Historic donation doesn’t mean new name for New Trier’s athletic fields in Northfield

New Trier High School received its largest donation in 2025. But the donating family had a wish: The facilities they funded cannot be renamed for at least 25 years. 

The New Trier School Board unanimously voted on Monday, July 13, to respect those wishes and not rename its renovated fields and stadium on the school’s Northfield campus. 

During that 25-year time span, however, the donor family will have the option to request naming for the facilities, according to the decision from the school board. 

New Trier’s Northfield campus features the school’s primary outdoor athletic facilities, including Robert Naughton Field at New Trier Stadium, which hosts football, soccer, lacrosse and field hockey contests. Those facilities also include several practice fields around the stadium, press boxes, a concession building with bathrooms and more. 

Phase 1 of the Northfield athletic renovations began in summer 2025 after the high school received the $10 million anonymous donation. The family’s donation covers a majority of the project’s $14.2 million price tag. 

According to previous Record reporting, the project includes new synthetic turf for three fields, including the stadium; the creation of two new fields; an additional press box; five new scoreboards; energy-efficient lighting; a community walking path; and an outdoor workout area.

The board also voted unanimously, in a joint action, on Monday to rename a new scoreboard after legendary New Trier football coach Eugene “Chick” Chichowski, who died in March 2025 at the age of 90. 

The scoreboard in Field 2, a practice field adjacent to the stadium, was funded through a $38,000 donation effort from New Trier football alumni and many student-athletes coached by Cichowski, leading to the renaming. 

Cichowski started at New Trier as a boys physical education teacher and an assistant football and wrestling coach in 1962. He went on to become the head football coach and lead the Trevians to nine conference championships, 145 victories, a 75% winning percentage, and a No. 1 state ranking in 1973.

The renovations are expected to wrap up just in time for the upcoming fall sports season. 

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