Lethbridge Collegiate Institute (LCI) is a public high school in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, operated by Lethbridge School District No. 51 that serves grades nine through twelve. LCI was the first school in Lethbridge designated only for secondary students. It opened at its current location in 1950, but was founded in a smaller, adjacent building in 1928. Since its 1950 opening, several additions and layout changes have been made at the school. In August 2010, Chinook High School opened in West Lethbridge with over 700 students enrolled. Those that entered grade 11 in 2009 at LCI were permitted to complete their graduating year at LCI, but west Lethbridge students are now encouraged to attend the new high school, which was being built in conjunction with a western campus of Catholic Central High School, recreational facilities, and a public library.
As a result of Chinook's opening, LCI's enrollment decreased by a substantial 35% for the 2010–2011 school year and a further 11% to only 870 in 2011-2012; less than both Chinook and north Lethbridge's Winston Churchill High.
A relatively extensive academic program is offered, including automotives, construction and communication technology, fashion studies, and four language studies programs. An Advanced Placement Program is offered in several key subject areas, including mathematics, language arts, and the sciences. Respected instrumental music, choir, and dance programs have helped LCI become well known in Southern Alberta for offering balanced opportunities to students in both academics and extracurricular activities. Athletic teams from LCI carry the names Rams, Clippers, Colts, and Schooners, although the latter two have fallen into disuse.
History
Early years
In the early 1900s, two schools near downtown Lethbridge were named with reference to their location. Built in 1891, fifteen years prior to the incorporation of the City of Lethbridge, the first was Central School. The small school was the only one that served secondary students in the Lethbridge area. In 1909, Central School closed and secondary education classes moved into a vacated building on 5 Avenue. The school became too crowded in the mid-1920s, and a struggle began between the school board and the city to have a new school constructed.
In February 1928, construction work began on Lethbridge Collegiate Institute at the corner of 4 Avenue and 15 Street South. The institution would become the city's first combined junior high and high school. The site had previously been used for aviation activities in the city, until the opening of Kenyon Field (now Lethbridge County Airport) south of Six-Mile Coulee in the summer of 1939. Construction of the school at the site finished in October 1928, but a fire in the spring of 1929 ravaged the new building. Classes had to be moved to other local schools until later that year.
When LCI became too small for the city's growing population in 1950, a new building was constructed on the same block just east of the old one. Due to southern Alberta's booming population, twenty-one schools were constructed in Lethbridge between 1946 and 1965. Grades 10–12 were moved to the new building while grades 7–9 remained at their present location. The new junior high was renamed Lethbridge Junior High School, but kept the name for less than a year. In the latter part of 1950, the junior high adopted its new name, Hamilton Junior High School (named after a former teacher, principal, and superintendent, William Alfred Hamilton). The school kept the name for over half a century until its relocation to the rapidly expanding area of West Lethbridge as G.S. Lakie Middle School in 2003.
Next door, classes commenced on November 22, 1950 at the new LCI. With increases in student population, new sections of the building were added in 1955, 1957, 1970, and 1986. A section of Hamilton's old building was used to house Allan Watson High School for a time That high school was not operated by District 51. At that time the building was being renovated to house the headquarters of Lethbridge School District 51. Allan Watson was later replaced by Victoria Park High School operated by the District.