Barbara Goleman High School

Infobox School
name = Barbara Goleman Senior High


motto = "Home of the Gators"
established = August 28, 1995
type = Public
affiliation =
district = Miami-Dade County Public Schools
grades = 9-12
president =
principal = Carlos Artime
head of school =
dean =
faculty = 191
staff =
students = 2,991
enrollment =
athletics = Football, soccer, volleyball, bowling, swimming, cross-country, badminton
conference =
colors = Burgundy, Las Vegas Gold
mascot = Gator
free_label = Campus
free_text = Suburban
free_label2 = Hours
free_text2 = 7:25am – 2:30pm
free_label3 = Teacher:Student Ratio
free_text3 = 1:23
location = 14100 NW 89th Ave.
Miami
coordinates =
country = USA
homepage = [http://bghs.dadeschools.net]

Barbara Goleman Senior High School is a secondary school located at 14100 NW 89th Ave in Miami Lakes, Florida, USA; its principal is Mr. Carlos Artime. Goleman pertains to Miami-Dade County Public Schools Region I, and is school number 7751.

The school is named after Barbara Goleman, 1969 National Teacher of the Year, the only Miami-Dade County Public School teacher to ever receive this title.

Due to the construction of a new senior high school named Hialeah Gardens High School (located in nearby Hialeah Gardens), Barbara Goleman will welcome to-be-sophomores from American Senior High for the 2008-2009 school year, replacing a portion of the class of 2011 who will be transferred to the new school.

History and location

The schools doors opened to its founding group of students on August 28, 1995. The school was built to relieve overcrowding at Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High School located in nearby Hialeah and American High School, in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida. Although it is located in Miami Lakes, Goleman mainly serves the western portion of the town of Miami Lakes, the nearby city of Hialeah Gardens and the extreme western portion of Hialeah, while the majority of Miami Lakes high school students attend Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High School and American Senior High School, which is not in Miami Lakes, but is closer in proximity to most of the town. The school's location next to Interstate 75 makes it one of the first structures to greet travelers as they enter the county.

Layout

Barbara Goleman Senior High has twelve buildings. Buildings 1, 2, 11, and 12 are stand-alone, whereas Buildings 3-10 are interconnected. Building 1 is the largest building in the school, as well as the only building with three floors. It is located on the northern side of the school, directly opposite from Building 2, which houses administrative offices on the first floor, and the school's media center on the second floor. Building 3 is the auditorium, located to the south of Building 2. Buildings 4, 5, 7, 8, and 9 have a combined student capacity near that of Building 1, and are located on the south side of the campus. Most elective courses are located in Buildings 4 and 5, while most science courses are located in Buildings 8 and 9. Building 6 is the cafeteria. Building 10 is the Jorge O. BGHS's gym is also named Sotolongo Gymnasium in dedication to the school's founding principal in 2000.

In addition to the original buildings, the school also has twenty-five portables located to the west of Building 1. These portables are internally known as Building 11, although they are not one unified building. The portables are also inhabited by Hialeah Gardens High School rather than Barbara Goleman High School. Building 12 is commonly referred to as the "C" building, the "M" building, or the modular. It is a modular building recently added to the school, just to the west of Buildings 8-9.

Student Demographic

The school's demographic by ethnicity is 94% Hispanic, 4% Caucasian, 2% Black, and 1% Asian.

Grade Status

The school is rated a "D", but it should be noted that the standards for the 2006-2007 school year were significantly raised when compared to those of earlier years. Under the standards for the 2005-2006 school year, the school would have received a "B", reflecting an improvement over the school's previous "C" grade. The school has regressed to a "C" grade for the 2007-2008 school year, a relief to some who anticipated its possible conversion into a zone school. (A zone school is part of Miami-Dade County's initiative to improve low-performing schools, meaning that school days will be extended by an hour—among a myriad of other reforms—for those who are in the Zone.)

