Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences

Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences
Learning to do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve
Address
3857 W. 111th Street Chicago, Illinois, 60655 USA
Coordinates	41°41′24″N 87°43′03″W / 41.6899°N 87.7176°W / 41.6899; -87.7176
Information
School type	Public Secondary Magnet
Opened	1985
School district	Chicago Public Schools 299
CEEB Code	140723[1]
Principal	William E. Hook[2]
Grades	9–12
Gender	Coed
Campus size	72-acre (290,000 m2)
Campus type	Urban
Color(s)	Green      Gold[3]
Athletics conference	Chicago Public League[3]
Team name	Cyclones[3]
Website	http://www.chicagoagr.org

The Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences ("CHSAS") is a public secondary magnet school opened in 1985 by the Chicago Public Schools as a unique, experimental high school devoted to teaching agricultural science to urban students. The school is located on a 72-acre (290,000 m²) campus, 40 acres (160,000 m²) of which are dedicated to a working farm (it was built on the site of the last farm to survive within the Chicago city limits), and the students commute from all across the city to CHSAS.^[4] It is located in the Mount Greenwood neighborhood of the city. The students benefit from hands-on experience and summer interships, and many do go on to attend universities and major in agricultural disciplines.

It was the second high school of this kind to open in the United States.^[4]

CHSAS has an annual enrollment cap of 600 students mandated by the Chicago Board of Education. Students are selected to attend the CHSAS via a lottery that annually selects about 150 students out of over 1000 applications for the entering freshman class.

Academics

All students are members of the FFA (formerly Future Farmers of America).^[5] The school claims that it is the organization's largest Illinois chapter, and the fifth largest in the nation.^[5]

Student life

CHSAS competes in the Chicago Public League and is a member of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA). Teams are stylized as the Cyclones.

The school sponsors six sports for young men and women, an additional four for young men, and an additional five for young women.^[6] The school also sponsors athletes who compete in the Special Olympics.^[6]

The school also sponsors 17 extracurricular clubs and activities. Those that are chapters of nationally notable organizations include the National Honor Society (NHS).^[7]

References

1. ^ "High School Code Search". College Board. http://apps.collegeboard.com/cbsearch_code/codeSearchHighschool.jsp. Retrieved 30 December 2009. 
2. ^ "Principal's Message". Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences. http://www.chicagoagr.org/about/principals_message.jsp?rn=2108669. Retrieved 31 December 2009. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Chicago (Agricultural Science)". Illinois High School Association (IHSA). 30 December 2009. http://www.ihsa.org/school/schools/2701.htm. Retrieved 31 December 2009. 
4. ^ ^{a b} "In Chicago, a Model Farm School", New York Times: B9, 5 August, http://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/05/education/in-chicago-a-model-farm-school.html?pagewanted=1, retrieved 31 December 2009, "Jason is working on a farm, of sorts. He is a student at the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences, a public school set on the last farm in the city of Chicago ... When it started in 1985, the high school was only the second of its kind in the country, the first being Philadelphia's Walter Biddle Saul High School of Agricultural Sciences." 
5. ^ ^{a b} "What is the FFA?". Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences. http://www.chicagoagr.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=38878&type=d&termREC_ID=&pREC_ID=42759&hideMenu=1&rn=1900812. Retrieved 31 December 2009. 
6. ^ ^{a b} "Athletic Teams". directory. Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences. http://www.chicagoagr.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=73853&type=d&termREC_ID=&pREC_ID=125879&hideMenu=1&rn=5116937. Retrieved 31 December 2009. 
7. ^ "Clubs & Activities". directory. Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences. http://www.chicagoagr.org/apps/departments/clubs.jsp?rn=1944918. Retrieved 31 December 2009.