Coming
up on its second century of service to Tacoma’s East Side, Lincoln High School
is the second oldest high school in the city, having opened its doors
in 1914.
Designed in
a classical Collegiate Gothic style by prolific Tacoma school architect
Fredrick Heath, the school was completely renovated in 2007, with many of the school’s
outstanding architectural details restored or updated. In 2012, the school is economically and
ethnically diverse, a model of the modern, multicultural urban high school.
A Renaissance
In
the last decade Lincoln High School has achieved a remarkable renaissance in
teaching and school programs. A
once dormant drama department now features annual productions. An award-winning culinary-arts program
regularly bests similar programs in the region.
Starting in 2002 with a large grant from the Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation. the school began to take a close look at the skills needed for teaching
urban students and begin work on ways of improving instruction to meet the needs of
those students. A legacy
of that work, The Lincoln Center, is a school-within-a-school that features a
rigorous, college-ready curriculum and strong emphasis on character building.
All
of this work is paying off: last year Lincoln High School was a recipient of a
2010 Washington Achievement Award from the Office of Public Instruction and the
State Board of Education based on exemplary student growth and school
improvement.