With Lawrence High School bursting at the seams in 1994, voters were asked to approve a new high school in the northwest part of the city.

They did so, approving a $25.8 million bond issue for the city’s second public high school.

In 1997, Lawrence Free State High School was opened at 4700 Overland Drive, which is just north and east of the intersections of Sixth Street and Wakarusa Drive.

The school was named in honor of Lawrence’s role in Kansas entering the union as a free, rather than a slave state in 1861.

A third campus, Lawrence Alternative High School, 2600 W. 25th, is located just south and east of the Holcom Park Recreation Center at 27th Street and Lawrence Avenue.

The Alternative High School provides a flexible curriculum to students wanting to receive their high school diplomas but for whom a traditional school setting isn’t a good fit.

However, budget restrictions have led the district’s administration to transfer the programs from the Alternative High to the LHS and Free State high campuses during the next academic year.

Enrollment and socioeconomic mix

Students in Lawrence who live north of 15th Street attend Free State, while those living south of 15th Street attend LHS.

Free State High School4700 Overland Dr.Lawrence, KS 66049-4130Phone number: 785-832-6050School Web site:fshs.usd497.org360 Photo: Orchestra room

Free State is a little smaller in enrollment than Lawrence High, with with 1,218 students (compared to 1,265 at LHS) counted on Sept. 20, 2004.

Free State students consist of 397 sophomores, 429 juniors and 392 seniors.

The Kansas Department of Education’s Report Card for Free State, showed that during the 2003-2004 school year, 18.62 percent of the students were economically disadvantaged.

The building’s ethnicity mixed was as follows on the state report: White, 81.79 percent; African-American, 7.96 percent; Hispanic, 4.02 percent, and other, 6.23 percent.

Reading scores

According to the state’s latest state Report Card for Free State, 11th-grade students showed a drop in reading assessments over the previous year’s students.

However, Free State students scored higher than their peers in the district and across the state on the 11th-grade reading assessments.

The percentage of the school’s 11th-graders who were “proficient,” “advanced,” or “exemplary” in reading dropped from from 69.4 percent in 2003 to 67.6 percent in 2004 on the latest state test.

The Lawrence district’s overall reading score for 11th-graders, showed that 67.2 percent were either proficent, advanced or exemplary in reading. The overall state score was 62.4 percent for those combined categories.

Math scores

The State Report Card also shows LHS’s 10th-graders scored higher on the state math assessments than their peers at the district and state levels, which netted Free State a Standard of Excellence rating from the state in reading.

LHS’s 10th-graders tested in math showed an increase from 59.7 percent in 2003 to 61.7 percent in 2004 for the percent of students scoring at either “proficient,” “advanced” or “exemplary levels.”

That compared with 60.9 percent for the entire district and 50.3 percent for the state.

Sports

Sports offered at Lawrence’s two high schools are as follows: bowling (new this year), boys baseball, boys basketball, girls basketball, cheerleading, cross country, football, girls golf, boys golf, girls gymnastics, boys soccer, girls soccer, girls softball, boys swimming, girls swimming, boys tennis, girls tennis, track, volleyball and wrestling.

Free State’s mascot is Freddie the Firebird and its school colors are silver and green.

Staffing

The school’s staff includes a total of 154 teachers and support staff.

Joe Snyder has been Free State’s principal since the school opened in 1997.

Free State’s asssociate principal is Ted Berard. Assistant principals are Lisa Boyd, Steve Grant and Mike Hill.

Free State has a “zero hour” that begins at 7:05 a.m. Regular hours begin at 8:05 a.m. and end at 3:05 p.m.

To arrange a visit to Free State, call 785-832-6050.