Legacy High School (North Dakota)

Legacy High School (LHS) is a public high school located in Bismarck, North Dakota. Legacy was founded following a $55 million bond approval in 2012, with students attending classes at other locations run by Bismarck Public Schools while the campus was under construction. Before Legacy was established, the last public high school to open in Bismarck was Century High School in 1975.[1] The school has a graduation rate of 96%.[2]

Legacy High School
Address
Map
3400 East Calgary Avenue

,
58503

Coordinates46°50′43.173″N 100°46′21.359″W / 46.84532583°N 100.77259972°W / 46.84532583; -100.77259972
Information
TypePublic high school
Established2012; 12 years ago
StatusOpened in 2015; 9 years ago
School districtBismarck Public Schools
NCES District ID3800014
NCES School ID380001400866
PrincipalTom Schmidt
Teaching staff77
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,385
Student to teacher ratio18:1
ScheduleModular
Campus size289,000 square feet
Color(s)    Vegas gold, white, and black
MascotSaber
National ranking7,576
Feeder schoolsSimle Middle School
Websitehttps://www.bismarckschools.org/LHS

In addition to sections of Bismarck, its boundary includes Apple Valley.[3][4]

History edit

Legacy High School was established with the passage of a $55 million bond for the school's construction in 2012. In the 2013–2014 school year while the school was under construction, freshmen attended classes at the Bismarck State College Career Academy. During the following year, freshmen and sophomores were moved to the Hughes Education Center, the central administration building for Bismarck Public Schools. Finally, in the 2015–2016 school year, students attended school in the finished campus at 3400 East Calgary Avenue.[1]

In the 2016–2017 school year, Legacy had its first graduating class.

Academics edit

Graduation edit

In order to graduate, students must attain 24 total credits, with 15 of those being core academic credits.[5] The specific credit requirements are as follows:

  • English - 4 credits
  • Mathematics - 3 credits
  • Physical Education - 2 credits
  • Science - 3 credits
  • Social Studies - 3 credits
  • Elective credits (foreign or Native American languages, fine arts, or career and technical education courses) - 3 credits

Additionally, students who meet all graduation requirements prior to the beginning of the second semester of their senior year may graduate at the end of their first semester.

Honors and Advanced Placement edit

Students in their sophomore year or freshmen who have completed either Physical Science or English 9 in summer school are eligible to take Honors Biology or Honors English 10.

Legacy also offers many Advanced Placement classes, which as of 2023, includes:[6]

Dual Credit edit

As of 2023, many courses at Legacy allow students to enroll in a dual-credit program which will award college credits to students who successfully complete the course.[7] Students can also participate in a program of dual credit which will award students an associate degree upon graduation.

Modular schedule edit

At Legacy, every week consists of 5 days each with their own individual schedules for staff and students which repeat the following week. Each day is broken down into twenty-two 20-minute mods during which classes take place. Normal academic classes can be between 2-4 mods ranging from 40–80 minutes, which are colloquially called "40s", "60s", and 80s". When students have no classes at a given time in their schedule, it is called Saber Time (after the school's mascot), during which students are expected to use the time to study, catch up on homework for classes, or eat lunch. Staff at Legacy have similar "prep time" during which they are able to prepare for upcoming classes or grade.[8]

Legacy has an open campus policy, which allows sophomores and higher to leave the school during their Saber Time, usually to return home for rest or to get food outside of school for lunch.

Activities edit

Athletics edit

Legacy has a track, football, and soccer field just off the main campus, as well as other sports fields sponsored by Sanford Health built neighboring the school.[9] Legacy is a member of the Western Dakota Association and participates in WDA events yearly.

Unified Inclusive Sports edit

Inclusive sports at Legacy allows students of all abilities to participate on the same team for sports like flag football, bowling, and whiffle ball.[10]

Fine arts edit

Legacy offers support for the fine arts in both extracurriculars (debate, drama, speech), and offers band, choir, and orchestra classes for credit in a dedicated wing.[11] Legacy was the first in the Bismarck public school district to have a dedicated orchestra room.[12]

Student organizations edit

Legacy has over 10 student extracurricular organizations for students to participate in outside of normal school hours, including the school's own esports league, HOSA, FCA, Science Olympiad, and DECA.[13]

Science Olympiad edit

Legacy's Science Olympiad (SciOly) program competes yearly in Science Olympiad competitions for science and engineering.[14] Legacy has previously won in the 2019 and 2021 state competitions, though lost in the 2022 competition.[15][16]

LHS Historical Society edit

In 2022, the LHS Historical Society (LHSHS) entered a group website submission into the National History Day in North Dakota virtual event and won, going onto the national competition where they competed but did not win.[17][18]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "About Our School / History". www.bismarckschools.org. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  2. ^ U.S. News & World Report L.P. (n.d.). Legacy High School. U.S. News Education. Retrieved May 27, 2022, from https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/north-dakota/districts/bismarck-1/legacy-high-school-200636.
  3. ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Burleigh County, ND" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2023-12-26. - Detail map of Apple Valley
  4. ^ "2022/23 Secondary Attendance Areas" (PDF). Bismarck Public School District 1. Retrieved 2023-12-26. - Compare to Census maps.
  5. ^ "Graduation Requirements of Bismarck Public Schools". 2022-23 Registration Guide (PDF). Bismarck, North Dakota: Legacy High School. 2022. p. 14. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  6. ^ "Advanced Placement Program". 2022-23 Registration Guide (PDF). Bismarck, North Dakota: Legacy High School. 2022. p. 9. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  7. ^ "Dual Credit". 2022-23 Registration Guide (PDF). Bismarck, North Dakota: Legacy High School. 2022. p. 9. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  8. ^ "Daily Schedule". Legacy High School. Bismarck Public Schools. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  9. ^ "Athletics Home / Welcome to LHS Athletics". www.bismarckschools.org. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  10. ^ "Unified Sports / Welcome to Unified Sports". www.bismarckschools.org. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  11. ^ "Fine Arts / Fine Arts Home". www.bismarckschools.org. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  12. ^ "About Our School / Facts about LHS". www.bismarckschools.org. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  13. ^ "Student Organizations / Student Organizations Home". www.bismarckschools.org. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  14. ^ "Student Organizations / Science Olympiad". www.bismarckschools.org. Retrieved 2022-05-28.
  15. ^ "ND Science Olympiad Results". www.ndsu.edu. Retrieved 2022-05-28.
  16. ^ "Science Olympiad - North Dakota". Scioly.org. Retrieved 2022-05-28.
  17. ^ "National History Day in ND". North Dakota Studies. State of North Dakota. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  18. ^ "Category Award Winners 2022 Final" (PDF). National History Day. 18 June 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.