Lincoln High and 200th Anniversary of The "Rail Splitter" (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865)

Do you know what's happening in 10 days, especially you Lincoln High

alumni?

Hint: Celebration of an event of 200 years ago. Still not helping?

Hint 2: Birthday candles would need a big cake and some fire marshals if fired up.

Last Hint: No, Not "Who's buried in Grant's Tomb?" but, "What President is Lincoln High named after?"

In 10 days, it will be February 12, 2009, the 200th Anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States on February 12, 1809. The other more tragic and widely known fact is that he was the first U.S. President to be assassinated, hit at point blank range by a single shot on April 14, 1865 and dying 9 hours later on April 15, 1865. He was 56 years old.

If all of this was news to you, think of what the students think about concerning this at LHS. In the five years that I have followed the Lincoln's Birthday activity each February, it was either easy to describe because there was nothing mentionable that was any different from any other day on campus, or, it was so UN-promoted that not a word was heard, discouraging or otherwise, about the significance of that February 12th date.

I am one of the ones from the old school- the one affter the 1930's quake and the one before the 1970's quakes- with the idea that we should have some school pride from taking steps to promote it based on knowledge and deeds, not just because it's part of a school cheerleading routine.

A second reason for not ignoring Lincoln's February 12th birthday is that Lincoln High is named after the most famous President, and a leader in the time of a war between citizens on our own homeland. There is a vast history from which we can find that tells us about Lincoln, besides the fact of being tall and thin, with a stovepipe hat and a beard.

My experience at Lincoln showed me that many students in the 9th an 10th grade were barely aware that Lincoln was a president. Many knew he was assassinated, but not much of any kind of details of anything else concerning Lincoln. Their expected later experience in a U.S. History class might help them, but aside from that, there is not a SCHOOL push for knowledge about Abraham Lincoln, and we should see that both as having educational value and serving to instill some knowledge that could foster some pride in the school.

I see that other schools on the East and Northeast side that carry names of presidents and historical figures, Wilson, (President Woodrow Wilson), Franklin, (Benjamin Franklin, statesman and inventor) and Garfield (President Jame Garfield- also assassinated during term in office)- and Roosevelt (Theodore Roosevelt) and ours should be the one easiest to find much information about his life and times. President Lincoln was probably the best of the U.S. presidents when you consider what he did to preserve the country in a time that brought civil war to the nation.

I'd like to see the change in the direction that Lincoln High has followed in the past as it concerns the Lincoln's Birthday event each year on February 12th. I remember that we had a separate holiday for Lincoln's birthday on February 12, and another holiday on February 22 for President George Washington's birthday. Later, to be more efficient, I imagine, there was a holiday created as President's Day that was neither for Washington or Lincoln and did not fall on either of their birthdays, but instead on a MONDAY. All this did was to really erase the importance of both of the Presidents and make the actual dates of their birthday even more obscure.

All of this is a sad commentary in the dissemination and treatment of knowledge of history for the benefit of students- and the School. We celebrate Cinco de Mayo which is a purely party day, not even the Mexican "4th of July" that many believe it to be. We celebrate September 16th in this city, with lots of SPECIAL EVENT FEE WAIVERS (meaning thousands of dollars given by the city for a party- and these are your tax dollars, and any "fee" dollars collected by the city. FEES really are taxes to the extent you are stuck by the city.)

In this city, we are unique among U.S. cities, with the City Council, giving money readily for events to celebrate another country's independence day, the September 16th Mexican Independence Day, almost more enthusiastically so than our own. That spending, like the $400,000.00 fee just waived by the Ctiy Council for the Academy Awards coming up, reinforces the idea that Council has no trouble parting with other people's tax money to fund parties. This public party expense pattern is a topic to be covered separately.

The idea of Lincoln High students having a knowledge of their namesake is not a terribly onerous expectation, and I add, it's a worthy one to refute criticss when the overall reputation of the LAUSD and the level of education is considered to be on a downward spiral from the any of the years of attendance here by any alumni.

LAUSD Budget Concerns and the Arts programs at Lincoln High

There was a question raised at the Alumni meeting last Saturday by a member on whether the arts program at Lincoln would suffer from the anticipated drastic budget cuts that the LAUSD will adopt as a result of the State budget outcome, as yet not resolved. Aside from the speculation and conjecture expressed at the meeting, some direction was provided from the District in the recent comments of Superintendent Ramon Cortines and those comments are relevant here.

At the meeting last week at Dahlia Heights Elementary, the same question was raised as it applied to the arts programs in the schools overall. Supt. Cortines acknowledged the importance of such programs, remarking that, for many students, "that is the hook that keeps them in school." He said that the Saturday school programs were similarly important for the large numbers of students affected. He said that he could not be certain with any specific commitment yet since budget numbers have not been established at the State level, but he considered arts programs important to the education process and would work to maintain them as important parts of the educational picture.

This budget crisis impacts the school district at all levels, and we had a topic area brought up that included consideration of a student field trip using LAUSD school busses for transporting the students.

According to the list of things that were covered in the LAUSD meeting and other similar content items appearing in print from Supt. Cortines, I would not expect much in the way of funds available soon or in the long run for expenses that had been made in the past. The District, according to Supt. Cortines, had begun belt-tightening steps last year as they saw this picture developing. A lot of things have been cut and more are on the way. (See topic from earlier posting here made last Wednesday.)

Supt. Cortines said coaches have been cut, and the aides are another area for personnel reductions. The increasing likelihood of more personnel reductions gets closer to becoming a certainty. Any available funds would be expected to go to the "necessities" of a school, so most of the field trips, if not all of them, will not qualify as “necessities.” That is another reason for parent and community support being needed if important programs are to continue at schools, generally, and at Lincoln, specifically.

The arts are a part of the educational process as well as the academics. The impact that that area has on morale of the students is important although not noticed as readily as the impact coming from good academic involvement. Long gone at Lincoln and many other LAUSD schools are the days of a mighty school spirit and the pride shown by student service clubs facilitating campus events- and long gone are many of the campus events themselves, when you stop and think about it.

The present day school band is getting Lincoln back into a level of where it should have been all along. The notable times from "back in the day" with Mr. Tozier and Mr. Benson, important names from Lincoln High’s past, genereally recognized as handling the bands very well for years show one end of the spectrum of activity in music, while the later times, with no band to speak of for years, give you an example of the weaker level of activity for the music involvement available to students at LHS . There is quite a difference to the school environment but it was at a subtle level, and restoring such things will be positive steps to improve things on multiple levels.

The Alumni Association contributed funding for the purchase of new band uniforms and in this fashion, generate a positve action, moving forward in the rebuilding of students' school-involvement and restoration of a level of pride in the school that such activities promote. The recent demonstration of LHS-organized talent during the Lincoln Heights Christmas Parade was a step in the right direction, raising the level of school spirit for particiapants and for the parade watchers, many of whom are also LHS alumni. Movement in that direction needs to continue if we are to expect the most that the students can achieve at Lincoln. It is not the only thing needed for a better educational program but one important item among the many.