Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts

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Louisiana School for Math, Science and the Arts
LSMSA crest
City

Natchitoches, LA
Year Opened

1983
Founders

Robert Alost

James Long
Chair, Board of Directors

Sharon Gahagan
Executive Director

Dr. Pat Widhalm, DMA
Director, Academic Affairs

Jim Findley, JD
Director, Fiscal Affairs

Dr. William Ebarb
Director, External Affairs

Dr. Sharon Williams
Director, Student Affairs

Emily Shumate
Type

Public Residential
Grades

10 (pilot for 2007), 11 & 12
Enrollment

Around 300
Mascot

Eagles
Colors

Blue and Gold
Newspaper

Renaissance
Website

www.lsmsa.edu

The Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts (LSMSA) is a two-year, public residential high school located in Natchitoches, Louisiana on the campus of Northwestern State University (NSU). It is a member of the National Consortium for Specialized Secondary Schools of Mathematics, Science and Technology (NCSSSMST).

LSMSA is the brainchild of State Representative Jimmy D. Long of Natchitoches and Robert A. Alost, president of the then-declining NSU. The school was conceived to offer a unique experience to the state's brightest students while supplying Natchitoches with a well-needed influx of commerce and attention. On the heels of a fleeting surplus of state funds from oil revenues following America's oil crises of the late seventies, one-term Republican Governor David Conner Treen approved the founding of the school, and as a result is largely credited for saving the fledgling community college.

Classes were originally held on the ground floor of Prudhomme Hall, an unused dormitory on the campus of NSU while female students lived in the upper floor and male students originally lived in Bossier Hall, another dorm. Renovation of the "High School Building," (known by no other formal title, but formerly the campus of Natchitoches High School) was completed in 1984, and the ceremonial ribbon was cut by famously infamous Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards.

"The Lousiana School," as it is commonly called, was the second state-supported residential school of its kind - the first being the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, which opened in 1980. The school was founded in the early 1980s with the first class enrolling as juniors in the fall of 1983, graduating in 1985.

Academically, the school is similar to the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. Studies focus on mathematics, science, and the humanities. Unlike other math and science high schools, it has an arts program, with instruction in music, theater, visual art, and dance.

Student musicians may perform in the Louisiana School Chamber Ensemble, under the direction of composer/conductor Dr. Al Benner. The ensemble performs works native to Louisiana biennially in the Louisiana Composers' Consortium, of which Benner is the founder. "Impulse," the school's dance company, travels across the state performing and also holds its own concert in the Spring of each year.

Contents

[edit] Admissions

As LSMSA recruits students from all of Louisiana, it can be described as a statewide magnet school. Prospective students apply during the fall of their sophomore year. Applicants submit application forms, grade transcripts, SAT or ACT results, and three letters of recommendation. Applicants to the arts curriculum also submit a portfolio of artwork or audition. Also, a small number of students in their junior year may apply for admission for their senior year only. As of the 2007-2008 school year, LSMSA will add its first Sophomore class, which will be composed of about 30-45 students.

[edit] Residential Life

Students who attend LSMSA live in dorms, away from their families, much like college students. The dormitories are single-sex; girls in Caddo Hall and boys in Prudhomme Hall. Intervisitation between dormitories is not allowed, except in the dormitory lobbies.

[edit] Academic Integrity

Students must agree to the following honor code pledge:

As a student of the Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts, I understand that I belong to an institution dedicated to the pursuit of learning. Thus, I promise to uphold the Honor Code that safeguards this pursuit. I accept my personal duty to promote an honorable attitude in my academic life by refraining from lying, cheating, stealing, plagiarizing, or vandalizing.

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] Notable Former Directors

  • Dr. Arthur Williams, PhD
  • Dr. Richard Brown, PhD
  • Dr. Robert Alost, PED
  • Brother David Sinitiere

[edit] Trivia

  • The first class of LSMSA was given the option of voting for the school's mascot. However, the administration vetoed the student choice of "The LSMSA Platypi".
  • Alumni claim that many of the rules in the student handbook have particular people or situations attached to them, as much of the handbook was built as the school developed over the years. Various alumni can recount rules that resulted from their classes or classmates. The handbook contains a "catch-all" rule for situations which may not directly violate an existing rule, but "violate the spirit of the handbook."
  • Some students of the school proudly refer to themselves as "gifties." Many do not.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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