Roslyn High School

Roslyn High School is a public high school in Roslyn Heights, New York, United States, and is the only high school in the Roslyn Union Free School District, serving all of the district's students in grades 9–12.

Roslyn High School
Roslyn High School, as viewed from Roslyn Road and Lincoln Avenue on March 4, 2020.
Location
475 Round Hill Road
Roslyn Heights, NY 11577

United States
Information
TypePublic High School
School districtRoslyn Union Free School District
PrincipalScott Andrews
Faculty87.04 (on a FTE basis)[1]
Grades9–12
Enrollment1,038 (as of 2017–18)[1]
Student to teacher ratio11.93[1]
Color(s)Blue, white
Song"Roslyn High School Alma Mater", written by Ruth Seward and Bradford Frey
MascotBulldog
NewspaperThe Hilltop Beacon
YearbookHarbor Hill Light
Websitewww.roslynschools.org/HighSchool

History
The plaque commemorating the Mackay family's donation of the land that the school sits on.

The property that Roslyn High School sits on was donated in the 1920s by Clarence and Katherine Mackay, both famous figures in Roslyn's history. They owned a large estate in the area, known as "Harbor Hill" (of which the donated land was once part), and a plaque was created to commemorate the land donation. It was originally located in the lobby of the original school building, and is now located on the wall near the replacement building's visitor entrance.[2]

Additionally, Katherine Mackay was the first woman to serve on Roslyn's school board.[3]

The original building (1920s–1970s)

The original school building opened in 1925, designed by architect William Bunker Tubby in the Colonial Revival Style.[4][5] It consisted of a columned main entrance, adorned on both sides by symmetrical wings. The main entrance was reached by a staircase leading from the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Roslyn Road. An extension was built off the back of the school in the 1950s during the postwar Baby boom, which stands to this day.[6]

The current building (1970s–present)
The remaining section of the original school's front staircase.

Between 1970 and 1971, the original, Tubby-designed 1920s school building was demolished and replaced by the current structure.[5][2] However, there are numerous remnants of the old building that remain - most notably the middle segment of the stairway underneath the school (which made up the middle section of the original steps up to the original building's main entrance), and the main gymnasium (which was built with the original school for the same purpose).[7] Lecture Room B was the original school's auditorium, and the room behind it was the original stage. The school maintains a collection of historic photographs in "The Commons", including many of the old school.

The renovated main entrance to Roslyn High School, along with the new canopy and entrance plaza.

School-wide renovations, 2010s

In the summer of 2017, the district embarked on a major renovation project at the high school, as part of a district-wide modernization initiative.[8] This renovation included completely gutting and renovating the first floor hallways, demolishing, replacing, and expanding the library, constructing an additional gymnasium, installing air conditioning in the world language and math/2nd floor science hallways, reconfiguring the front circle and constructing an entrance plaza (including an awning and vegetation) and security vestibule, expanding and resurfacing the faculty and student parking lots by relocating the district's bus garage to an area adjacent to one of the elementary schools, and creating a student lounge next to the school store.[9][10][11] Further renovations were completed during the summer of 2018.[12] Additionally, the center of the front circle would remain the home for one of the marble horse tamer statues from the Mackay estate, which was restored and re-dedicated on October 10, 2019.[6][13][14]

Mackay Horse Tamer statue
The restored Horse Tamer statue, as viewed from the side.

As part of the Mackay estate, numerous statues were commissioned - including multiple marble horse tamer statues. After the Mackay estate was demolished, the statue that now resides at the high school was forgotten, only to be stumbled upon years later by a local artist, George Gách. In 1959, the district, at Gách's request, took possession of the horse tamer statue to ensure that it be preserved and maintained. The statue was restored and installed at the high school. For many years after the district took ownership, Gách continued to look after and maintain the statue.[6]

In 2012 the statue was temporarily removed from the school for an extensive rehabilitation, as it had been damaged by weathering and vandals.[6] In 2017 the school underwent an extensive modernization, and the front circle was reconfigured. A garden was created in the grassy island of the front circle, with trees, bushes and flowers, and the school’s flagpole. The restored statue was made the garden’s centerpiece, complete with a new pedestal.[10][11] The re-dedication ceremony for the Horse Tamer took place in the front circle on October 10, 2019, and was a major community event.[6][13][14]

2004 Financial scandal

In February 2004, Rebekah Rombom, as editor-in-chief of The Hilltop Beacon, the Roslyn High School newspaper, was preparing the March issue when she was given information that a woman had stolen money from the school district two years earlier, but was allowed to resign quietly without criminal charges.

