La Follette High School

Coordinates: 43°03′48.3″N 89°19′10.9″W / 43.063417°N 89.319694°W / 43.063417; -89.319694
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La Follette High School
Address
Map
702 Pflaum Road

,
Coordinates43°03′48.3″N 89°19′10.9″W / 43.063417°N 89.319694°W / 43.063417; -89.319694
Information
TypePublic secondary
Established1963
OversightMadison Metropolitan School District (MMSD)
PrincipalMathew Thompson
Faculty94.43 (FTE)[1]
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,482 (2022-23)[1]
Student to teacher ratio15.69[1]
Color(s)Cardinal and Gray    
MascotLance the Lancer
AccreditationAdvancED[2]
NewspaperThe Lance
YearbookThe Statesman
Websitehttps://lafollette.madison.k12.wi.us/

Robert M. La Follette High School is a public high school located in Madison, Wisconsin, serving the city's far east side with its attendance boundaries including parts of the City of Madison, City of Fitchburg, Town of Blooming Grove, and Town of Burke, teaching students in grades 9-12. Founded in the fall of 1963, it is a part of the Madison Metropolitan School District, and is named after former lawmaker and 1924 presidential candidate Robert M. La Follette, Sr.

Academics[edit]

La Follette offers diverse academic opportunities, drawing upon its 14 academic departments and more than 150 faculty offering instruction in more than 250 courses in 100 different fields of study. Courses are taught in a variety of academic settings, from traditional classrooms to community-based service experiences. Additional opportunities for growth and leadership are offered through involvement in numerous student organizations.[3] The school began offering American sign language as a foreign language in 1998, and other schools have modeled their programs after La Follette's.[4]

Academic departments[edit]

  • Applied Technology
  • Art
  • AVID/TOPS
  • Business, Marketing, and IT
  • English
  • Family and Consumer Education
  • Math
  • Multilingual Education (ESL)
  • Music
  • Physical Education and Health
  • Science
  • Social Studies
  • Special Education
  • World Languages

Extra-curricular activities[edit]

Clubs[edit]

La Follette offers nearly four dozen extra-curricular clubs, spanning a wide variety of student interests, including academic, athletic, social, fine arts, science, health and others, such as gaming clubs.[5]

Athletics[edit]

La Follette athletics include girls' volleyball, boys' volleyball, girls' soccer, boys' soccer, boys' basketball, girls' basketball, wrestling, boys' track & field, girls' track & field, football, girls' swim, boys' swim, boys' cross country, girls' cross country, dance, cheer, hockey, girls' golf, boys' golf, baseball, softball, girls' tennis, boys' tennis. Club sports include basketball, rugby, bowling, ultimate frisbee and volleyball.

Other activities and events[edit]

President Obama visits La Follette in 2010

Arboretum[edit]

La Follette has one of the few on-ground arboretums in the state. It was designed to have three ecosystems, including prairie, woodland and pond.

Board of visitors[edit]

La Follette's board of visitors serves as an advocate for the school, and is the only school in the Madison area, and possibly the state, which has such a board. The board assists in fundraising, business, community outreach, public affairs, student support and teacher support.[6]

Business[edit]

In 2011, Summit Credit Union began operations at La Follette High School. In ensuing years, branches were opened at other Madison-area high schools. The branch is staffed by interns from the La Follette career internship class and is open during the lunch hour.[7][8]

Presidential visit[edit]

On September 28, 2010, the school was visited by President Barack Obama, who made an unannounced stop ahead of a late-afternoon rally on the UW-Madison campus.[9]

Publications[edit]

The Lance is the student newspaper for La Follette; its yearbook is known as The Statesman; The Lancer Legend is the parent newsletter.[10]

Notable alumni[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "LaFollette High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  2. ^ Institution Summary, AdvancED, Retrieved 2012-07-08
  3. ^ LHS, Academics, retrieved May 26, 2020
  4. ^ 120 incoming Greendale freshmen pick ASL as their world language — a first for southeastern Wisconsin, by Clara Hatcher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, April 27, 2018, retrieved September 8, 2020
  5. ^ LHS website, Clubs, retrieved May 26, 2020
  6. ^ La Follette board of visitors website, retrieved May 26, 2020
  7. ^ Summit Credit Union website, retrieved May 26, 2020
  8. ^ Credit unions partner with local high schools for education, hands-on experience, by Pamela Cotant, Madison.com, November 6, 2017, retrieved May 26, 2020
  9. ^ Obama’s surprise stop at La Follette ‘amazing’ and ‘surreal,’ by Gayle Worland, Wisconsin State Journal, September 30, 2010, retrieved May 27, 2020
  10. ^ LHS Lancer Legend website
  11. ^ Know Your Madisonian: Kim Sponem leads booming growth for Summit Credit Union, by Chris Hubbuch, Wisconsin State Journal, August 31, 2019, retrieved May 29, 2020