Escanaba Area Public Schools
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Escanaba Area Public Schools (EAPS) is the only public school district in
Escanaba, Michigan Escanaba ( ), commonly shortened to Esky, is a port city and the county seat of Delta County in the U.S. state of Michigan, located on Little Bay de Noc in the state's Upper Peninsula. The population was 12,450 at the 2020 census, making it the ...
. The district operates three
elementary schools A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...
, one
virtual learning Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...
center, and one combined
junior high Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...
/
senior high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
. EAPS serves approximately 2,200 total students and employs 115 teachers, for a
student-teacher ratio A student teacher or prac teacher (''practise teacher'') is a college, university, or Postgraduate education, graduate student who is teaching under the supervision of a certified teacher in order to qualify for a degree in education. Student tea ...
of 19:1.


History

The first public schoolhouse in Escanaba was unveiled in 1867, at the site of what became the city's first
public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...
in 1903. The Carnegie Public Library of Escanaba was relocated to a new building in 1995 and the original library was sold to private owners soon after. A small
monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...
to the original schoolhouse was erected in 1934 and still stands on the property. During the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, the school district sponsored a two-year " Freshman College" in response to graduating high school student's difficulty in finding and financing
higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...
. The Escanaba
Community College A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...
operated for a few years before closing, until local benefactor Catherine Bonifas designated $100,000 of her estate to the construction of a new
post-secondary education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational school ...
facility in the city in 1948. The school district spent a decade hiring lecturers and consultants from the
University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...
,
Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...
, and the Michigan State Department of Public Instruction to explain the role and importance of a community college to Escanaba residents. EAPS voted to pass the responsibility of the college to Delta County in the early 1960s, as the consolidation of local K-12 districts and new construction were at the top of their priority list, with many believing the community college should be operated by all of the school districts in the county.
Bay de Noc Community College Bay de Noc Community College (Bay College) is a public community college in Escanaba, Michigan. Founded in 1962, the college has a main campus in Escanaba and another campus, Bay College West, in Iron Mountain, Michigan, serving Dickinson Coun ...
's first classes were held in the old Escanaba High School building in the fall of 1963, with the first classes at their current Lincoln Road location offered in the fall of 1969. In 2022, the former Washington Elementary School was demolished and replaced with a green space for recess, a
bus lane A bus lane or bus-only lane is a lane restricted to buses, generally to speed up public transport that would be otherwise held up by traffic congestion. The related term busway describes a roadway completely dedicated for use by buses, whilst ...
, and a parking lot. The school building had been empty since 1998, with the
demolition Demolition (also known as razing and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction (building), deconstruction, which inv ...
providing more space for the children that currently attend Escanaba Upper Elementary.


Building names

Lemmer Elementary School is named for former Escanaba Area Public Schools
superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Building superintendent, a manager, maintenance or repair person, custodian or janitor, especially in the United States; sometimes shortened to "super" *Prison warden or superintendent, a prison administrator *Soprin ...
and strong advocate for the formation of a local community college, John Lemmer. The new Lemmer building began offering classes to students in 1954, with a new addition built in 1967. Webster Kindergarten Center is the latest in a long line of Escanaba school buildings named for Delta County-native Webster Marble, famous early inventor of
outdoor recreation Outdoor recreation or outdoor activity refers to recreation done outside, most commonly in natural settings. The activities that encompass outdoor recreation vary depending on the physical environment they are being carried out in. These activitie ...
equipment and gun sites, and founder of nearby business
Marble Arms Marble Arms & Manufacturing Company of Gladstone, Michigan, is a company founded in 1892 for the invention and manufacture of the Marble Universal Rifle Sight by Webster L. Marble. Retrieved 2010-12-08 Frank H. Van Cleve of Escanaba, Michigan sh ...
. The first Webster Elementary building was in operation from 1911 until 1991, when it was demolished and a new Webster Elementary School was built in its place. In 2018, the city of Escanaba voted to convert the school to exclusively house classrooms for
pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...
and
kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...
students, and the building was renamed the Webster Kindergarten Center.


Schools


Demographics

Of the 2,200
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students enrolled in the Escanaba Area Public School district as of 2021, 89% were white, 5% were
Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...
, 3% were two or more races, 2% were
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
/ Latino, and less than 1% of students were
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, Asian, or
Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...
. 1,200 students (58%) come from households that are considered
economically disadvantaged The "disadvantaged" is a generic term for individuals or groups of people who: * Face special problems such as physical or mental disability * Lack money or economic supportKingdom of Nepal: Economic and Social Inclusion of the Disadvantaged P ...
. The
median income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of unde ...
of households in the area was $42,480 as of 2019.


