University Laboratory High School of Urbana, Illinois
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| University Laboratory High School | |
| Address | |
|---|---|
| 1212 West Springfield Avenue Urbana, Illinois 61801 |
|
| Information | |
| School board | none |
| Principal | Steve Epperson |
| Enrollment |
300 |
| School type | Public High School, selective admission |
| Grades | 7/8-12 |
| Language | English |
| Team name | Illineks |
| Color(s) | Orange and blue |
| Founded | 1921 |
| Homepage | http://www.uni.uiuc.edu/ |
University Laboratory High School, or Uni, was established in 1921 and is a laboratory school located on the engineering part of the campus of the University of Illinois in Urbana, Illinois which is rated third in the world after MIT and Stanford in Engineering, Technology, and Computer Science. Its enrollment is approximately 300 students, spanning five years (the traditional grades 9-12, preceded by a composite 7th and 8th grade year known as the "subfreshman" year). The school is notable for the achievements of its alumni, including three Nobel laureates and a Pulitzer Prize winner;[1] in 2006 it was recognized as a "public elite" school by Newsweek because of its students' high scores on the SAT.[2]. Until the recent SAT testing changes the total SAT scores varied from year to year ranging from 1400 to 1450.
Contents |
[edit] Funding and Relationship to the University of Illinois
Although Uni is located in territory belonging to the Urbana School District, it is not operated by the school district, nor does it receive any property tax revenue from this or any other district. Public funding comes only through the statewide per-pupil distribution financed in the Illinois state budget. Additional funding comes from donations by alumni and parents of current students. Enrollment is competitive, rather than being dependent upon residency in a particular district.
For many years, Uni was funded by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as a place to experiment with educational curricula, but the University of Illinois withdrew most of its support in the early 1980s. The "laboratory" aspect persists in certain classes. An experimental math course was taught in the early 2000s and teachers continue to experiment in small, creative ways with their courses to adapt to each grade of sixty students. The relationship to the University also imparts a number of other benefits on Uni's students. The proximity to the University campus provides a stimulating political climate, and access to the University's library system is equivalent to that of any undergraduate. The high school library is a branch of the University library system and for this reason has been called "the largest high school library in the world." Additionally, Kenney Gym, the University's old men's gymnasium, is used by Uni for both physical education and as practice and game space for the volleyball and basketball teams. While access to certain facilities that are supported by student fees (such as the IMPE recreation center) is not granted to Uni students, who are not assessed these fees, the school's relationship with the University of Illinois allows students over the age of 15 with sufficiently high grades to enroll in courses at the University.[3] Credit earned in this manner may then be applied to future study at the university level.
[edit] Admissions and Academics
Students apply to enter Uni as part of the incoming "subfreshman" class, which completes a year at the 7th and 8th grade level before continuing on to the 9th grade. Roughly 60 students are admitted each year, keeping the school's total enrollment near 300 students. Admission decisions are based on previous academic history, extracurriculars, a personal statement, and a student's scores on the Secondary School Admission Test.[4] Students may apply during their 6th or 7th grade years. Because the subfreshman year combines two years of middle school into one year, and because many students enter at the ages of 12 and 13, many Uni students graduate at 16 or 17. For this reason, some students then choose to wait a year before enrolling in college. Whether immediately after graduation, or a year later, the vast majority of students go on to enter a four-year college or university.[5]
[edit] Interscholastic Competition
Uni has had numerous successes in interscholastic competitions, including competitive chess (administered by the Illinois High School Association) and academic competitions.
[edit] Chess
The school's chess team has won the IHSA's team chess tournament six times (1978, 1979, 1986, 1991, 1992, and 1994) and has been runner-up three times (1976, 1980, 1989).[6] During the school year, the team participates in the East Central Illinois Chess League, a conference consisting of twelve schools from the central part of Illinois.
