The BH-BL Central School District has a
more than 90-year history of stability and excellence in
education and of residents and staff working
together. In fact, the district began when local
residents grew tired of paying tuition and railroad
fares for their children to attend high schools in
nearby towns and decided to build their own high
school.
|
1915 |
Three one-room schools
join to form the "Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake
Union Free School District," New York
state's first "consolidated" school
district. |
|
1916 |
The Burnt Hills-Ballston
Lake School of Agriculture & Homemaking
opens on Lakehill Road on the site of the
current Stevens Elementary School. |
|
1920 |
The first high school
graduation ceremony is held for two pupils. |
|
1925-62 |
Gradually 14 more
one-room schools join the
BH-BL centralized district. |
|
1930-31 |
The front section of the
original Lakehill Road school burns and is
rebuilt. |
|
1951 |
Our first specifically
elementary school, Pashley, is built on
Pashley Road. With the post-war baby boom,
the community is growing so fast that the
new school cannot handle the elementary
enrollment, and many children continue to
attend one-room schools. |
|
1955 |
The BH-BL High School is
built, and the original Lakehill Road school
is converted to the Ballston Lake Elementary
School |
|
1958 |
The Glenhaven and
Charlton Heights Elementary Schools are
built on Cypress Drive and Stage Road,
respectively, using the same design and
floor plans to save money. |
|
1961 |
The new Junior High
opens, the third district school to be built
on Lakehill Road. |
|
1962-69 |
Additions are built onto
all six district schools to handle the
still-growing enrollment. |
|
1967 |
Ballston Lake Elementary
is renamed the Francis L. Stevens Elementary
School to honor its longtime school
principal and the district's first Superintendent of
Schools. |
|
1970 |
District enrollment
reaches a peak of 5,467 pupils. |
|
1981 |
Glenhaven Elementary is
closed due to declining enrollment. The
district administrative offices and several
tenants move into Glenhaven, and the former
administration building is sold. |
|
1985 |
9th grades classes are
moved from the Junior High to the High
School. |
|
1988 |
6th grade classes are
moved from the elementary schools to the
Junior High, and that building is converted
to the BH-BL Middle School for grades 6-8. |
|
1994 |
The Middle School is
renamed the Richard H. O'Rourke Middle
School to honor Dr. O'Rourke upon his
retirement after 25 years as the superintendent
of schools. |
|
2004 |
The Glenhaven Building is renamed the
Hostetter Administration & Leadership Center
to honor retiring superintendent Bill
Hostetter. |
