the ECC Arts Center website, the production is not recommended for anyone under age 16 because of strong language, adult themes, sexual situations and simulated drug use.
For more information or to purchase tickets, go to eccartscenter.org/tickets/eventdetails.aspx#event-25CTE2.
South Elgin’s Tuna Kahuna Fishing Derby set for Saturday
The 2025 Tuna Kahuna Fishing Derby will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday, June 14, at the pond in Blackhawk Park, 35W003 Route 31, South Elgin.
Free and open to children ages 15 and younger, the event offers prizes for the largest and smallest fish caught, according to the village’s summer programming guide. Bait can be purchased, and concessions will be sold.
Register at www.southelgin.com/residents/special_events/tuna_kahuna.php or onsite on the day of the derby starting at 8 a.m.
