All About LaSalle Prep

History

LaSalle Junior High School opened its doors on Buffalo Avenue in September of 1931.  Due to the then rapid growth of the LaSalle neighborhood in the City of Niagara Falls, it soon became a junior-senior high school.  In March of 1957, the senior high school students moved to a new building on Military Road aptly named LaSalle Senior High School.  The original LaSalle building on Buffalo Avenue once again became a junior high school until 1990 when it was restructured and renamed LaSalle Middle School.  With the closing of LaSalle Senior High School in the year 2000 the Explorer mascot of LaSalle, along with the brown and gold banner that proudly hangs in the entrance of our school, were returned to their rightful place overlooking the Niagara River.  In 2007, LaSalle was restructured to service students in grades seven (7) and eight (8) as LaSalle Preparatory School (LPS).

Today

LaSalle Preparatory School (LPS) is one of two (2) intermediate secondary schools in the Niagara Falls City School District, in the City of Niagara Falls, New York.  Overlooking the north bank of the Niagara River, it is located in the onetime Village of LaSalle, with views of Grand Island (to the south) and Cayuga Island (to the southeast).  The LaSalle Complex includes a large athletic field to the north, two (2) gyms, a pool, library, auditorium, and more than 50 classrooms with Internet connectivity and SMART Board Technology throughout.

Student Population

The student population and neighborhood surrounding LPS is economically diverse.  In terms of its needs and resources, LPS is classified by The New York State Education Department as having middle range to high student need in relation to district resource capacity.  This places LPS in the middle range of similar urban and suburban secondary schools in the Albany, Binghamton, Elmira, and Jamestown School Districts.  The Niagara Falls and LaSalle neighborhood communities are highly supportive of LPS and the Niagara Falls City School District, as evidenced by successive successful budget votes and capital improvement projects, which have maintained the LPS complex for more than eighty (80) years.  The most recent of which, provided chimney, masonry, door, roofing, electrical, ventilation, and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance upgrades throughout the school.

Student Support

LPS’ role, in a neighborhood where many families are experiencing economic uncertainty cannot be understated. In support of student achievement strong home-school-community relationships are required, and extra-curricular student involvement is encouraged. To these ends two (2) parent-teacher nights, an open house, and a new student orientation are hosted throughout the year, while frequent teacher-parent communication via telephone, email, and student agenda is encouraged.  Families and Schools Together (FAST), LaSalle Preparatory School’s parent group sponsors family and student activities throughout the year promoting home-school communication, cooperation, and fund raising efforts. 

In addition to ten (10) modified sports programs, LPS hosts the 21st Century After School Program and the Advantage After-School Program that offers academic support and extra-curricular activities throughout the year.  Two (2) school counselors, two (2) deans, one (1) school psychologist and the Monsignor Carr Children’s Clinic (on a referral basis) provide students and their families with intervention support, and/or  individual and group counseling at no charge.  LPS additionally benefits from the Adopt-a-School Community Business Partnership through which Niagara University, Occidental Chemical, Target, and Jacob’s Pizzeria provide advice and capital in support of school activities.

LaSalle Organization

LPS’ organizational plan incorporates characteristics of both a middle school and traditional junior high school model.  Core teachers are organized into interdisciplinary clusters among which students are heterogeneously assigned. The school day, which consists of seven (7) fifty-eight (58) minute blocks, affords students more than three hundred and forty (340) daily minutes of instruction and a thirty (30) minute lunch.  Additional core academic staff provides Academic Intervention Services (AIS) in English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics as necessary. Course work in Family and Consumer Sciences, Physical Education, Art, Music, Health, Technology, and Spanish is also offered. 

Curriculum

Qualifying students in Grade 8 may obtain New York State High School Regents Credit in Mathematics (Algebra) and Science (Living Environment).  Qualifying students in grades seven (7) and eight (8) participate in an additional Comprehensive Accelerated Program, while others receive English as a Second Language support.  One hundred percent (100%) of the teachers at LPS are “highly qualified” as defined by the New York State Education Department and they are supported by eleven (11) paraprofessionals,  two (2) academic coaches, and two (2) administrators (principal & assistant principal).

Educational Plans

Dedicated to the principles of Response to Intervention, LPS conducts three (3) universal screenings annually to monitor each student’s academic progress.  The data obtained from these screenings is used to make informed decisions about how our school can best address each child’s academic needs.  Currently, 19% of LPS’ students receive intense academic support through specialized program accommodations, including Individual Education Plans and Section 504 accommodations.  A continuum of services is offered, incorporating consultant teacher services, resource room, and self-contained classroom settings.

Positive Behavior Program

In 2005, LaSalle Preparatory School (then as LaSalle Middle School) adopted a positive behavior management program, emphasizing the identification and instruction of desirable student behaviors, while establishing a system of student rewards. This initiative was implemented with the intention of promoting the attributes of good citizenship and positive behavior, while increasing student achievement by reducing instructional time lost to disciplinary consequences.

School Standing

LPS is classified by the New York State Department of Education as a school in good standing. It has continued to meet adequate yearly progress goals as required by New York State in all subjects (English Language Arts (ELA), Mathematics, and Science).  For more detailed information please view LPS’ New York State Accountability and Comprehensive Information Reports available at NYSED.GOV