As Rombom researched the story for her newspaper, she discovered that the woman, who had embezzled at least $250,000, was Pamela Gluckin, the school district's former assistant superintendent for business, but she was told she could not use Gluckin's name in her article. She was also told that she needed to show the article to her principal and the director of community relations before publication; both read it and did not request any changes.[15] The publication of the article in the school's newspaper triggered a full-scale investigation that found officials had embezzled $11.2 million from the district over 8 years. Gluckin and Frank Tassone, the superintendent of the school district at the time, eventually pleaded guilty and went to prison.[16][17]

21st Century education initiatives

Interactive learning

In 2013, iPads replaced many textbooks, in part as a budgetary move.[18] In 2019, Chromebooks replaced iPads as the school-issued device.

All classrooms are equipped with interactive whiteboards, which are linked with the given classroom's computer.[19]

Demographics

As of the 2017–2018 school year, Roslyn High School had a total enrollment of 1,038 students, and had 87.04 full-time equivalent classroom teachers. The student/teacher ratio was 11.93-to-1.[20]

Below are various charts that further describe the demographics of the student body as of the 2017–18 school year, using the same public data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES):

Breakdown of students, by grade:
Grade Number of students (2017-18)
9 231
10 277
11 260
12 266
Ungraed 13
Breakdown of students, by gender:
Gender Number of students (2017-18)
Male 553
Female 485
Breakdown of students, by race/ethnicity:
Race/ethnicity Number of students (2017-18)
White 749
Black 32
Hispanic 79
Asian 172
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 1
American Indian/Alaska Native 0
Two or More Races 5
Breakdown of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch:
Program Number of students (2017-18)
Free lunch 120
Reduced-price lunch 31

Notable alumni
gollark: I noticed it. I just didn't care.
gollark: Murder is mean so you can't do it.
gollark: If I had arms, they would be better arms, by policy.
gollark: Yes, it would have been smarter to use a text to image model.
gollark: They're related, probably.

References
  1. School data for Roslyn High School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 18, 2019.
  2. "Our Community / Plaque Commemorates Mackay's Donation of Land for Roslyn High School". Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  3. "Ceremony Celebrates Return of Horse Tamer, Roslyn UFSD. Accessed March 2, 2020.
  4. Gerry, Roger (1993). Roslyn Landmark Society Annual House Tour Guide. Roslyn Landmark Society. p. 611. Architects of national reputation have continued to work in Roslyn. William Bunker Tubby, who was related to a prominent local family...
  5. Gerry, Roger (1993). Roslyn Landmark Society Annual House Tour Guide. Roslyn Landmark Society. p. 611. He [William Tubby] designed three major buildings in Roslyn, all in the Colonial Revival Style. These are the Roslyn Presbyterian Church, 1928, the Roslyn National Bank and Trust Co., 1931, and the Roslyn High School, 1926. Unfortunately the latter was recently demolished to make way for the new high school.
  6. "A Very Special Delivery". Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-03-04.
  7. "Historic aerial photo of 475 Round Hill Road, Roslyn Heights, NY 11577". Historic Aerials, 1966. www.historicaerials.com/viewer^ Note: type "475 Round Hill Road" into the map search bar, select "aerials" and then "1966".
  8. "Bond Referendum" (PDF). Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  9. "Capital Projects / Our Capital Program". http. Retrieved 2020-03-04.
  10. "Roslyn High School Site Plan". Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  11. "Roslyn High School Illustration". Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  12. "Update: September 2018". Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  13. "Ceremony Celebrates Return of Horse Tamer". Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  14. "Horse Tamer Rededication Ceremony Program" (PDF). Roslyn UFSD. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  15. Rombom, Rebekah (27 June 2004). "On Top of the News at Roslyn High". New York Times. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  16. Vitello, Paul (2006-10-11). "Former Schools Chief of Roslyn Gets 4 to 12 Years in Fraud". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  17. "Roslyn school district embezzlement". Newsday. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  18. Roslyn High School Outfits Entire Student Body with iPads
  19. "About Our School / About Us". http. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  20. "Search for Public Schools - School Detail for ROSLYN HIGH SCHOOL". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  21. Joe Scotchie, "Remembering a Great Writing Teacher", The Roslyn News (January 19, 2007).
  22. Colker, David (2015-09-21). "Deborah Asnis dies at 59; helped detect West Nile virus in U.S." Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2015-10-10.
  23. "'24: Legacy' showrunner talks new spinoff". Newsday. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  24. Zahn, Max (2017-03-29). "Richard Haass, Roslyn H.S. graduate and president of Council on Foreign Relations, releases book - Roslyn Times". The Island Now. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  25. "Biographical Dictionary of the United States Congress; Hechler, Kenneth William". bioguideretro.congress.gov.
  26. "Eddie Lampert | Biography, Sears, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  27. The Harbor Hill Light Yearbook, 1953. Roslyn High School. 1953.
  28. http://rcp.roslynschools.org/alumni/alumni.htm
  29. "Boston.com / News / Nation / Dean's wife focusing on career, not campaign". archive.boston.com. Retrieved 2020-07-10.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.