Benjamin Franklin High School | |
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Address | |
31000 Joy Road Livonia, Michigan 48150 |
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Coordinates | 42°21′22″N 83°20′42″W / 42.356°N 83.345°WCoordinates: 42°21′22″N 83°20′42″W / 42.356°N 83.345°W |
Information | |
Type | Public school |
Established | 1961 |
School district | Livonia Public Schools |
Principal | Daniel R. Willenborg |
Staff | 170 |
Grades | 9–12 |
Number of students | 1,709 (2014-15 school year) |
Color(s) | Midnight blue and red |
Athletics conference | Northwest-Suburban Conference (1963-1985) Western Lakes Activities Association (1985-2008) Kensington Lakes Activities Association (2008- ) |
Mascot | Patriot |
Team name | Patriots |
Newspaper | The Packet |
Yearbook | Almanack |
Accreditation | North Central Association |
Website | FHS |
Benjamin Franklin High School, also referred to as Franklin High School, Livonia Franklin and FHS, is a public high school located in Livonia, Michigan, a suburb west of Detroit.
Established in September 1961 a sophomore class attended classes at nearby Bentley High School during the 1961-62 school year. Classes were then taught at FHS when that building opened in September 1962. The school celebrated its first graduating class in June 1964. During the 1968-69 school year, a sophomore class from Churchill High School attended classes at Franklin High School as construction commenced on that school building.
The International Baccalaureate Program is a rigorous academic program which promotes intercultural understanding and respect, not as an alternative to a sense of cultural and national identity, but as an essential part of life in the 21st century. The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. This program encourages students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.
The IB program allows selected 11th and 12th grade students to earn an IB diploma in addition to their regular high school diploma. The IB curriculum is recognized for its academic rigor and its ‘international mindedness' exposure. Students working for an IB diploma will be required to take a full IB schedule that includes courses in Language 1 (English), Language 2 (Spanish), Individuals and Society (Social Studies), Mathematics, Experimental Science, and Visual Arts. Students will also take end-of-course exams that will be assessed using international standards. The IB program has additional requirements of an extended essay, a Theory of Knowledge course, and 150 hours of documented creativity, action, and service.
Franklin High School is the first public school in Wayne County to offer the IB Diploma program. Faculty members have been trained in the areas of Administration, Coordination, Visual Arts, History of the Americas, Spanish, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, English and Theory of Knowledge. At the training sessions, teachers spend 3–5 days learning about international perspectives regarding pedagogy, curricular requirements, and standards of assessment.