Fairfax High School

In the early 1920s, the Los Angeles Board of Education purchased 28 acres of swamp land in the Fairfax District for a very low cost. After filling in the ciénega with dirt, construction began on a new high school building. In 1924, Fairfax High School opened its doors to students for the first time. The school was initially conceptualized as an agricultural & mechanical school with an emphasis on "practical skills". Early school programs included agronomy, landscaping, forestry, and basic architectural design. Girls at Fairfax High School learned cooking from the Domestic Service program which ran the school cafeteria. Special permission was given to school leadership by the direct descendants of Lord Fairfax to use the colonial Lord's "Rampant Lion" coat of arms, along with his motto "Fare fax" (Latin for "Say and do"). By 1927, an auditorium, a Fine Arts building, and a gym had all been added to the campus. In 1938, a rotunda featuring a statue of Abraham Lincoln was constructed.

When the United States entered into World War II in 1941, hundreds of Fairfax High School's students and alumni enlisted. Younger students led numerous war bond drives and sold over $90,000 in bonds. The 1946 yearbook was dedicated to those who served in the war effort- 96 of whom were killed in action. Due to shifting population demographics following the end of the war, the Fairfax District became a major Jewish enclave. The population percentage of Jewish students at Fairfax High School during the 1950's and 1960's is estimated to have been as high as 90% to 95%. The school even began offering Modern Hebrew classes- taught by Beverly-Fairfax Jewish Community Center principal Ronnie Tofield- in 1953. Many non-Jewish families withdrew their children during these years.

In 1966, the original Spanish Colonial Revival style school building was deemed unsafe for failing to meet city earthquake safety standards. Most of the structures on campus were demolished with the exception of the beloved auditorium and rotunda, which were both reinforced. The new Fairfax High School building was opened in 1968. That same year, school zone boundaries were changed to include a predominantly Black and Latinx area past Pico. The influx of new multiracial students resulted in clashes between groups as well as another "white flight" exodus of white students to other schools in the area. However, ongoing integration efforts throughout the 1970's calmed much of the unrest. Today, the school is one of the most diverse in the country, with 93% of its students belonging to at least one minority background.

During the mid-1980s, Fairfax High School became the center of a national controversy. In 1984, Dr. Virginia Uribe- a lifelong teacher and counselor for the Los Angeles Unified School District- was confronted by a group of gay and lesbian students. The students were angered that one of their friends- a young Black openly gay teen- had been experiencing constant harassment at Fairfax High School. Instead of addressing the harassment, the school simply relocated the teen to another high school. From there, he was transferred to three other high schools. The seventeen-year-old finally was forced to drop out of high school when he was kicked out of his house for being gay. After listening to the concerns and experiences of the students, Uribe decided to create the first dropout prevention program for LGBTQ+ students in the United States. The program was named "Project 10"- a reference to the famous statistic that roughly 10% of the general population is homosexual. The program gave direct support to LGBTQ+ students at Fairfax High who were experiencing harassment, social isolation, drug abuse, family problems, homelessness, or suicidal tendencies.

Soon after its creation, Project 10 gained notoriety when it was attacked by Reverend Lou Sheldon and his far-right lobbyist group, the Traditional Values Coalition. Sheldon had previously rose to fame within the Religious Right for his remarks labelling gays as "child molesters" and homosexuality as a "deathstyle". These attacks led to a huge influx in donations to Project 10, prompting Uribe to establish the non-profit organization "Friends of Project 10" in 1986. In March of 1988, Republican California State Assembly member Marian La Follette led the GOP caucus in a vote to withhold funds from the Los Angeles Unified School District until it dissolved Project 10. Despite these threats, the LAUSD continued in its support of Uribe and the program. By 1989, Project 10 had grown from its original shoestring budget to a volunteer staff of 600 counselors, teachers, nurses, psychologists, and other school workers. In 2009, Fairfax High School celebrated Sergio Garcia- an openly gay senior student- becoming its first male prom queen. Dr. Virginia Uribe married Gail Rolf, her partner of 20 years, in 2008. Uribe died on March 30, 2019 at the age of 85. Project 10 continues to provide resources and support for LGBTQ+ kids in the Los Angeles Unified School District today.

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