Curriculums

The Upper Elementary School provides students in
3rd Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (dis ...
-
5th grade Fifth grade (also 5th Grade or Grade 5) is the fifth or sixth year of formal or compulsory education. In the United States, this is mostly the last grade of primary school, but for some states, it could be the first year of middle school. Primary ...
s with courses in
mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...
, science,
social studies In many countries' curricula, social studies is the combined study of humanities, the arts, and social sciences, mainly including history, economics, and civics. The term was coined by American educators around the turn of the twentieth century as ...
,
health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...
and
physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...
,
art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...
, music,
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,
economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
, and technology. Escanaba Jr./Sr. High follows the Michigan Merit Curriculum and offers dozens of
electives In higher education, a course is a unit of teaching that typically lasts one academic term, is led by one or more instructors (teachers or professors), and has a fixed roster of students. A course usually covers an individual subject. Courses gene ...
to supplement a student's education. Escanaba High School offers Advanced Placement courses in
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...
,
computer science Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans Theoretical computer science, theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to Applied science, ...
,
biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...
,
chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...
,
calculus Calculus is the mathematics, mathematical study of continuous change, in the same way that geometry is the study of shape, and algebra is the study of generalizations of arithmetic operations. Originally called infinitesimal calculus or "the ...
, and
statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a s ...
. Additionally, the school coordinates with
Northern Michigan University Northern Michigan University (Northern Michigan, Northern or NMU) is a public university in Marquette, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1899 by the Michigan Legislature as Northern State Normal School. In 1963, the state designa ...
and
Bay de Noc Community College Bay de Noc Community College (Bay College) is a public community college in Escanaba, Michigan. Founded in 1962, the college has a main campus in Escanaba and another campus, Bay College West, in Iron Mountain, Michigan, serving Dickinson Coun ...
to provide high school students with access to college courses for credit via a
dual enrollment In the United States, dual enrollment (DE), also called concurrent enrollment, programs allow students to be enrolled in two separate, academically related institutions. Generally, it refers to high school students taking college or university cour ...
model. Electives available to junior/senior high students include chorale and chorus,
marching band A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who play while marching. Historically they were used in armed forces and many marching bands remain military bands. Others are still associated with military units or emulate a military sty ...
,
orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
, band, art, and
physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...
courses. Escanaba Middle College is a 5-year hybrid
high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...
/
college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...
program jointly sponsored by
Bay de Noc Community College Bay de Noc Community College (Bay College) is a public community college in Escanaba, Michigan. Founded in 1962, the college has a main campus in Escanaba and another campus, Bay College West, in Iron Mountain, Michigan, serving Dickinson Coun ...
and Escanaba High School. The program allows students to receive both a
high school diploma A high school diploma (sometimes referred to as a high school degree) is a diploma awarded upon graduation of high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary s ...
and either an
associate's degree An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree. ...
, industrial certification, or 60 transferable-credits at the end of their 5 years in the program. The Escanaba Student Success Center offers a supervised
virtual learning environment Virtual may refer to: * Virtual image, an apparent image of an object (as opposed to a real object), in the study of optics * Virtual (horse), a thoroughbred racehorse * Virtual channel, a channel designation which differs from that of the actual ...
to 8th-12th grade students in Delta County who, for whatever reason, are at-risk of dropping out of high school before receiving a
diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offi ...
.


Notable alumni/faculty

*
Kevin Tapani Kevin Ray Tapani (born February 18, 1964) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Chicago Cubs from 1989 to 2001. Early life Tapani was ra ...
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
player (1989-2001) * Tom CaspersonMichigan State Senator (2011-2018) * Chauncey W. Yockey — attorney and early
Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...
leader * Nanette Hanson — Michigan Teacher of the Year (2022–23)


Recognition

The
State of Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
named an Escanaba Area Public Schools teacher Michigan's Teacher of The Year for 2022-23. Nannette Hanson is a 1st-grade teacher at Lemmer Elementary School who now represents more than 86,000 Michigan-based public school teachers at monthly state school board meetings and other state education functions. In addition, she is Michigan's 2023 entry for the prestigious 2023
National Teacher of The Year The National Teacher of the Year is a professional award in the United States. The program began in 1952, as a project by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), and aims to reward excellence in teaching. It is sponsored by ING. Se ...
award.


References

{{reflist School districts in Michigan School districts established in 1867 Education in Delta County, Michigan