LHS PRINCIPALS Lafayette High School is in a very unique position for a school in a large urban district to have had only eight principals in its entire history, which has covered almost all of the 20th century and is now charting new history into the 21st century. Many of Lafayette's principals played pivotal roles in how the school has been shaped, making it the school it is today.   Arthur Detmers. 1903-1906. Mr. Detmers was responsible for establishing many of the Lafayette traditions that are still observed today. It is because of Mr. Detmers' efforts from the very beginning that all LHS students today feel a deep pride for their school. Captain Calvert K. "Cap" Mellen. 1906-1934. It is difficult to sum up in a few words the influence Cap Mellen had on Lafayette and her students. All who knew Cap Mellen as a student still speak fondly and with great respect for a man who was a true friend to all. As one alumna once said, "It was a privilege to know that man." Cap Mellen continued and expanded the LHS traditions begun by Mr. Detmers, further solidifying the loyalty all alumni feel for LHS. After his retirement in 1934, Cap was a frequent visitor to LHS for special events and other occasions until his death in 1942. Frank R. Gott 1934 - 1955 Frank  Rollin Gott came to Lafayette in 1925 to serve as Assistant Principal under "Cap" Mellen.  He quickly learned of and emulated Mellen's talent for inspiring the best from his young charges. When he took over as Principal, he often reflected the point so often made by "Cap's" readings of "It Couldn't be Done", putting his own spin on it, by urging his students to have, above all, "per-se-ver-ance".        He was beloved for his patience, his dedication to duty, and his dry wit. When he was mobbed for his autograph by Oracle-waving seniors, he would comment "I think they want to see if I can write my name twice the same way."  His three daughters all attended Lafayette: Esther ('35), Ruth ('37), and Evelyn ('41).    He guided Lafayette through hectic times: the return of WW II veterans to complete their high school requirements before heading to college on the G.I. Bill; and the smooth absorption of hundreds of students from Hutchinson Central and Fosdick-Masten, when those high schools closed.        The most telling example of the respect his students had for him may be displayed by the fact that today, sixty years after he led them, a group of alumnae from the 1940s meets regularly for lunch and  reminiscing.  Their group's name: Gott's Tots. Abraham Axelrod. 1955-1958. The fifties were characterized by strife and unrest precipitated by gang warfare among large Westside fraternities and spilled over into the halls of LHS. It culminated in 1958 with the death of Mr. Axelrod of a heart attack after breaking up a gang incident that had occurred within the building. Robert C. McGowan. 1958-1968. Mr. McGowan was a graduate of Lafayette and went on to become a teacher within its hallowed halls, finishing his career in education as principal of his Alma Mater. Gerald Hare. 1968-1972. Frederick D. Ganter. 1972-1997. Arming himself with a faculty handbook, a strict code of rules and regulations for students and a cooperative faculty and staff, Mr. Ganter "dug in" in 1972 to restore order and provide an atmosphere conducive to learning at the "Old Plant," which continued throughout his tenure. LHS under his guidance was a safe, structured environment and earned him the title Dean of the Buffalo High School principals by the Buffalo News. Many of Buffalo's high school principals of the 1980s and 1990s, including his successor LHS Principal, Sharon Lanza, trained as assistant principals at Lafayette under Mr. Ganter's tutelage. Sharon A. Lanza. 1997-2004 Miss Lanza was Lafayette's first female principal, and her tenure saw the continuation of the traditions reestablished by Mr. Ganter, as well as such exciting events as the replacement of the school's cupola and the gala 100th anniversary celebration. Home Alumni Association Visit Our Library LHS Online Archives Online Reply Form Alma Mater Music © 2007 Lafayette High School - All rights reserved