University of Chicago Laboratory Schools
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Established | 1896 |
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| Type | Private Secondary |
| Founder | John Dewey |
| Director | David W. Magill |
| Students | 1773 (2008-2009) |
| Grades | Nursery(3)–12 |
| Location | 1362 E. 59th St., Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Colors | Maroon |
| Nickname | Lab |
| Mascot | Maroons |
| Yearbook | 'U-Highlights Yearbook' |
| Newspaper | 'U-High Midway' |
| Website | www.ucls.uchicago.edu |
The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools (also Lab School and abbreviated UCLS; the upper classes are nicknamed U-High) is a private, co-educational day school in Chicago, Illinois.
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[edit] Overview
The Lab School was founded on the principles of hands-on learning and exploration by American educator John Dewey in 1896 in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. The school began as a progressive institution that goes from nursery school through 12th grade. It is affiliated with the University of Chicago, and about half the students have a parent who is an employee of the university (and thereby receive a discount off the full tuition, normally as much as $20,000 per year).[1] It is considered one of the top preparatory schools in the United States, reflected in the Wall Street Journal's findings that the school is amongst the top five feeder institutions in the nation for elite colleges.[2][3] It has been heralded as one of the more diverse independent schools with about 40% students of color and over 44 nationalities represented.[citation needed]
Today the school is divided into a Nursery School (Pre-K and Kindergarten), Lower School (1st through 4th grade), Middle School (5th through 8th grades), and High School (9th through 12th grades). Many children begin the school in nursery and continue through their high school graduation, and 75% of applications are for nursery school or 9th grade. The school has over 1,700 students currently enrolled, though there are plans to increase the size. Ninety-nine percent of each graduating class enrolls in a four-year college or university.
The Lower School, Middle School, and High School are a part of the main 1362 E 59th Street building. The main building consists of five smaller, interconnected buildings: Judd, Blaine, Belfield, Middle School and U-High. The Nursery School consists of two smaller, separate buildings and is a block west and a half block north on Woodlawn Ave.
The high school math team and the science team are regular contenders for state titles, and the Model United Nations team consistently has strong showings at national conferences. The school's newspaper (The Midway) and the school's yearbook (U-Highlights) regularly win regional and national awards, as does the arts magazine, Renaissance. Other popular activities include theater, ethnic clubs, and Student Council.
The school's athletic teams, the Maroons, compete in the Independent School League (ISL) and are members of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA). The high school has eight boys and eight girls teams, while the middle school has five boys and five girls teams. Both operate with a "no cut policy," meaning any student who wishes to participate may. The main rivals are the Francis W. Parker School, The Latin School of Chicago, and the St. Ignatius College Preparatory School.
The school is also the birthplace of one of America's oldest summer camps, Camp Highlands for Boys, in Sayner, Wisconsin. At the request of the parents, the camp was founded by John Dewey's eventual successor, Harry O. Gillet, in 1904. The camp was for its first decade almost exclusively attended by students of the Lab School. Gillet turned over the role of camp director to Lab School instructor Dr. William J. Monilaw in 1914, and Dr. Monilaw directed the camp until 1959. Although it is no longer affiliated with the Lab School, it is still in operation today.
[edit] Notable persons
[edit] Alumni
- Ray Anderson, '69, jazz trombonist, composer, bandleader, Stony Brook University professor
- Rishi Bhat, '02, former child actor and internet entrepreneur
- Charles Blackstone, '95, novelist
- Bill Bradbury, '67, Oregon secretary of state
- Paul Butterfield, '60, blues musician and bandleader
- Erwin Chemerinsky '71, law professor, Duke University, dean of the law school at the University of California, Irvine
- Anthony Cordesman '56, foreign policy commentator
- Joyce Chiang '88, murdered INS attorney
- Daniel Clowes '79, author, screenwriter and cartoonist of alternative comic books
- Arne Duncan, '82, Chicago Public Schools CEO, Secretary of Education
- Elizabeth Fama, Children's author
- Andrea Ghez, '83, physicist
- Scott Gurvey, '69, New York bureau chief, Nightly Business Report
- Maria Hinojosa, '79, journalist
- Valerie Jarrett (attended), senior advisor to President Barack Obama
- Nancy Lee Johnson '51, Connecticut Congresswoman (1983-2006)
- Lucy Kaplansky, '78 folk singer and songwriter
- Leon Kass '54, professor, Committee on Social Thought, University of Chicago
- Leo Katz '74, law professor, University of Pennsylvania Law School
- Robert Keohane, '58, political scientist
- Lily Koppel, '99, journalist and writer
- John Krug, '85, computer science, system administrator
- Sherry Lansing, '62, former chief of Paramount Studios and Academy Award winner (2007)
- Edward H. Levi, '28, attorney general of the United States, 1975-1977
- David Levi, judge and dean, law school, Duke University
- George Lewis, '69, trombonist, composer, author, Columbia University professor, MacArthur Foundation Fellow (2002), AACM member
- Richard A. Loeb '20, famous murderer of Leopold and Loeb fame
- Emily Mann, '70, award-winning playwright and artistic director of McCarter Theatre
- William H. McNeill '34. professor, emeritus, history department at The University of Chicago
- Daniel Meltzer, '68, Deputy Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy White House Counsel to the President
- Elliot Mincberg '70, Chief Counsel for Oversight and Investigations, House Judiciary Committee, director and lawyer at People for the American Way
- Clark Blanchard Millikan, aeronautical engineer
- Paul Nitze, '23, public servant
- Malia Ann and Sasha Obama (attended until December 2008[4]), daughters of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
- Mark Patinkin, '70, newspaper columnist and author
- James M. Redfield, '50, professor, classics and social thought, University of Chicago
- Salli Richardson, '85, film and TV actress
- Ned Rorem, '40, composer and author
- Ari Roth, '78, artistic director, playwriter, Theater J, Washington, DC.
- Janet Rowley, '42, geneticist
- Peter Sahlins, '75, professor, history department, University of California, Berkeley
- John Paul Stevens '37, US Supreme Court justice
- Robert Storr, '67, curator, critic, painter, dean of Yale School of Art
- Garrick Utley, '56, television journalist
- Geoffrey Ward, '57, screenwriter and author
- David Wilkins '73, law professor, Harvard Law School
- Amy Wright, '67, actress
[edit] Faculty
- Blue Balliett, former 3rd grade teacher, author of acclaimed children's books Chasing Vermeer and The Wright 3.
- Langston Hughes, author
- Vivian Paley, former teacher and noted child psychologist.
- Craig Robinson, former head basketball coach, current Oregon State University head basketball coach; brother of Michelle Obama
[edit] References
[edit] External links
