Lafayette High School (New York City)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lafayette High School |
|
| Established | 1939 |
| Type | Public |
| Principal | Jolanta Rolhoff |
| Students | Approx. 2400 |
| Location | Benson Avenue Brooklyn New York City, New York United States |
| Colors | Red |
| Website | http://www.lhsnyc.net/ |
Lafayette High School is a large secondary school located in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn, New York City, New York . It is currently one of the low performing high schools of the city and is operated by the New York City Department of Education.
[edit] History
Lafayette High School is situated in what was formerly the town of Gravesend. All the towns in Kings County were settled by the Dutch with the exception of Gravesend, which was first settled by a colony of English people under the leadership of Lady Deborah Moody, a woman of considerable wealth and education, who took a prominent part in public affairs, and whose home was on Neck Road. According to the New York City Ward Map of Kings County in 1899, the school is located on the former property of John Carter. This map reveals a frame house with stables on the site of the building. The land was originally swampy, sandy soil covering about ten acres.
Lafayette High School, the first building of its type, was designed to accommodate about 4,000 pupils. The cost of the site was $211,350 while the building itself necessitated an outlay of $2,820,000. There are two other high schools in the city, which are duplicates of this type – Christopher Columbus and William Cullen Bryant. Dr. Frederick William Oswald was asked to assume the principalship of the new school. As the new building was not ready, the school was had to meet in three annexes. These annexes were P.S. 180, with Mr. Joseph Grady in charge, assisted by Mr. Freilich and Mr. Abraham Margolies; P.S. 126, under the direction of Miss Dorothy K. Lewis and Mr. Robert Buda; and P.S. 192 with Mr. Walter Jacobsen in charge. On March 1939, the faculty had been increased to 156 members and the student population numbered some 4,500 boys and girls. On November 13, 1939, the formal exercises dedicating Lafayette High School took place in the auditorium. Among those present was Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia.
School activities early became an important part of life at Lafayette. On November 21, 1940, the first G.O. elections showed the following candidates victorious in the contest for school officers: Theodore Blinder, president; Gladys Deatsch, vice-president; Lillian Antin, secretary; Sabina La Salle, treasurer. Through the years principals, whether Mary Buda, Joseph Bellafiore, Leo Weitz, Irving I. Cohen, or Sheldon R. Friedberg 1986, recognized the importance of student activities and the Student Organization. The current principal has decided to discontinue all after school sports. There is also no longer a Gateway Program in the school under her leadership.
Lafayette is the New York HS with the most alumni (20) becoming baseball players. [1]
The school is shown during the chase scene of the Academy Award winning movie The French Connection.
In recent years Lafayette has experienced criminal activity involving their students. Along with Walton High School in the Bronx, the New York City Department of Education has labeled it an Impact School.
After showing much improvement, Lafayette has been removed from the Impact list.
[edit] Famous Alumni
|
|
|
[edit] External links
- Lafayette High School's official Wepage
- Feud Over Lafayette High School
- Thugs rule school at Lafayette High
|
Region 7 |
|
|---|---|
| High schools | Curtis | Dewey | Lafayette | Murrow | Staten Island Technical |
| Middle schools | IS 49 |
