Founded in 1863 as a single room housed in a local grammar school, Hyde Park High School underwent several reincarnations before finally relocating into its current building in 1914. In 1938, 1965, & 1972, the building underwent significant reconstruction, as evidenced in the infrastructure of the building today. In 1976, Hyde Park became a magnet school and a Career Academy. Since 1996, the school has been known as Hyde Park Academy with its focus on college readiness and career preparation.
In 2001, Hyde Park became an authorized International Baccalaureate World School, offering a rigorous college preparatory curriculum and Diploma programs with the first Baccalaureate diplomas and individual subject certificate awards realized in 2005.
In addition to International Baccalaureate programs, Hyde Park houses several learning communities. In 2006, Hyde Park Academy proudly presented three Gates Millennium Scholarships worth $100,000 each. The School's orchestra, band and chorus students consistently rate “superior” in annual city and state competitions, and drama students earn citywide recognition in competition as well.
The Chicago Public Schools (CPS) began the planning process to build Kenwood Academy, then called Kenwood High School, on November 3, 1965. With Northern big cities undergoing the final years of the Great Migration of Black Families from the south and the post WWII baby boom, the CPS felt the need for a modernized new high school on Chicago's South Side.
The freshman student classes began in 1966 on 49th and Blackstone, inside an old public school building that had formerly housed the Louis Wirth Elementary School. Trailers were added to accommodate 2 additional classes in 1967 and 68 while the new high school was built nearby on 51st Street and Lake Park avenue near the Illinois Central Railroad beginning in 1967.
The doors of the new school building opened in 1969 with a full complement of students, freshman through senior year at 5015 S. Blackstone Avenue, Chicago, IL 60615. Elizabeth Jochner, Kenwood's first principal, held the position for the first 20 years (1967-1987).
In recognition of the school's excellence and special programs, in 1977 the Chicago Board of Education designated the school an "academy". The school's campus is shared with Canter Middle School (formerly Louis Wirth Elementary School).
Sara Spurlark served as a Biology teacher during …. And Vice Principle from …. To. During the early years as the school was growing, Sara Spurlark coordinated with the University of Chicago Masters in Teaching program to mentor student teachers, helping to recruit young Kenwood H.S. faculty and to solidify the relationship between the school and the Hyde Park/Kenwood Community’s local University.
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