Westcott Continuation School took over, September 1946 where it continued until 1948, when a group of vocational high school students were admitted.  As membership increased, the Continuation School moved from Westcott building to the Princeton Branch of Westcott Vocational HS.  In 1962 the Princeton girls were moved into Westcott Vocational HS and the boys into the Tilden building.

Only the third floor of the building was used until January 1966, at which time the second floor was completed.  The first floor was completed March 1966 then the entire three-story building was then used for the high school.

​​​​​​Simeon Career Academy was named after teacher, administrator and specialist in Vocational Education, Neal Ferdinand Simeon.  Mr. Simeon was born in Chicago, Illinois on May 30, 1916 and was of Creole descent.  His family was from New Orleans; his father a cigar maker.  He had two sisters and three brothers; Lillian, Ethel, Omer, Albert and Leo.  Neal F. Simeon married Helen and to this union was born daughter Sharon A. Simeon.  
Mr. Simeon graduated from Doolittle Elementary School and went on to graduate from Wendell Phillips High School in 1934 where he was football captain and valedictorian.
Mr. Simeon won an academic scholarship to Northwestern University, but instead enrolled at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) where he starred in track and boxing.  While an undergrad, he was the IIT light heavyweight boxing champion and competed in the Golden Gloves.  He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from IIT in 1938 and was elected to Pi Tau Sigma, an honorary Mechanical Engineering fraternity.
 Following graduation, he briefly played semi-pro football and worked in the machine tool and printing supply industries where he was a tool designer.  He was also a licensed airplane pilot and was in one of the first groups to learn flying under a federal government program.  He held a ground instructor’s license and taught aviation mechanics at Tuskegee [Ala.] Inst article
 


As enrollment increased, Simeon was on the fast-track of becoming one of the best/fun schools, in Chicago, noted for their outstanding athletic programs and having won the City Baseball and Football Championships,1984, 2006 and 2007.

December 1963, after renovation of the third floor, Westcott Vocational HS and Continuation School moved into the building.  September 1964, the name of the high school changed to "Neal F. Simeon Vocational High School," in honor of educator, Mr. Neal F. Simeon.

Westcott was also known as Auburn Park Grammar School in honor of Oliver Spink Westcott who was a former principal and administrator, in the Chicago school system.  With the elimination of the Junior Highs, the building became a branch of Calumet HS until 1942.  During World War II (1942 - 1946), the United States Navy set-up a training center at Chicago Vocational HS (CVS) and the school was relocated to the Westcott building, where they stayed until the Navy withdrew, in 1946.

SAA Purpose

In 1945 he entered the Navy and served two years as a seaman.  While in the Navy, he was a Golden Gloves boxer.  He received his Masters in Education from Northwestern University in 1950. 
His career as an educator began when he became a teacher at Wendell Phillips Evening High School.  A short time later, he became a full time machine shop teacher at Dunbar Vocational High School where he successively served as Administrator, Placement Counselor, Assistant Principal, and as Director of Special Projects in Vocational Education.  His last position was as Director of Vocational Education and Guidance Centers for the Chicago Board of Education.  He was then the highest paid African American employee at the Board. 
In 1962, Neal F. Simeon was called upon by President Kennedy to represent the United States at the International Trade Fair in Lagos, Nigeria.  He was given a special leave of absence to supervise the educational and training aspects of the United States Exhibit of New Tools, New Skills, and New Markets.             
Mr. Simeon’s interest in the vocational training of Chicago’s youth was evident to all who observed his tireless devotion to his work.  He was vitally concerned with the special problems in the area of vocational education.  He was eminently qualified to assume the directorship of such a dynamic program of preparing the city’s youth for the forthcoming manpower requirements of our changing economy.
At the age of 46, Neal F. Simeon died on August 28, 1963 at Wesley Memorial hospital in Chicago, Illinois.

Information gathered by the Simeon Alumni Association from the SCA archives, Sharon A. Simeon and a 1963 Chicago Tribune Newspaper article.

Simeon HS History

The Simeon Alumni Association (SAA) was created to upgrade and enhance the quality of the academic and social experience of the students at Neal F. Simeon Career Academy.  Alumni gather together to lend a helping hand with enrichment, mentoring, and scholastic opportunities, which provides support to the youth of our alma mater.  SAA also seeks to foster an environment that encourages and maintains relationships among graduates.

Neal F. Simeon, The Educator

Established in September, 1949, Neal F. Simeon Career Academy was originally known as Westcott Vocational HS, located at 8023 S. Normal Avenue; Chicago, Illinois.

Kroger Company donated its warehouse located at 8235 S. Vincennes Avenue to the Board of Education for the cost of $1.

Simeon History