[edit] WYSE Academic Challenge
Since 2000, Uni has been an annual participant in the University of Illinois' Worldwide Youth in Science and Engineering Academic Challenge, which consists of a series of tests in various academic fields, including biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering design, English, mathematics, and physics. The competition is open to high schools in Illinois and Missouri. For seven consecutive years from 2000 to 2006, Uni was the state champion in the smallest division (enrollment under 300); it has since begun to compete in the next larger division, despite the school's smaller enrollment in the 9th through 12th grades.[7]
[edit] Athletics
Though Uni is not well-known for its sports teams, it does offer four sports for boys (Cross Country, Soccer, Basketball, and Track & Field) and six sports for girls (Cross Country, Swimming, Volleyball, Basketball, Soccer, and Track & Field). The cross country and track teams have sent competitors to the state finals on numerous occasions. In girls track & field, Uni has two third place finishes (1985, 1990) and one second place finish (1991). In cross country, Uni has, in addition to appearances by individuals in other years, had 16 girls teams and 8 boys teams qualify for the state finals, with two third place finishes by the girls (1988, 1991) and one third place finish by the boys (1995) [8].
[edit] Notable Alumni and Faculty
Uni has many famous alumni, including three Nobel Prize laureates:
- Philip W. Anderson (class of 1940), for physics in 1977
- Hamilton O. Smith (class of 1948), for medicine in 1978
- James Tobin (class of 1935), for economics in 1981
Other notable alumni include
- Iris Chang (class of 1985), best-selling author
- Theodore Gray (class of 1982), a co-founder of Wolfram Research and winner of the Ig Nobel Prize for chemistry in 2002
- Shamit Kachru (class of 1987), string theory specialist at Stanford University
- Francine Patterson (class of 1964), teacher of Koko (gorilla) the gorilla who can sign 1000 words and understand the sign of 2000 words
- Mary Murphy Schroeder (class of 1958), Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- George Will, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist
Chris Butler, a member of the history faculty, developed a flowchart-based approach to learning history, which aims to emphasize the causal relationships between historical events as much as the significance of the events themselves.[9][10] In 2000, his work was recognized by the American Historical Society, which awarded him the AHA Beveridge Family Teaching Award.[11]
Max Beberman, a member of the math faculty from 1950-1971, contributed to the development of New Math.
Erika Harold, who won the 2003 Miss America pageant, briefly attended Uni, but was a graduate of Urbana High School in Urbana, Illinois.
[edit] Unregimented Aspects
[edit] The Wylde Q. Chicken Award
The Wylde Q. Chicken Award, sponsored by the graduating class of 1972, was first awarded in 1998 and is meant to recognize "spontaneous creativity," "unbidden originality," and "extraordinary acts in ordinary circumstances." It is awarded annually at the end of the school year; recipients are chosen by a panel of judges from the class of '72.[12] Previous winners have included a series of promotional posters for the 50 states in the first floor restrooms,[13] the staging of the American Revolution in comic strip form,[14] and a Gilbert and Sullivan-style adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth.[15]
[edit] Agora Days
Another example of creative freedom is Agora Days, a four-day school week in late February when students, parents, faculty, alumni and friends of the school can teach hour-long classes about a wide range of topics. Students are required to take a number of academic-oriented classes, but classes based on playing sports and watching films or TV series also exist. Students have the same eight-hour schedule on each of the four days.
[edit] References
- ^ Chicago educator named new director of University High School
- ^ Best High Schools: The Public Elites - Newsweek America's Best High Schools - MSNBC.com
- ^ Classes Outside of Uni High
- ^ Uni High Admissions
- ^ http://www.uni.uiuc.edu/admissions/07%20Admission%20Brochure.pdf
- ^ IHSA Chess Team Champions and Runners-Up
- ^ WYSE Academic Challenge
- ^ http://www.ihsa.org/school/records/sum2103.htm
- ^ Flowchart this: AHA names Butler nation’s top history teacher
- ^ The FOH Learning Process - The Flow of History
- ^ Beveridge Family Teaching Award
- ^ The Wqc Sga Col Faq
- ^ 2006 Wylde Q. Chicken Award Winners
- ^ 2005 Wylde Q. Chicken Award Winners
- ^ 2004 Wylde Q. Chicken Award Winners
[edit] External links
- University High home page
- University High student newspaper, the Gargoyle, online version
- The Wylde Q. Chicken Award: Honoring Uni students who exhibit spontaneous creativity
- The Flow of History
