Successful Graduates

Pekin Community High School is known for cultivating bright young individuals with promising futures. Many have gone on to pursue successful careers in medicine, government, publishing and other distinguished fields.

A prime example is Astronaut Scott Altman, a 1977 graduate of PCHS. Selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1994, Altman is a veteran of three space flights and has logged over 38 days in space.

Another example of an incredibly successful Pekin High graduate is Everett Dirksen. Here are a few of Dirksen’s major accomplishments:

• Served the U.S. House of Representatives for eight consecutive terms
• Elected to U.S. Senate in 1950
• Elected Minority Leader of the U.S. Senate in 1959, a post he held until his death
• Helped secure passage of the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
• Helped secure passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964