- McKinley Senior High School
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McKinley High School 
Location 800 East McKinley St.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70802
USACoordinates 30°25′25″N 91°10′27″W / 30.423513°N 91.174164°W Information Type Free public School district East Baton Rouge Parish Principal Armond D. Brown Grades 9 - 12 Campus type Urban Color(s) Blue and White Mascot Panthers Website http://mckinleyhigh.ebrschools.org/ McKinley Senior High School, located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and is located on 800 E. McKinley St. is home to the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board's first (of two) gifted and talented high school programs. The school mascot is a panther and the school colors are royal blue and white.
Contents
History
The History of McKinley Senior High School began in 1907 in a small house several blocks east of the present site named “The Hickory Street School.” In 1913 the school was relocated to Perkins Rd. at Bynum St. and renamed “The Baton Rouge Colored High School.”
McKinley’s first graduating class was in 1916, consisting of four students, becoming the first graduating class of African American high school graduates in the state of Louisiana. The current building was erected in 1926 opening September 19, 1927, and named in honor of the 25th President of the United States, William McKinley. The high school was later moved again in 1950 to a new facility on the corner of Louise St. and McCalop St. next to the present day I-10. The Thomas H. Delpit Blvd. facility became McKinley Junior High School. In 1962, the third and present day McKinley High School was built at 800 East McKinley Street, the Junior High School then moved to the I-10 site, and the Thomas H. Delpit Blvd. site became McKinley Elementary.
November 16, 1981, the original facility of McKinley Senior High School was entered into the National Register of Historic Places. On February 5, 1992, the McKinley Alumni Association purchased the original structure from the East Baton Rouge Parish school board, and was later destroyed by fire on July 3, 1998.
McKinley Senior High School is the oldest high school established for African Americans in the State of Louisiana, continuing to be a tradition and legacy for many families and the surrounding community.[1]
Campus
The current campus sits in an urban area of Baton Rouge just to the northwest of the Louisiana State University campus and is bordered by Lake Crest, one of the LSU lakes to the East. Facilities include 5 main buildings, many out buildings, football and baseball fields, tennis courts, track and field facilities, and a brand new black box theater which was built by students in 2006.
Academics
McKinley is Baton Rouge's only high school with a Gifted and Talented program. It also offers 23 Advanced Placement courses.
McKinley's high academics standards regularly have it ranked amongst the best in the state[2]. The students ranked 18th of all schools in Louisiana for the statewide average ACT score and 3rd in the state when comparing their Gifted and Talented program.[2]
18 graduating students from 2007 and 2008 received National Merit and Advanced Placement Scholarships.
Extra curricular
Clubs
McKinley students can choose from over 20 student clubs[3]. The following is an abbreviated list:
- Abstinenece
- Beta
- Chess
- Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA)
- HI-Y
- Mu Alpha Theta
- National Honor Society
- Quiz Bowl
- Student Government Association (SGA)
Athletics
McKinley competes in the Louisiana High School Athletics Association (LHSAA) Division 7 Class 5A. They compete in the following sports[4]:
- Football
- Volleyball
- Boys and Girls Basketball
- Boys and Girls Soccer
- Tennis
- Golf
- Track and Cross Country
- Baseball
- Bowling
- Wrestling
- Swimming
Notable alumni
- Donnie R. Albert - Grammy Award-winning opera performer (Porgie and Bess)[5]
- Jason Banks - Pro football player for the Arizona Cardinals
- Hubert 'Rap' Brown - Prominent radical leader of the 1960s - author of Die Nigger Die!. Attended McKinley.
- Isiah Carey- Emmy award-winning television journalist with KRIV Houston[citation needed]
- Don Chaney - Former NBA great (Boston Celtics) and former head coach of New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, and Detroit Pistons
- Lil Boosie- Local Rapper. Attended McKinley.
- Joseph Delpit - First Black councilman to serve the City of Baton Rouge[6]
- Cleo Fields- Louisiana State Senator and former United States Congressman
- Tommy Green - Former NBA player and former collegiate head basketball coach (Southern University)[7][8]
- Hon. John Michael Guidry - Louisiana State Appellate Court Judge[9]
- Buddy Guy -- Legendary five-time Grammy Award winning blues guitarist whom Eric Clapton and many music critics have called the greatest blues guitarist alive.
