Ateo Phillip Leto High School
Encyclopedia
A. P. Leto Comprehensive High School is a public high school within the Hillsborough County School District and is located at 4409 West Sligh Avenue in Tampa, Florida
, U.S.A. Leto hosts grades 9-12 and adult night school.
. The school recently went through a fifteen million dollar renovation restoring and upgrading this one of a kind facility.
The facility is an open-air design with Individual buildings connected by covered walkways. The facility includes football, baseball, and softball fields, as well as a gymnasium, auditorium and multi-purpose room. The school also has vocational facilities for automotive, computer repair, agriculture, cosmetology, family and consumer sciences, health occupations, and a new addition to be completed in March 2006 for culinary arts. There is a full service media center and seven student-centered computer labs.
The faculty of the school consists of 218 employees separated into administrative, instructional, non-instructional, clerical, and custodial classifications. Victor Fernandez is the current principal, appointed in April 2009. There are five assistant principals and 98 teachers in the instructional classification.
The school currently operates as a Title I school (receiving additional funds from the federal government) with 66.4% of the student population free or reduced lunch eligible.
and at Chamberlain High School in Tampa. He was originally to serve as the school's first principal, but he died before the school year began. The first principal of Leto was Frank M. Farmer. After Leto, Farmer became the Assistant Superintendent for Instruction for the Hillsborough County School System until his retirement in 1986. His retirement celebration took place in the Leto High School library.
Leto was established in 1965 with grades 9-11, and the first graduating class was in 1967. Although the largest school in Hillsborough County, it lacked a gymnasium and a stadium. Leto opened with 1,670 students its first year. The school is situated on 37 acres (149,733.8 m²).
The school colors are Vegas gold, scarlet red, and white. The school mascot is the Falcon
. Several traditions continue to be upheld at Leto to include Class Capers, Spirit Week, and Night to Fly.
2003-04 = 81%
2001-02 = 69%
2000-01 = 67.9%
1999-00 = 59%
2007-08 = C
2006-07 = B
2005-06 = C
2004-05 = C
2003-04 = D
2002-03 = D
2001-02 = D
2000-01 = C
1999-00 = C
1998-99 = C
for inclusion in the EXCELerator
School Improvement Model program beginning the 2007-2008 school year. The project was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
.
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
, U.S.A. Leto hosts grades 9-12 and adult night school.
School Characteristics
A.P. Leto Comprehensive High School is an inner-city school that is nestled in a predominantly Hispanic part of a coastal, central Florida city. The initial year of operation was 1965, opening with grades nine through eleven. The school now consists of grades nine through twelve and is a true comprehensive high schoolComprehensive high school
Comprehensive high schools are the most common form of public high schools in the United States and are meant to serve the needs of all students, as compared to the common practice in other nations in which examinations are used to sort students into different high schools for different populations...
. The school recently went through a fifteen million dollar renovation restoring and upgrading this one of a kind facility.
The facility is an open-air design with Individual buildings connected by covered walkways. The facility includes football, baseball, and softball fields, as well as a gymnasium, auditorium and multi-purpose room. The school also has vocational facilities for automotive, computer repair, agriculture, cosmetology, family and consumer sciences, health occupations, and a new addition to be completed in March 2006 for culinary arts. There is a full service media center and seven student-centered computer labs.
The faculty of the school consists of 218 employees separated into administrative, instructional, non-instructional, clerical, and custodial classifications. Victor Fernandez is the current principal, appointed in April 2009. There are five assistant principals and 98 teachers in the instructional classification.
Ethnicity / Demographics
| Number | Percent | ETHNICITY |
|---|---|---|
| 1159 | 64.75% | Hispanic |
| 327 | 18.27 | White, Non Hispanic |
| 184 | 10.28% | Black (African-American), Non Hispanic |
| 81 | 4.53% | Multi-Racial |
| 36 | 12.01% | Asian / Pacific Islander |
| 3 | 0.17% | American Indian / Alaskan Native |
| 1790 | 100% | Total |
The school currently operates as a Title I school (receiving additional funds from the federal government) with 66.4% of the student population free or reduced lunch eligible.
History
The school is named in honor of Ateo Phillip Leto, a former principal at Jefferson High SchoolThomas Jefferson High School (Tampa, Florida)
Thomas Jefferson High School is a secondary school located in the heart of the Westshore Business District of Tampa, Florida. Thomas Jefferson High School is an Area 1 high school operated under the Hillsborough County Public School system.-School history:...
and at Chamberlain High School in Tampa. He was originally to serve as the school's first principal, but he died before the school year began. The first principal of Leto was Frank M. Farmer. After Leto, Farmer became the Assistant Superintendent for Instruction for the Hillsborough County School System until his retirement in 1986. His retirement celebration took place in the Leto High School library.
Leto was established in 1965 with grades 9-11, and the first graduating class was in 1967. Although the largest school in Hillsborough County, it lacked a gymnasium and a stadium. Leto opened with 1,670 students its first year. The school is situated on 37 acres (149,733.8 m²).
The school colors are Vegas gold, scarlet red, and white. The school mascot is the Falcon
Falcon
A falcon is any species of raptor in the genus Falco. The genus contains 37 species, widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and North America....
. Several traditions continue to be upheld at Leto to include Class Capers, Spirit Week, and Night to Fly.
Publications
- The Leto Legend - Student-run and produced newspaper for Leto High School
- The Quill - Literary magazine of student poetry, art and prose
- The Talon - Student-run and produced yearbook for Leto High School
Graduation rates
2004-05 = 86%2003-04 = 81%
2001-02 = 69%
2000-01 = 67.9%
1999-00 = 59%
School Report Card
2008-09 = D2007-08 = C
2006-07 = B
2005-06 = C
2004-05 = C
2003-04 = D
2002-03 = D
2001-02 = D
2000-01 = C
1999-00 = C
1998-99 = C
Improvement
Leto was one of 16 schools nation-wide selected by the College BoardCollege Board
The College Board is a membership association in the United States that was formed in 1900 as the College Entrance Examination Board . It is composed of more than 5,900 schools, colleges, universities and other educational organizations. It sells standardized tests used by academically oriented...
for inclusion in the EXCELerator
EXCELerator
' is a school improvement model developed with the College Board. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation agreed to fund a five-year pilot project with a $16 million grant...
School Improvement Model program beginning the 2007-2008 school year. The project was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest transparently operated private foundation in the world, founded by Bill and Melinda Gates. It is "driven by the interests and passions of the Gates family"...
.
Notable alumni
- Michael Jenkins '99 (Mike Jenkins) - Wide ReceiverWide receiverA wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
in the NFL, who currently plays for the Minnesota VikingsMinnesota VikingsThe Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
. All time leader in receiving yardage for The Ohio State University BuckeyesOhio State Buckeyes footballThe Ohio State Buckeyes football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of The Ohio State University. The team is a member of the Big Ten Conference of the NCAA, playing at the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly Division I-A, level. The team nickname is derived from the state...
.
- Damu CherryDamu CherryDamu Cherry is an American hurdler. Her personal best time is 12.44 seconds, achieved in July 2006 in Lausanne.She was banned for two years by the IAAF for failing an out-of-competition drugs test in 2003...
'95 (American Hurdler) Damu Cherry qualifed for the 2008 U.S. Olympic team. She placed 3rd in her first round and won her semi-final heat. She ended up placing 4th in the final.