James Madison High School (Dallas, Texas)

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James Madison High School
Location
3000 Martin L. King Blvd.
Dallas, TX 75215
Information
School district Dallas Independent School District
Principal Marian Willard[1]
Students 602[2]
Type public, secondary
Grades 9-12
Mascot Trojans
Information +1 (972) 925-2800[3]
Fax: +1 (972) 925-2801[4]
Trustee dist.  9, Ron Price[5]
Area 2, Shirley Ison-Newsome[6]

James Madison High School, formerly Forest Avenue High School, is a public secondary school located at 3000 Martin L. King Boulevard in south Dallas, Texas (USA). Madison High School enrolls students in grades 9-12 and is a part of the Dallas Independent School District.

The school serves several areas, including much of downtown Dallas.

Contents

[edit] History

The original Forest Avenue High School was constructed in 1916 in the style of Italian Renaissance architecture, in what were then fast-growing suburban areas of Dallas. The building is on the United States National Register of Historic Places on the basis of its architecture as well as its importance in the growing South Dallas community over the period ending with the close of World War II in 1945.[7] Over the 40 years after the building was erected, demographics of the surrounding community shifted as large numbers of African-Americans moved into the area.

On June 14, 1956, the Dallas Board of Education announced that Forest Avenue High School would have its attendance zone redrawn to relieve overcrowding at the two existing "Negro schools," Booker T. Washington High School and Lincoln High School. In keeping with its existing policy on racial segregation, the school would be reassigned as a school for Black students and the current White student body would attend Crozier Tech High School.[8] The following day, the front page of The Dallas Morning News reported the criticism of the Texas Field Secretary of the NAACP, Edgar Washington, Jr., of the district's decision to turn over the school rather than to integrate[9]; the paper also ran an editorial in the same day's paper applauding the school system for providing Black students with an excellent facility while not violating state law by integrating the school.[10] One week later, the paper reported a petition by "the Dad's Club [sic] and Parent-Teacher Association" of the school — with signatures from the student body — to request that the school's name, colors (green and white), and emblem (lion) be retired, with the colors and emblem remaining available to any future whites-only school that might request to use them. The principal announced at that same meeting that all Forest Avenue trophies and other memorabilia were to be transferred to Crozier Tech.[11] The school reopened that fall as James Madison High School, and the first day was reported as uneventful, though the district's faculty and staff had been prepared for possible repetition of the 1955 attempts of 24 Black students to enroll in five White schools.[12]

[edit] Statistics

The attendance rate for students at the school is 87%, compared with a state average of 96%. 64% of the students at Madison are economically disadvantaged, 14% enroll in special education, 12% enroll in gifted and talent programs, and 6% are considered "limited english proficient."[13]

The ethnic makeup of the school is 86% African American, 13% Hispanic, 1% White American, non-Hispanic, and less than 1% Asian American/Pacific Islander American.[13]

The average class sizes at Madison are 16 students for English, 22 for foreign language, 16 for math, 16 for science, and 17 for social studies.[13]

Teachers at the school carry, on average, 12 years of teaching experience and 11% of the teachers on staff are first-year teachers.[13]

[edit] Test Scores

Below is a list of percentages that represent the percent of students meeting or exceeding standards on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test.

Grade 9[14]
Year Reading Math
2006 73% 26%
2005 63% 28%
2004 65% 37%
2003 43% 30%
Grade 10[14]
Year Science English[15] Math
2006 33% 64% 46%
2005 — 40% 21%
2004 — 52% 32%
2003 — 36% 48%
Grade 11[14]
Science English[15] Math
2006 67% 71% 66%
2005 — 64% 53%
2004 — 77% 77%
2003 — 39% 39%

[edit] Notable alumni

As Forest Avenue High School:

As James Madison High School:

[edit] References

  1. ^ Dallas ISD - James Madison High School. Retrieved 3 October 2006.
  2. ^ Texas Education Agency - School Directory - type in school number "057905032" and select "view report." Retrieved 3 October 2006.
  3. ^ Dallas ISD - School telephone numbers. (PDF). Retrieved 3 October 2006.
  4. ^ Dallas ISD - School fax numbers. (PDF). Retrieved 3 October 2006.
  5. ^ Dallas ISD - Schools by Trustee. (PDF). Retrieved 3 October 2006.
  6. ^ Dallas ISD - Schools by Area. (PDF). Retrieved 3 October 2006.
  7. ^ Reference No. 95000318, Old Forest Avenue High School (requires search), listing in National Register of Historic Places, certified March 23, 1995
  8. ^ Sue Connally. "Forest assigned to Negro pupils: District added to Crozier's," The Dallas Morning News, June 14, 1956, section 1, pages 1 and 9. Note: At that time, "district" was used in Dallas to refer to the attendance zone of a specific school, rather than the system as a whole.
  9. ^ Sue Connally. "Leader raps Forest switch," The Dallas Morning News, June 15, 1956, section 1, pages 1–2.
  10. ^ "Course is set by school board," The Dallas Morning News, June 15, 1956, section 3, page 2.
  11. ^ "Bid to retire name, colors, emblem made," The Dallas Morning News, June 22, 1956, section 1, page 1.
  12. ^ "Dallas schools enroll 17,000 on first day," The Dallas Morning News, September 5, 1956, section 3, pages 1,15.
  13. ^ a b c d Great Schools - James Madison High School - Dallas, Texas. Information originally from the Texas Education Agency. Retrieved 3 October 2006.
  14. ^ a b c Texas Education Agency - TAKS Aggregate Data System. Results are not on a static webpage, you must request them using the system. 3 October 2006.
  15. ^ a b Officially, "English Language Arts."

[edit] External links

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Dallas Independent School District
High schools … full list Adams | Adamson | Carter | Conrad | Hillcrest | Jefferson | Kimball | Lincoln | Madison | Molina | North Dallas | Pinkston | Roosevelt | Samuell | Seagoville | Skyline | Smith | South Oak Cliff | Spruce | Sunset | W. T. White | Wilson
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Elementary schools … full list Hooe | Preston Hollow
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Other High Schools: Washington HS for Performing and Visual Arts | Lincoln Humanities/Communications Magnet | Skyline
Middle/High: Rangel Young Women's | PreK-8: Dealey Montessori | Stone Montessori | 4-8: Travis Academy/Vanguard