Lathrop High School
Encyclopedia
Lathrop High School is a public high school
in Fairbanks
in the U.S. State
of Alaska
, part of the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District
. It is named for early Alaska businessman Austin E. "Cap" Lathrop
. Lathrop is the largest high school in Fairbanks.
As of 2008, there are currently 1,181 students in the school. Many of the students at Lathrop are from families with some attachment to Fort Wainwright
Army Post.
Fairbanks formed an independent school district, a territorial-era device allowing for areas both inside and outside of incorporated cities to operate a combined school district for a community or region. As a result, Fairbanks experienced a period of rapid school construction during the 1950s.
Construction activities began on the first stand-alone high school for Fairbanks in early 1954, on land which had been deeded by homesteader Paul Rickert to the City of Fairbanks upon his death in 1938. The cornerstone
was laid in October 1954. The school opened in October 1955 and was formally dedicated in November of that year. Lathrop still awards an "F" to its letterman (as opposed to an "L" for Lathrop) to represent its roots as the original "Fairbanks High School."
The 1974-75 and 1975-76 school years at Lathrop were double shifted with one shift of students attending school from 7 a.m. to noon and the other shift attending from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. The terms East Lathrop and West Lathrop would find their way into use during this time, which was met with protest by members of the Fairbanks chapter of the NAACP as a segregation ploy. In fall 1976 West Valley High School
was opened, thus alleviating the overcrowding dilemma.
classes are offered in Biology
, US History
, Microeconomics
, European History
, Calculus (AB & BC)
, Statistics
, (English) Composition
, and (English) Literature
.
The World Languages department offers Japanese
in addition to Spanish
, French
, and German
.
club and team as well as a JROTC program.The Lathrop JROTC program as of 2006 is run by SAI CSM Robert Taylor and AI 1SGT. Uptcraft. Their JROTC program has just under 100 cadets as of the 2008-2009 school year.
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in Fairbanks
Fairbanks, Alaska
Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...
in the U.S. State
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, part of the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District
Fairbanks North Star Borough School District
The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District is a public school district based in Fairbanks, Alaska . With a student enrollment of slightly over 14,000, it is the state's second largest public school district....
. It is named for early Alaska businessman Austin E. "Cap" Lathrop
Austin E. Lathrop
Austin Eugene "Cap" Lathrop was an industrialist and outspoken opponent of Alaska statehood. He has been called "Alaska's first home-grown millionaire."-Early life:...
. Lathrop is the largest high school in Fairbanks.
As of 2008, there are currently 1,181 students in the school. Many of the students at Lathrop are from families with some attachment to Fort Wainwright
Fort Wainwright
Fort Wainwright is a United States Army post adjacent to Fairbanks in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is part of the Fairbanks, Alaska Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
Army Post.
History
Lathrop High School's roots are directly traced to Fairbanks High School, reflecting what for many years was the only public school in Fairbanks.Fairbanks formed an independent school district, a territorial-era device allowing for areas both inside and outside of incorporated cities to operate a combined school district for a community or region. As a result, Fairbanks experienced a period of rapid school construction during the 1950s.
Construction activities began on the first stand-alone high school for Fairbanks in early 1954, on land which had been deeded by homesteader Paul Rickert to the City of Fairbanks upon his death in 1938. The cornerstone
Cornerstone
The cornerstone concept is derived from the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or...
was laid in October 1954. The school opened in October 1955 and was formally dedicated in November of that year. Lathrop still awards an "F" to its letterman (as opposed to an "L" for Lathrop) to represent its roots as the original "Fairbanks High School."
The 1974-75 and 1975-76 school years at Lathrop were double shifted with one shift of students attending school from 7 a.m. to noon and the other shift attending from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. The terms East Lathrop and West Lathrop would find their way into use during this time, which was met with protest by members of the Fairbanks chapter of the NAACP as a segregation ploy. In fall 1976 West Valley High School
West Valley High School (Alaska)
West Valley High School is a public high school in Fairbanks, Alaska , and part of the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District. It serves about 1,250 students from the western part of the Fairbanks area...
was opened, thus alleviating the overcrowding dilemma.
Academics
APAdvanced Placement Program
The Advanced Placement program is a curriculum in the United States and Canada sponsored by the College Board which offers standardized courses to high school students that are generally recognized to be equivalent to undergraduate courses in college...
classes are offered in Biology
AP Biology
In the United States, Advanced Placement Biology , is a course and examination offered by the College Board to high school students as an opportunity to earn placement credit for a college-level biology course....
, US History
AP United States History
Advanced Placement United States History is a course and examination offered by the College Board as part of the Advanced Placement Program...
, Microeconomics
AP Microeconomics
Advanced Placement Microeconomics is a course for students interested in college-level work in microeconomics and/or gaining advanced standing in college. The course begins with a study of fundamental economic concepts such as scarcity, opportunity costs, production possibilities, specialization,...
, European History
AP European History
Advanced Placement European History is a course and examination offered by the College Board through the Advanced Placement Program...
, Calculus (AB & BC)
AP Calculus
Advanced Placement Calculus is used to indicate one of two distinct Advanced Placement courses and examinations offered by the College Board, AP Calculus AB and AP Calculus BC....
, Statistics
AP Statistics
Advanced Placement Statistics is a college-level high school statistics course offered in the United States through the College Board's Advanced Placement program...
, (English) Composition
AP English Language and Composition
Advanced Placement English Language and Composition is a course and examination offered by the College Board as part of the Advanced Placement Program....
, and (English) Literature
AP English Literature and Composition
Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition is a course and examination offered by the College Board as part of the Advanced Placement Program.-The Course:This course is designated for motivated students with a command of standard English, an...
.
The World Languages department offers Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
in addition to Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
.
Athletics
In addition to many sports sponsored by high schools throughout the United States, Lathrop sponsors a cross country skiing team. The rifle team has won many national awards and in the school year 2009, the volleyball team won regionals and the hockey team won state.Activities
The school has a ballroom danceBallroom dance
Ballroom dance refers to a set of partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world. Because of its performance and entertainment aspects, ballroom dance is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television....
club and team as well as a JROTC program.The Lathrop JROTC program as of 2006 is run by SAI CSM Robert Taylor and AI 1SGT. Uptcraft. Their JROTC program has just under 100 cadets as of the 2008-2009 school year.