Mascot

The school's mascot and colors, chosen by its first and second classes (class of 1998) and (class of 1999), were picked to reflect Florida's two major public universities – the mascot was taken from the University of Florida while the colors were taken from Florida State University. The school also has an unofficial mascot, created by the class of 2005. The unofficial mascot is a super hero, christened "Gator Man". Gator Man wears a burgundy outfit, black mask (similar to Robin) with a gold cape (similar to Superman). The unofficial mascot is a Goleman tradition.

Uniform

As of the 2007-2008 school year, a uniform policy is in effect. Students are given a choice between Oxford shirts/blouses and polo shirts, both of which are available in burgundy and white, which must be worn with Dockers-style pants. The use of denim pants and other particular articles of clothing such as sandals or sleeveless shirts is disallowed. Parents have the option (within the first week of school) to sign a waiver permitting students to not wear uniforms.

Academies

Goleman plans to offer students the option of enrolling in academies. The academies include: International Business Relations, Fashion Marketing, T.E.A.C.H. (Teacher Education Academy: College Head start), Architecture and Construction, Wellness and Sports Management, and Insurance. As of the 2007-2008 school year, these academies have not yet been officially included in any syllabuses.

Athletics

Goleman's main athletic rival is American High School and the school has a less formal rivalry with Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High School.

In 1996 Goleman saw its first title in any sport by conquering its first District title in Wrestling Head Coached by Juan Reyneri . Its team was led by freshman David Galarce, David Bringas and Junior, Rey Mansito. In 2001 its Wrestling team produced the first State Champion of the school in Alan Herrera.

In 1999, the school had its first run at a state championship with its boys cross country team. The team, while holding an undefeated record in dual meets, finished the season with an 8th place finish in the state meet.

In 2002, the boys soccer team, under Coach Wilde was able to win their first district title against Miami Springs.

In 2005, the school's football team won their first district championship with wins against heavily favored rivals Hialeah High, American Senior High and Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High. Running backs Angel Quail and Randy Sherrod become the first running back duo to both rush for 1000 yards in a season in over a decade in Dade County. Head Coach Leonard Patrick was named High School Coach of the Year in Miami-Dade County.

In 2007, the boys Soccer team qualified for the Greater Miami Athletic Conference (GMAC). They were able to defeat Sunrise and Edison to face American Senior High in the finals. The game went to penalty kicks, with BGHS victorious.

The same year, the girls soccer team made it into GMAC but fell short in the quarterfinals, although still qualifying for districts. They faced American Senior high in the Semi-finals, winning 3-0. They later faced North Miami Beach Senior High in the District finals, winning 2-0. Advancing to regionals, they lost to their rival Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High School.

The 2008 Varsity baseball team won district 6A against rivals American Senior High School. Then won Regionals sweeping Southridge Senior high in two exciting games. They made it to state and lost in the first game again Lake Brantley, one of the top school in the state 10-0. This team was managed by coach Manny Yanez.

Goleman's most successful athletic program is the baseball team, coached by Manny Yanez, which has won 8 district championships.

Championships:

Boy’s wrestling team:
* 1996 District Champions
* 2001 State Champions

Boys soccer team:
*2002 District Champions
*2007 GMAC Champions

Boys football team:
* 2005 District Champions

Boys baseball team:
* Won 8 district championships
* 2008 Regionals

Girls soccer team:
*2007 District Championships

Boys basketball
*1999 District Champions

Overcrowding

Beginning in the early 2000s, the school suffered from overcrowding due to a population explosion in the area. The school's population during the 2001-2002 school years surpassed 5,000; this was 1,000 more students than the school's official capacity of 4,015 students. Goleman's population problems have been alleviated thanks to the creation of nearby Hialeah Gardens High School, the school population standing under 3,000 students is in contrast to the situation several years ago when it was near 4,500.

See also

* Miami-Dade County Public Schools
* Education in the United States
* High School
* Barbara Goleman

External links

* [http://bghs.dadeschools.net/ Barbara Goleman High School]
* [http://www.dadeschools.net Miami-Dade County public schools]
* [http://bghs.dadeschools.net/Activities/Photo_Galleries/2005-2006/PepRally9-30/photo033.html Mascot photo]
* [http://www.myspace.com/theswampshop Barbara Goleman uniforms]