Lanier Middle School (Houston)
| Bob Lanier Middle School (formerly Sidney Lanier Middle School) | |
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| Location | |
| Houston, Texas, United States | |
| Coordinates | 29°44′31″N 95°24′20″W / 29.741875°N 95.405517°WCoordinates: 29°44′31″N 95°24′20″W / 29.741875°N 95.405517°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Public School (US) |
| Motto | Achievement with Honor |
| Established | 1926 |
| School district | HISD - Central Region |
| Principal | Felicia Adams |
| Grades | 6-8 |
| Age range | 10-15 |
| Number of students | 1,319 (2008/2009) |
| Color(s) | Purple, and White, |
| Mascot | Purple Pups |
| Teams | The Purple Pup |
| Newspaper | The Purple Page |
| TEA Rating | Recognized (2007/2008) |
| Magnet | Partial: Vanguard/IBMYP |
| PTO | |
| Website | http://www.houstonisd.org/Domain/3518 |
Bob Lanier Middle School, formerly Sidney Lanier Junior High School/Middle School, is a middle school (lower secondary school) in Houston, Texas, United States, with a ZIP code of 77098. Lanier, a school of the Houston Independent School District, handles grades 6 through 8.
Lanier Middle School, named after former Mayor of Houston Bob Lanier, is located in Neartown and near Montrose and has both neighborhood non-magnet and Vanguard/IBMYP (of the International Baccalaureate) gifted/talented programs.
Lanier opened in 1926 as one of HISD's first junior high schools. This school was named for a well-known Southern poet, Sidney Lanier. In 1926, the Purple Pup was adopted as Lanier's mascot.
In 1935, students from Lanier created a petition to rename Woodhead Street, named after John Woodhead, to Higginbotham Street, after the principal, Blanch Higginbotham. According to the article "Historic Houston Streets: The Stories Behind the Name," students at other schools used "Wood head" as a derogatory label for Lanier students, implying that they lacked intelligence. After hearing testimony about Woodhead's character, the Houston City Council decided to keep the previous street name. The students apologized to E. S. Woodhead, John Woodhead's brother and a Houstonian.
In 1973, Lanier's Vanguard program was instated. Lanier received a rededication after renovations in 1982.
In September 1991 Lanier was one of 32 HISD schools that had capped enrollments; in other words the school was filled to capacity and excess students had to attend other schools.
Lanier's campus has been expanded numerous times since it was first built. The most notable expansion was the addition of the area of the building housing the cafeteria and gymnasium. This expansion has resulted in some quirks in the building that are still visible today, most notably a door leading to stairs to the basement that is only half-exposed above the floor of the hallway. These stairs are no longer in service, though the door can be opened even though it's blocked by the hallway floor. Students aren't allowed to open the door and/or go down those stairs. Prior to this expansion, the cafeteria was located where the library is today, on the third floor. A dumbwaiter, located where the elevator is today, carried food to the cafeteria.
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