Lane Technical College Prep High School
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| Lane Technical College Prep High School |
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| Established | 1908 |
| Type | Public (magnet) secondary |
| Principal | Dr. Antoinette LoBosco |
| Students | 4,000 (approx) |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | Chicago, Illinois USA |
| Oversight | Chicago Public Schools |
| Colors | Myrtle Green and Old Gold |
| Mascot | The Indian |
| Newspaper | The Warrior |
| Website | www.lanetech.org |
Lane Technical College Prep High School, colloquially known as Lane Tech, is a prestigious magnet high school located in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the oldest schools in the city, and with an enrollment of over four thousand students, it is the largest. According to the school's website, Lane produced more future Ph.D. holders than any other high school in the country.
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[edit] School history
[edit] Foundation and early years
Named after Albert Grannis Lane, Lane Tech was founded in 1908 and dedicated on Washington's birthday in 1909 as the Albert Grannis Lane Manual Training High School. The school's name was changed in the same year to the Albert Grannis Lane Technical High School to reflect the expanding curriculum. The name was only recently changed to Lane Technical College Prep High School. The original location of the school was on Division and Sedgwick in Chicago.
Within the first few years of the school's operation, students could take advantage of a wide array of technical classes. Freshmen were offered carpentry, cabinet making, and wood turning. Sophomores received training in foundry, forge, welding, coremaking and molding. Juniors could take classes in the machine shop. Seniors were able to take electric shop which was the most advanced.
By 1930, Lane Tech had a student population of over 7,000. To alleviate the burden of such a large student body, plans for a new school were drawn up by Board of Education architect John C. Christensen. The groundbreaking ceremony was on June 24, 1930 and the location of Western and Addison is where the current school stands today.
Upon the school’s completion at its new location, over 9,000 students marched from Wrigley Field on its dedication day, September 17, 1934. Lane's huge student body necessitated that classes be held in three shifts.
[edit] Lane's contribution to the war efforts
During World War II, Lane Tech students ran drives to aid in the war effort. The drives generated over 3 million dollars in war bonds, a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber and four Red Cross ambulances. Additionally the shop classes constructed a glider which was given to the military.
Lane adopted a closed admission policy in 1958 on the school's 50th anniversary. All remedial classes were eliminated and only top tier students were admitted to the school. This coincided with the beginning of the space race between the United States and the USSR. Lane changed its educational policy to help ensure that the United States would not fall behind the Soviets in science and technology.
[edit] Admittance of female students
In 1971 one of the most drastic changes in the Lane's history occurred. Citing a drop in enrollment and lack of technical schools for girls, Superintendent James Redmond recommended that girls be admitted to Lane Tech. The Board of Education concurred and girls were admitted as students for the first time. Fifteen hundred male students protested the change but the decision was not changed. The fear was that academic achievement at the school would suffer.
[edit] Special School Events
Lane Tech is the only school in Illinois to still have a Memorial Day rally. In years past, Mr. James Finnerty presided over commemorating the veterans, but since his death Mr. George Semenek has taken over his duties. Lane Tech also has a massive pep rally every year before the homecoming game that the current principal, conducts.
Within the last two years, some controversy had taken place over then-principal Keith Foley, the former principal, incorporating religious ideas into a public school. These accusations were never proved true.
[edit] Lane Tech Fan Site
There is a fan site called http://www.lanetechfan.com/ devoted to Lane Tech sports history and sports news and information. Although the site is not officially affiliated with the school, the site is run by Lane Alumni and provides a great source of Lane Tech information.
[edit] Tech Classes at Lane Tech
Lane has numerous tech classes which specialize in certain areas. One such class is Radio Tv Production. The class revolves around video equipment and learning how to properly use it. The students are in charge of recording the schools many events.
[edit] Clubs and other activities
Lane Tech features many clubs and sports. Most of the clubs at Lane Tech are ethnic clubs, but there are also academic clubs like debate, academic decathlon and the Alpha program. Lane Tech has many sports teams including cross country, volleyball, basketball, wrestling, golf, bowling, swimming, track, football, softball, baseball, lacrosse, and soccer.
[edit] School song
The school song "Go, Lane, Go" was written in 1915 by a student named Jack T. Nelson. Lane was one of only a few schools at the time to have an original school song.
Go, Lane
For we are here to cheer for you,
Go, Lane
to you we'll e'er be true.
Be fearless and bold for the Myrtle and the Gold,
Add laurels to our fame
(Go, Lane, Go)
Go, Lane; we're with you,
Go Lane we'll cheer you,
Go, Lane and win this game;
Just take this as a little tip,
we're bound to win the championship,
So Go, Lane, Go, Lane Go!
(We're with you!)
Go, Lane, Go Lane, Go!
(Hit `em high! Hit `em low!)
Go Lane Go!
[edit] Lane Tech Alumni Association
The Lane Tech Alumni Association was established through the efforts of the January and June classes of 1932 and their involvement in the school's Diamond Jubilee celebration in 1983. The organization grew and was incorporated in 1986. Its purpose is to promote and enhance the reputation of Lane Tech, to provide scholarships, to assist and meet with Lane Tech students in preparing them for higher education and life after graduation, to disseminate and publish information regarding the graduates' accomplishments, to preserve the history of Lane, and to foster a closer fellowship among the graduates.
As of March 2006, Lane Tech Alumni Association has over 5,900 active members all over the world. As a result, the Lane Tech Alumni Association has the largest membership of any high school alumni organization in the entire United States.[citation needed]
The Lane Tech Alumni Association hosts Events, Reunion Information, and works to help all Lane Tech Alumni Advance and stay connected to each other.
Notable alumni include Adrian Zmed (IMDB Bio) of TJ Hooker fame, Phil Caveretta who played for the Chicago Cubs, Seymour Greenberg who was a top 10 US tennis player, Marty Robinson, Program host at WTTW-TV and WFMT-FM, Anna Davlantes news anchor at WMAQ-TV Chicago, violinist Rachel Barton Pine, actor Tony Alcantar, actress Justina Machado ("Vanessa Diaz" on HBO's Six Feet Under), and Rod Blagojevich, governor of Illinois who attended Lane for two years before graduating from Foreman High School. Olympic swimmer, 5 time gold medal winner and free-style world record holder Johnny Weismuller, best known for portraying "Tarzan the Ape Man" in the MGM film series 1932-1942 also graduated from Lane.
Another alumnus, Fritz Pollard, was the first African-American to be selected a college All-America while at Brown University, the first African-American to play in the annual Rose Bowl Game, and the first African-American to coach in the NFL.[1] He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005.[2]
[edit] References
- Lane Tech (2006) Lane Tech Student Handbook, Chicago, IL.
