Lincoln’s Excellent Public Schools

by Julie Nichols

The city of Lincoln has long valued public education. With thriving city parks and recreation centers, neighborhood playgrounds, skate zones, trails, and pools, and a children’s zoo and museum, Lincoln’s investment in its youth is undeniable. The overarching vision of Lincoln Public Schools is to prepare ALL students for college, career, and civic life. 

The district contains 39 elementary schools, 15 middle schools, and six high schools. Lincoln Public Schools is Nebraska’s second-largest school district, known for its tradition of educational excellence and academic rigor. The district serves 42 thousand students in over sixty schools and programs and strives for a 90 percent student graduation rate, and it’s close—recent rates hold steady between 80 and 85 percent.

Nebraska leads the nation in immigrants and refugees per capita, and Lincoln has become a multicultural city. Language diversity requires enhancement in the English Learners (EL) program within LPS to give new arrivals the tools they need to succeed academically and adapt to American culture. 

Lincoln Public Schools is one of 250 school districts in the U.S. and Canada honored by the College Board with placement on the 10th Annual AP District Honor Roll. To receive this award, LPS had to increase the number of students participating in Advanced Placement courses while increasing or maintaining the percentage of students earning AP exam scores of 3.0 or higher. 

Lincoln Public Schools’ high school focus programs have been a point of strategic planning for nearly three decades. Students benefit from smaller communities, flexibility, experiential learning, individual support, greater self-expression, and stronger relationships. Any student can apply for a focus program.

LPS’s flagship programs began at Lincoln High in the late 90s. The Children’s Zoo has hosted the Science Focus Program (or Zoo School) since 2000. In 2019, a $3.2 million lab and classroom facility opened, where students develop individual capstone projects: genome sequencing, forest decomposition, psychology, forensic science, and engineering. The Arts and Humanities Program offers visual artists, writers, and performers a space to nourish and produce creative projects. Many Arts and Humanities students have gone on to receive BFA or graduate school scholarships and degrees, gallery shows, and awards for their work.

Bryan Community Focus School is an alternative high school program that combines high behavioral and academic expectations with innovative teaching designed to help students meet Lincoln Public Schools high school diploma requirements. The smaller learning environment at Bryan allows for more individualized instruction.

Career Academy at Southeast Community College initially offered just four IT and entrepreneurship “career pathways,” which multiplied rapidly and now include criminal justice, culinary arts, health sciences, welding and precision machining, early childhood education, and others. Students earn free college credit and receive industry certifications, apprenticeships, and jobs from high school. 

Bay High, partnering with Lincoln’s indoor skate park, The Bay, incubates young creators and provides upward mobility for student innovators in emergent technologies. Instead of skipping homework to skate, students develop career goals from the springboards of skateboarding, digital art, content creation, marketing, music and video production, fashion, digital media, and web design. For over a decade, The Bay has provided community outreach for at-risk youth and a place for the self-identified “misfits” to gather. 

Yankee Hill Learning Center offers a supportive environment for students struggling with learning and behavior and encourages responsibility and social connection. Innovative teaching strategies nurture academic and social successes, individual leadership, and accountability to help students succeed as adults.

Serving grades 6-12 in a small, structured setting, the Student Support Program assists in maintaining academic progress during transitions, long-term suspensions, or expulsion. Conceived to propel students toward positive learning and behavior choices, this school establishes a safe and predictable environment by explicitly teaching consistent expectations. 

Over time, the success of Lincoln High’s International Baccalaureate program and Northeast’s junior ROTC exposed the advantages of embedding programs within students’ home high schools—most notably, opportunities to participate in extracurriculars and school culture. Four new embedded focus programs have surfaced in response.

The University of Nebraska–Lincoln College of Business and Lincoln Public Schools partnered to create the Nebraska Business Focus Program at Standing Bear High School in 2023. The focus program enables students to develop their business knowledge and skills to be successful in any career path, working for a business or starting their own.

Northeast’s Early College Career and STEM Program partners with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources to offer students the opportunity to study agriculture and natural resources. Priority is given to non-college-bound students. Field trips introduce students to research facilities and the diversity of agricultural and natural resource careers. College courses are available through UNL for credit. Graduates receive certifications based on demonstrated expertise in conservation, crop production, problem-solving, and STEM systems knowledge.

Lincoln Northwest opened two years ago, as did The Medical Science Focus Program. Collaborating with Bryan College of Health Sciences (BCHS), this program prepares students to enter medical fields. College credit is available with reduced tuition and scholarships. After completing the requirements, students receive phlebotomy, CNA, and other certifications. Immersive experiences and job shadowing prepare students to enter jobs upon graduation in a time of pressing need for healthcare workers.

After piloting a few aviation classes, Northstar High School now houses the Aviation and Technical Education Focus Program. What began with a few students, three flight simulators, and bits of airplanes (a black box and Cessna wing) grew to complete enrollment and implementation of national aviation curricula. Thanks to generous support from Duncan Aviation, a nearly-completed hangar-sized facility will serve as a hands-on classroom big enough to accommodate aircraft. The local partnership offers internships and presentations from experienced aviation professionals. Over 750 thousand aviation jobs are projected to open between now and 2037.

Twenty elementary, six middle, and four high schools offer after-school clubs and activities through Lincoln’s Community Learning Centers. Middle and high schools sponsor clubs for various interests beyond academics. Lincoln’s high schools offer 23 NSAA-sanctioned sports with athletic facilities and numerous playing fields throughout the city, and Lincoln schools host tournaments throughout the year. Middle schools provide opportunities for intramurals. 

Elementary curriculum includes music and art education, and students can begin lessons and join the orchestra or band in fifth grade. Vocal and instrumental music classes in middle and high school programs offer many opportunities for ensemble work, including show choirs and small instrumental groups, drum lines, and marching bands.  

Lincoln Public Schools prides itself on strategic planning, with observable success in newly-built facilities and program expansion. Increasing Career Academy offerings and focus programs continues with efforts to engage community partners to expand locations and access. LPS graduates are ready to take on their future responsibilities confidently and skillfully.