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Lyman High School is a public high school located in Longwood, Florida, a city located approximately 10 miles north of Orlando. The school, founded in 1924, has been consistently ranked among the best in the state by the Florida Department of Education. For the 2012-2013 school term Lyman High School garnered a straight 'A' average, the best in the district, as a result of extremely high student scores on the Florida Comprehension Assessment Test.In 2014, it was ranked by U.S. News & World Report as the 27th best high school in the state of Florida and the overall best high school in Central Florida. It was ranked by Newsweek as the 204th best high school in the United States in 2010. The school was also named a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence in 1982. The school is operated by Seminole County Public Schools.
The school's namesake, Lyman, arrived in the area upon the invitation of Congressman Charles Delemere Haines. After Seminole County voted to separate from Orange County, in 1920, the Lymans and other citizens of the area voted to incorporate the city of Altamonte Springs. By 1923, it became apparent that the established school houses in the area did not adequately meet the needs of the growing population.
At a board of trustees meeting it was suggested that the cities of Lake Mary, Longwood and Altamonte Springs consolidate and create one school building. Because of its distance from the other two cities, Lake Mary opted to create its own school, while the cities of Longwood and Altamonte Springs consolidated into one school.
Construction of the new school began in 1924. Howard Lyman died a few days before the construction of the school began. In appreciation of his work, the school was named after him. Lyman School opened in September 1924 with Howard Douglas as the principal. By 1926, the school had become an accredited junior high school, and enrolment had increased to a degree where it was necessary to add six rooms to the building. In 1929, Lyman School was accredited through the twelfth grade under the leadership of W.J. Wells, Jr.