Политехническая средняя школа Лонг-Бич: История и достижения

the Polytechnic High School in Long Beach, California

Long Beach Polytechnic High School, founded in 1895 as Long Beach High School, is a four year public high school located at 1600 Atlantic Avenue in Long Beach, California, United States. The school serves portions of Long Beach, including Bixby Knolls, and some parts of the cities of Signal Hill and Lakewood. Polytechnic (more commonly known as Poly) is the flagship high school of the Long Beach Unified School District. It is a large urban high school with about 4,000 students. Polytechnic has long been distinguished in both academics and athletics. The PACE (Program of Accelerated Curricular Experiences, founded in 1975 by Dr. Nancy Gray, a teacher and administrator for the Long Beach School system), and the CIC (Center of International Curriculum) magnet programs boast more total University of California admissions than any other high school in California. In 2005, Sports Illustrated magazine named Polytechnic the "Sports School of the Century," in recognition of the school's badminton, baseball, basketball, football, track, cross country, swimming, water polo, volleyball, wrestling, tennis, golf, and softball teams. Polytechnic has also received numerous prizes for its music program, including six Grammy Awards, two of them being "golden signature" Grammy Awards. Long Beach Poly has sent more players to the NFL than any other high school in the country, sending over 60 throughout the history of the school. Long Beach Poly was also ranked number one in a list of the best high school athletic programs in the nation by Sports Illustrated.

Long Beach Polytechnic High School began offering classes in 1895 in order to help educate the growing population of Long Beach. The first classes were at the Methodist Tabernacle Chapel, and the first principal was Walter S. Bailey. The first graduating class was in 1897 and only had one student. During this same year, classes were moved to Chautauqua Hall at Fourth Street and Pine Avenue as work began on the new Long Beach High School.]] The following year, the Long Beach High School Athletic Association was formed. In 1903, the school yearbook, Caerulea, was first published. Football and basketball programs began in 1904. The first student government was established in 1906. and constructed in 1931. The Long Beach earthquake damaged the school in 1933. Following the earthquake, bricks from the damage were sold in order to pay for a memorial flagpole which still stands. In 1935, a new science building was built and the auditorium was remodeled by architect Hugh Davies. The remodeling included PWA Moderne, Streamline Moderne, and Art Deco design. In 2019, the auditorium was renamed the Andrew Osman Performing Arts Center to honor the school's music program director of 36 years.

The school motto states that Poly is the "Home of Scholars and Champions." The PACE and CIC magnet programs are highly desired destinations for students throughout the South Bay and Northern Orange County. In 2008, 1,573 AP exams were administered at Poly with over 75% of testers receiving a passing score of 3 or higher. The national pass rate in 2008 was slightly over 58%. Poly also has the highest academic performance index of any traditional high school in Long Beach with a 2009 score of 747. It consistently ranks a 9 out of 10 when compared to schools with similar demographics since 2007. Pac Rim is a California magnet academy for students interested in business. Polytechnic High also includes the Beach, Justice, METS, and MEDS academies. Poly also hosts the PACE program (Program of Additional Curricular Experiences), a competitive college preparatory magnet program. Entrance is predicated upon a combination of grade point average and standardized test scores.

Long Beach Polytechnic offers a wide variety of sports and activities due to its large size and diverse student population. Athletic teams compete in Division I within the California Interscholastic Federation and are known as the Jackrabbits. Throughout the school's history, the Jackrabbits have won many state championships and have produced several collegiate and professional athletes. In 2005, Sports Illustrated magazine named Polytechnic the "Sports School of the Century," in recognition of the school's badminton, baseball, basketball, football, track, cross country, swimming, water polo, tennis, golf, and softball teams. After losing their opener, the Jackrabbits won their first game 10–0 vs. Occidental Prep. The 1959 team is best known for the "ICBM" backfield of Lonzo Irvin, Harvey Crow, Willie Brown and Willie Martin.

On December 5, 2001, a school clerk informed a supervisor that he had found a bag of marijuana on campus, in the car of Andreas Wickstrom. The police were notified first, before Andreas's parents, John and Inge Wickstrom. Andreas was arrested and immediately taken to the youth detention facility on Pacific Avenue. Andreas was released in the custody of his mother, who "knew he was in pain" but did not suspect he would harm himself. Three hours after his arrest, Andreas shot himself at home with a shotgun belonging to his grandfather, a retired police officer. Inge recalled, "Andreas kept saying that they treated him like a criminal. There was no protection for him At least if I had been called to go to the school, I could have reassured him that everything was going to be OK. The very people to whom I had entrusted his care that morning at Poly failed to protect him when he most needed it. If he had a headache or had injured himself, I would have been called immediately."

At 8:40pm on June 15, 2005, a fight began outside of Long Beach Veterans Memorial Stadium, followed by a shooting during the Long Beach Polytechnic High School graduation ceremony. "Authorities believe that someone was injured and driven from the scene because they discovered drops of blood. The victim, however, had not shown up at any area hospital, officials said. Two handguns were found at the scene, but it was unclear if either was the weapon involved. The graduation ceremony was just ending when the shooting occurred. The resulting police investigation caused long delays for people leaving the stadium."