later attend Crystal Lake South High School, and some later attend Crystal Lake Central High School. Prairie Grove Junior High School was built in 1998 and opened in 1999 which is the newest Middle School in Crystal Lake. It also serves its very own district known as District 46. Prairie Grove is home to the Panthers. Most students who attend Prairie Grove later attend Prairie Ridge High School. Additional schools serving Crystal Lake include Lord and Savior Lutheran School, a Pre-K-8 grade school of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod in Crystal Lake, St. Thomas the Apostle, a private Roman Catholic school that serves Pre-K through eighth grade, also in Crystal Lake, Immanuel Lutheran School, a private Lutheran school that serves Pre-K through eighth grade, also in Crystal Lake, Alexander Leigh Center for Autism in McHenry, a full day, year-round therapeutic day school for children 3–21 years old with autism spectrum disorder, OHI, multiple disabilities, developmental delay and/or intellectual disabilities, and the School of Expressive Arts & Learning campus in Woodstock for those with learning disorders and autism spectrum disorder. Additionally, there are two colleges in Crystal Lake: McHenry County College, a community college, offers associate degrees. Columbia College also has an extension campus based in Crystal Lake. Public transportation Crystal Lake is located northwest of Chicago, is about a 45-minute drive from O'Hare International Airport, and is near several major highways and interstates. The Metra Rail Union Pacific Northwest Line provides transportation to and from Chicago, and all other stations on Metra's Northwest Line. Taxi service in Crystal Lake is provided by the Crystal Lake Cab Company, Crystal Lake Taxi Services, and American Dependable. Also serving Crystal Lake is the Pace Bus system, which is the owned by the RTA (Regional Transit Authority). Sister cities Holzgerlingen, Germany (since 1996) Notable people See also Cary, Illinois Lakewood, Illinois Bull Valley, Illinois Huntley, Illinois Woodstock, Illinois References External links Crystal Lake website Cities in Illinois Populated places established in 1836 Chicago metropolitan area Cities in McHenry County, Illinois 1836 establishments in Illinois