Lake Oswego High School

History

Lake Oswego High School first opened in September 1951 as a six-year school, with an enrollment of 564. In 1956, it became a four-year high school with the opening of Lake Oswego Junior High School, and in 1958, a three-year high school (with 589 students) as the junior high expanded to include the 9th grade (for a total of 656 students).

In the fall of 2005, construction was finished on a completely new campus. Built over the original school, the new building featured classrooms equipped with built-in projectors and SMART boards. Other improvements included a state-of-the-art 500-seat theater and a building wing designated for art classes.

Several years later, mold and defects in the walls and roof of the school and gym, as a result of faulty construction, were detected. A string of lawsuits ensued between the school district and parties involved with the construction. The district eventually reached a $6.7 million settlement with its primary contractor, Robinson Construction Company, and several smaller settlements with sub-contractors. Repair work to fix the school's structural problems was completed in 2012.

In 2012, Bruce Plato announced his retirement after 11 years as principal of Lake Oswego High School. The School Board elected Assistant Principal Cindy Schubert as his replacement, effective in the 2013-2014 school year. The current principal is Kristen Colyer.

Academics

In 1983, Lake Oswego High School was honored in the Blue Ribbon Schools Program, the highest honor a school can receive in the United States.

In 2008, 94% of the school's seniors received a high school diplomas. Of 314 students, 294 graduated, 15 dropped out, four received a modified diploma, and one was still in high school in 2009.

The school received a gold ranking in U.S. News & World Report's 2013 "America's Best High Schools". It was named as the second best high school in the state. A gold ranking connotes that the school was among the 500 best in the nation. According to the report, 58 percent of the students participated in AP courses in 2013.

Notable alumni

Terry Bean - pioneering gay rights activist, founder of Human Rights Campaign and the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund

Jori Chisholm (1993) - champion bagpiper

Kari Chisholm (1991) - political consultant

Santo Condorelli (2013) - Canadian competitive swimmer

Brett Elliott (2000) - arena football player

Farnaz Fassihi (1988) - journalist, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal; author of Waiting for An Ordinary Day

Mohammad Ashraf Ghani (1967) - former president of Afghanistan; was listed in yearbooks under the names Ashraf Ahmad and Ashraf Ahmad Zai. The American Field Service sponsored his foreign exchange stay. He served on the student council.

Karl Glusman (2006) - actor, Nocturnal Animals

Elijah Greer (2009) - NCAA champion for track and field (2013)

Connor Griffin - assistant coach for the Brooklyn Nets

Bill Hanzlik (1973-1975) - former NBA player for the Seattle SuperSonics and Denver Nuggets

Alexandra Jamieson (1993) - author of The Great American Detox Diet, appeared in the film Super Size Me

Michael Jones - Internet entrepreneur, investor, and former CEO of Myspace

Benjamin Kim (2001) - concert pianist and winner of the 55th ARD International Music Competition