Did you know? The Lankershim School is the first school in the Valley. It was established back in 1889. North Hollywood was the first neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region and was originally called Lankershim. NoHo is a historical and artistic neighborhood!
The Lankershim School recently got a garden makeover from some unlikely gardeners.
“The team at Endemol Shine North America continued its outreach efforts in their North Hollywood, California neighborhood on February 22. A group of employees helped transform the grounds at Lankershim Elementary School, which sits just across the street from ESNA’s offices. Employees cleaned out and removed weeds from neglected garden areas in the school’s courtyard and planted dozens of new plants, shrubs and flowers. The beautification project, which was spearheaded by ESNA’s internal comms team, got a helping hand from a group of 5th grade student volunteers.” – Denise Rodine, Endemol Shine
“Endemol Shine North America’s “Act of Kindness” event at Lankershim School was a perfect example of local businesses supporting our school, which has been educating North Hollywood’s children since 1889! With all of the problems public schools are facing today, it’s great to get a helping hand. Our new garden adds a burst of beauty to our school, and the students and staff are thrilled with this new area.“ – Christopher Clarke, Principal, Lankershim School
https://www.instagram.com/p/BuMlvvRFwWb/
The Lankershim School chose the garden project because “we had the beginnings of a garden in place; it just needed a jump-start to make it ideal,” said school principal Christopher Clarke. They had planted shrubs and flowers, but because of an irrigation problem, most had died.
The School Beautification Committee is planning a School Beautification Event on Saturday, April 27. Their TKE (Transitional Kindergarten Expanded) students will be involved. “They are our youngest students, and are studying the seasons,” stated principal Christopher Clarke. “They will be planting flowers in various locations around campus.”
The April 27 beautification event would be a great time for North Hollywood neighborhood folks to get involved in making the Lankershim School a greener place for our local kids. Stay tuned for more information!
Principal Christopher Clarke puts us in the NoHo Time Machine with a look back at Lankershim School.
“Lankershim School is one of the oldest schools in the San Fernando Valley. The original schoolhouse was built in 1889, and until 1923 was situated on Lankershim Blvd., (which was at that time a dirt road) near where “Vicious Dogs” is today. The present school site was the Weddington family barnyard (the Weddington home was where El Portal Theater sits today). The town did an even exchange of property – the old school location on Lankershim became part of the Weddington Investment Company, and 40 men worked for 50 days to drag the schoolhouse to the current school location, next to the Auditorium Building which had been constructed in 1912, and is still in use today.
Our most notable alumni is Norma Jean Baker, who attended 6th grade at Lankershim School in the 1936-1937 school year. I have heard she excelled in track and field, and was known as “Norma Jean the Jumping Bean.” Today we remember her as Marilyn Monroe.
One of the early principals at Lankershim was R.M. Killion, who served from 1909-1932. Perhaps North Hollywood’s Killion Street was named after him. .
Much of my information about the history of Lankershim School is from reading issues of the old newspaper the Lankershim Laconic, available at the San Fernando Valley Historical Society, and from a history of the school written by Principal C.L. Johns in 1948 for an article in the Valley Times.”
NoHo Time Machine look at Lankershim School
Lankershim School Primary Building 1934
Lankershim School Primary Building 2019. Photo by Lankershim School.
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