This video was created in 1987 as a part of a project with the goal of self-assessment for the school. Russell Ames, a new director for Uni, arrived in 1985 and wanted a way to assess how well Uni was functioning as a school. He wanted to start a dialogue amongst parents, teachers, students, and administrators about what was going well and what needed improvement. The video itself was meant to be a way to introduce and explain the mission of what Uni was and what it had to offer. It was made to be shown to a visiting team of outside evaluators, so in addition to sparking conversation amongst people within the school, the administrators could also get an outside perspective. Many people helped in the creation of the video, but there are a few names that stand out. History teacher Barbara Wysocki wrote the script and consulted with director Russell Ames. In the intro and outro of the video, there is an original musical composition written by Joe Futrelle and Rick Burkhardt, both of whom were Uni students at the time of the video’s making. The Japanese program at Uni is one of the major focuses of the video. The video mentions the trade imbalance between Japan and the US as one of the main reasons for having a class that teaches the Japanese language. At the time, Japan was experiencing an economic boom, so many thought it would be wise for Uni to have a class teaching Japanese language and culture. At the time, Uni was the only school in Illinois with a Japanese program, which made it a unique part of Uni’s curriculum.

0:00 to 2:30, Background/History on Uni
2:30 to 4:24, Japanese Program
4:24 to 5:06, Subfreshman Chemistry Program
5:06 to 6:47, Interactive LaserDisc
6:47 to 7:35, Uni High Student Make-up
7:35 to 8:35, Overall School Ideas
8:40 to 9:24, School Threatened to Close
8:40 to 9:55, The *Real* Uni Student
9:55 to 10:35, Uni Atmosphere and Outro