- Lars Kestner- Author
- Chris Thomas King - Grammy award-winning blues artist and actor (O Brother Where Art Thou?)
- Chenese Lewis- Actress & plus-size model
- Ethan Martin—former All-Southeastern Conference and All-America basketball point guard at LSU.
- Calvin Nicholas- Former wide receiver for San Francisco 49ers[10]
- John Rice - Educator, pastor, and father of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
- Dr. Theresa Rice Love- Educator, Scholar, Professor (University of Southern Illinois), aunt of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice [11]
- Eddie G. Robinson- Hall of Fame former Grambling State University Football Coach
- Keith Smart- Former Indiana basketball player, one-time head coach of Cleveland Cavaliers, and head coach for the Golden State Warriors
- Rev. Dr. Charles T. Smith , Member of Board of Directors of the National Baptist Convention, influential pastor, and community leader.
- Dr. Dolores Richard Spikes - Educator and first woman to head a University system in U. S. (Southern University System in Louisiana)
- Rev. Dr. Gardner C. Taylor -- Pastor Emeritus of famous Concord Baptist Church in Brooklyn, NY. Noted theologian, scholar, and teacher (Harvard and Yale), recipient of Presidential Medal of Freedom. Named America's Greatest Black Preacher (Ebony Magazine Poll, 1993)
- Johnny Thomas - Head track and field coach at Southern University; inducted to SWAC Conference sports hall of fame.
- Tyrus Thomas- Former LSU basketball player, now playing for the Charlotte Bobcats
- Nemiah Wilson—Former All-pro defensive back and kick returner with Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders 1965-75
- Michael Wesley Ham - Educator at the International center of Photography and The New York City School of Technology, internationally exhibited artist.
References
- ^ http://www.mckinleycenter.net
- ^ a b McKinley High. 08 Nov. 2007. McKinley Senior High School. 18 Apr. 2008. http://mckinleyhigh.ebrschools.org/eduWEB2/1000090/docs/advocate_2007.pdf
- ^ Clubs. Unknown Publication Date. McKinley Senior High School. 18 Apr. 2008. http://mckinleyhigh.ebrschools.org/explore.cfm/schoolclubs/.
- ^ Sports. Unknown Publication Date. McKinley Senior High School. 18 Apr. 2008. http://mckinleyhigh.ebrschools.org/explore.cfm/sports/
- ^ Donnie Ray Albert, M.M., Bass/Baritone. Unknown Publication Date. East Baton Rouge Parish Library - Our African American Legacy. 18 Apr. 2008. http://www.ebr.lib.la.us/reference/ourafamlegacy/oaal_peopleandplaces/people/DonnieRayAlbert.htm.
- ^ JOE DELPIT. Unknown Publication Date. East Baton Rouge Parish Library - Our African American Legacy. 18 Apr. 2008. http://www.ebr.lib.la.us/reference/ourafamlegacy/oaal_peopleandplaces/people/JoeDelpit.htm.
- ^ Tommy Green. Unknown Publication Date. basketball-reference.com 18 Apr. 2008 http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/greento01.html
- ^ Green is new head basketball coach at Southern Univ. 23 Sep. 1996. Bnet. 18 Apr. 2008. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_/ai_18709828
- ^ Hon. John Michael Guidry. Unknown Publication Date. East Baton Rouge Parish Library - Our African American Legacy. 18 Apr. 2008. http://www.ebr.lib.la.us/reference/ourafamlegacy/oaal_peopleandplaces/people/John_Michael_Guidry.htm.
- ^ Calvin Nicholas at databaseFootball.com
- ^ Professor emerita dies at age 81. 01 Oct. 2002. Alestlelive.com 18 Apr. 2008. http://media.www.alestlelive.com/media/storage/paper351/news/2002/10/01/News/Professor.Emerita.Dies.At.Age.81-286509.shtml.
External links
Categories:- Schools in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- High schools in Louisiana
- Magnet schools in Louisiana
- National Register of Historic Places in Louisiana
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