The History Of Fort Lauderdale High School

If you are going to be looking at homes in the Fort Lauderdale area, you are going to want to know about the schools here in town. The first school opened here was Fort Lauderdale High School. On October 2, 1899, this first school would open in what was then Dade County. Ivy Cromartie (later to become Ivy Stranahan) welcomed nine students into a wood-framed schoolhouse located on South Andrews Avenue, south of the New River.

By 1901, there were 18 students enrolled at Fort Lauderdale with only 997 enrolled in all of Dade County. It was also during 1902 that the School Board began offering transportation to students who needed to attend school; each day, students would climb aboard wagons for the ride.

By 1910, Fort Lauderdale’s population had grown enough to require the building of a new school so, the old two-room schoolhouse was moved slightly northward to make room. The “modern” two-story concrete school was constructed for a total cost of $7,000.

At the time, Fort Lauderdale was the only high school in the 68-mile stretch between Miami and West Palm Beach. By 1914, enrollment reached 325 with only 47 being high school students; this was the first year with a full nine-month term.A year later, a 46 to 16 vote led the way for construction of a new Fort Lauderdale High School. The school was to be built in the newly named and designated count of Broward. The new school was located three blocks east of Andrews Avenue adjacent to Stranahan Park and was constructed for $55,000.

The first graduating class in 1915 and was comprised of just five boys. In 1916, the school had the unique distinction in that all nine of its teachers had college degrees. In 1923, Fort Lauderdale established its first Honor Society. Some 40 years later, Fort Lauderdale High School opened at its present location on NE Fourth Avenue.

The past few years have seen tremendous changes to the FLHS campus, most notably the opening of a new three-story classroom building, a modern library, and a two-story cafeteria.

Fort Lauderdale High school has some very good notable alumni, among them is Alexander Nininger who was the very first Medal of Honor recipient of World War II was a graduate of Fort Lauderdale High School. As for some recent achievements, for the last 3 consecutive years, Fort Lauderdale High School was named as one of the top 1000 public schools in the nation

Demographically the school serves a diverse group of students. The school currently has 1,684 students enrolled, 939 girls and 745 boys, making it one of the smallest high schools in Broward County. The school’s make-up is:

64% Black non Hispanic
22% White non Hispanic
10% Hispanic
2% Asian or Pacific Islander
2% Multiracial

When you are deciding which property is the best fit for your family in the Fort Lauderdale real estate area, there are a number of websites that you can utilize to make a well formed decision.

1. Great Schools – This website contains a strict grading system for each school in the county and is unique in the fact that it contains reviews by parents in the area and their experiences with the particular school.

2. Broward County School System Website- This is the official website for the Broward County School Board. It contains up to date information and news concerning the public schools countywide.

3. School Boundary Locator- Find out by searching any address in Broward County what schools service that particular address.

If you have any questions about a particular Fort Lauderdale real estate area address, what school is associated with it, or want to learn more about any of the websites above, please do not hesitate to call me at 954-709-7461 or email me at robins@robinashley.comso we can help you find the right home for you and your family. You may also contact via the form below.