page_title: L&N Station (Knoxville)
section_title: L&N STEM Academy
hierarchical_section_title: L&N Station (Knoxville) / History / L&N STEM Academy
caption_attribution_description: English: The STEM Academy's crest, refined in 2017 by student Austin Bradley
context_page_description: The L&N Station is a former rail passenger station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, located in the downtown area at the northern end of the World's Fair Park. Built in 1905 by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad and designed by its chief engineer, Richard Montfort, the station was renovated for use in the 1982 World's Fair, and is currently home to Knox County's STEM-based magnet high school, the L&N STEM Academy. In 1982, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places for its architecture and role in Knoxville's transportation history.
  The L&N completed a rail line running from Cincinnati to Atlanta in the early 1900s, and built a string of passenger stations and depots to service trains along this line. The company's Knoxville station was the city's largest, and considered by some the "finest" along the L&N's entire Cincinnati–Atlanta line. It served as a passenger station until the L&N ceased passenger train service to Knoxville in 1968, and continued to house L&N offices until 1975. The L&N Station is mentioned in several scenes in author James Agee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, A Death in the Family.
context_section_description: In October 2010, Knox County Schools announced plans to establish a magnet high school for  science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), to be located in the L&N Station building. Funding for the STEM school is included in the Tennessee Race to the Top plan. $2 million was provided to the school through the Race to the Top funding. The idea for the L&N STEM Academy began with the district's strategic plan from 2009 that aimed for a "high quality, stand-alone technology high school." While applying for the Race to the Top funding, two plans for the L&N STEM Academy were merged; plans for a school to focus on science, math, and engineering and a plan for a STEM platform school were merged. To receive the funding from Race to the Top, the school had to meet the following requirements: "enrollment has to be open for any students who show the motivation to study in that environment and sharpen their skills, the school must be willing to try new things and officials must share with their neighbors their successes and failures."
  In January 2011, Becky Ashe was appointed principal of the school and also the coordinator of STEM education for Knox County Schools. At the same time, the L&N station was officially chosen as the site for the school.
  The new school officially opened on August 15, 2011 with an enrollment of 180 students.  The school began with just a freshman class, a sophomore class, 8 full-time teachers, and 4 part-time teachers. It cost $5.6 million to open the school with the money being used for renovations of the building, upgrades, and technology equipment. Students were still required to meet the academic standards presented by Knox County Schools but the material was delivered through the use of iPads, block scheduling, and cross planning through departments. Students were also required to take a STEM class, which is a project based learning course. The school partners with over 215 business and organizations.
  The community was asked to help give the school its permanent name. The community gave suggestions to the school board who finalized the name. Over 95 suggestions were given by the community. In October 2011, the students and faculty of the school selected a gryphon to be the school mascot. Gryphons can be seen in the stained glass windows at the school.
  The L&N STEM Academy partnered with the YMCA for the physical education program at the school. The students are able to work out at the YMCA's downtown Knoxville location during their PE class. The students walk over to the YMCA, do a homework assignment, and then are able to work out at the YMCA facilities during the remainder of time for class.
  In December 2011, Tennessee governor Bill Haslam visited the school and talked with six students and two teachers. The Haslam family provided many contributions to the school and a space, the Haslam Commons, in the school was named after the family.
  At the end of its first year of operation, the school ranked first and second in state tests for Algebra 1 and 2 and English 1 and 2. In the second year of operation, 187 students were added to the rosters: 150 freshmen, twenty sophomores, and six juniors. Eight teachers were added to the staff to bring the total to 20 teachers. Six students returned to their zoned high school.
  In late 2012, the L&N STEM Academy began to allow students from eight surrounding counties to apply to attend the school. Thirty students were admitted to the school from the eight counties of Anderson, Blount, Grainger, Jefferson, Loudon, Roane, Sevier and Union for the 2013-2014 school year. The only restriction to the students who apply from out of county are that they have to be incoming freshmen and be interested in problem solving and critical thinking.
  In 2013, the school was recognized as an Apple Distinguished school for the 2012-2013 school year. It was given the award for the school's "successes in enhancing and extending teaching and learning with the implementation of technology." For AP test scores, students scored in the top percentile for scoring threes or above. Th
caption: L&N STEM Academy's crest, refined in 2017 by student Austin Bradley
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