Fayetteville–Manlius High School (also F-M High School or FMHS) is a comprehensive New York public high school on East Seneca Turnpike in the Town of Manlius, serving grades 9–12 in the Fayetteville-Manlius Central School District. It is the only high school in the district, and is the successor to both Wellwood Middle School and Eagle Hill Middle School. The school is governed under the authority of the New York State Education Department, whose standardized examinations are designed and administered by the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York.
History
Fayetteville–Manlius High School was opened in 1963 after the 1951 merger of then separate Fayetteville and Manlius school districts and subsequent need to consolidate students into a single high school. Upon this opening, a major school restructuring was implemented, as the Fayetteville High School became Wellwood Middle School and Manlius High School became Pleasant Street Elementary (which closed in 1975). A new middle school, Eagle Hill, was also opened directly next to the high school in 1965. Space requirements, due mainly to ballooning enrollment and continued reorganization as a result of the 1951 merger, prompted the district to relocate Eagle Hill to a new building on a new campus in 1972, so the high school could expand into the junior high's previous facilities. This expansion, which connected the two buildings, now called House 2 and House 1, by a hallway and an enclosed footbridge, nearly doubled the school's footprint. F-M High School served grades 12 through 10 until 1976, when the two junior high schools became middle schools, and FM High took in 9th graders.
Administration
Raymond W. Kilmer is the school's current principal, and took office on July 1, 2010.
Traditions
Many of the school's traditions stem from the fact that decades ago, hornets nested in a 200-year-old oak tree that formerly stood on the old high school campus (now Wellwood Middle School). Because of this, the athletic teams' mascots are the Hornets, and several of the names used for the school newspaper over the years have been hornet-related (see Extracurriculars, below).
The school alma mater gives tribute to the original tree in its opening stanza, "Guarded by the old oak tree...". The alma mater is set to the melody of "Aura Lee". Its lyrics are attributed to teacher Richard Rhoades "and his music composition class". The motif can also be seen in the school colors (green and white), in the district logo, and in the name of the school yearbook (Oakleaves). °–°
Demographics
Entering the 2014–15 school year there were 1460 students enrolled at F-M High School and 130 faculty members, for a student-teacher ratio of approximately 11:1.
As of the 2005–06 school year, the racial/ethnic makeup of the student population was 91.8% White, 2.7% Black or African American, 4.4% Asian or Pacific Islander, and 0.8% Hispanic. Approximately 0.5% of the population, or 8 students, demonstrated limited English proficiency. Approximately 0.8% of students qualified for a reduced-price lunch, and another 3.5% were eligible for a free lunch. Since then the Asian student population has increased significantly, and now makes up almost 10% of the school's population.
Academics and extracurriculars
Curriculum
The school focuses on graduating all students with the minimum of a Regents Diploma, but some may also graduate with a less advanced local diploma. The Regents Diploma with Advanced Designation may be achieved with extended studies in a foreign language.
Though the curriculum is developed and sanctioned by the New York State Department of Education, and classes are developed to prepare students to achieve success on the required Regents Examinations, most core courses offer one or two components that explore more advanced topics. The school offers standard level Regents courses, but also offers more advanced Honors courses, Interdisciplinary courses (in English and History), Advanced Placement (AP) courses, as well as Syracuse University courses offered through Syracuse University Project Advance (SUPA). SU courses offered through Project Advance are taught at the high school by F-M faculty members (qualified by the university), and follow the same curriculum and are given the same credit as courses taught at the university. A large percentage of students opt to take SU courses offered through Project Advance instead of AP classes because their equally challenging curriculum is often more widely accepted for transfer credit by the students' successive colleges or universities.