Ed White Middle School
Encyclopedia
Ed White Middle School is a public 6th through 8th grade middle school
in Huntsville, Alabama
. It is located at 4800 Sparkman Drive in northwest Huntsville.
The school is named for astronaut Edward H. White II
, killed in the Apollo 1
fire at Cape Kennedy on January 27, 1967. Huntsville is home to NASA
's Marshall Space Flight Center
and has strong community ties to the space program. At the same time, the Huntsville City Schools
named Roger B. Chaffee Elementary and Virgil I. Grissom High School for White's fallen Apollo 1 crewmates. The school was originally to be named Northwest Jr. High.
Science teacher Bonnie Garrett won one of 80 Milken Family Foundation National Educator Awards in 2007. The $25,000 check was presented during a November 2007 school assembly. Garrett, who teaches biology and aerospace science, was Alabama's only Milken Educator Award recipient for 2007.
's Marshall Space Flight Center to help produce some of the mirrors for Starshine 3, an Earth-orbiting satellite
that resembles "a high-tech disco ball" and was designed to help study the effect of solar activity on Earth's atmosphere. Ed White was one of 500 schools around the world whose students helped grind and polish mirrors for the Starshine project.
In 2002, students from Ed White Middle School participated in NASA's Earth-to-Orbit Engineering Design Challenge. Under the guidance of a mentor from the Marshall Space Flight Center
, students built a scale model of a propeller designed by the Wright brothers
.
Teacher Roberta Freeman and engineering mentor Gregory Miley led a team of students in the 2008 National Engineers Week Future City Competition. The Alabama Future City Competition was held on Saturday, January 19, 2008, at the University of Alabama in Huntsville
.
as designated by the Madison County Emergency Management Agency. The rated capacity is 295 persons.
across the state of Alabama, Ed White Middle School was one of just ten public schools in Huntsville that still used corporal punishment. Paddling incidents in 2003 again made headlines but the policy of the Huntsville City Schools leaves corporal punishment as an allowable but discouraged practice.
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
in Huntsville, Alabama
Huntsville, Alabama
Huntsville is a city located primarily in Madison County in the central part of the far northern region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Huntsville is the county seat of Madison County. The city extends west into neighboring Limestone County. Huntsville's population was 180,105 as of the 2010 Census....
. It is located at 4800 Sparkman Drive in northwest Huntsville.
The school is named for astronaut Edward H. White II
Edward Higgins White
Edward Higgins White, II was an engineer, United States Air Force officer and NASA astronaut. On June 3, 1965, he became the first American to "walk" in space. White died along with fellow astronauts Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee during a pre-launch test for the first manned Apollo mission at...
, killed in the Apollo 1
Apollo 1
Apollo 1 was scheduled to be the first manned mission of the Apollo manned lunar landing program, with a target launch date of February 21, 1967. A cabin fire during a launch pad test on January 27 at Launch Pad 34 at Cape Canaveral killed all three crew members: Command Pilot Virgil "Gus"...
fire at Cape Kennedy on January 27, 1967. Huntsville is home to NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's Marshall Space Flight Center
Marshall Space Flight Center
The George C. Marshall Space Flight Center is the U.S. government's civilian rocketry and spacecraft propulsion research center. The largest center of NASA, MSFC's first mission was developing the Saturn launch vehicles for the Apollo moon program...
and has strong community ties to the space program. At the same time, the Huntsville City Schools
Huntsville City Schools
Huntsville City Schools is the school district serving Huntsville, Alabama. As of the 2007-08 school year, the system had 22,839 students and employed 1,933 teachers...
named Roger B. Chaffee Elementary and Virgil I. Grissom High School for White's fallen Apollo 1 crewmates. The school was originally to be named Northwest Jr. High.
Recognized faculty
Ed White Middle School teacher Marcus Taylor was one of just 60 teachers honored by the Parker Griffith Family Foundation for "dedication and desire to succeed in the classroom" with a 2006/2007 Classroom Grant award. Teacher Dennis Kimery was one of just 42 recipients of a 2005/2006 Classroom Grant award from the same organization.Science teacher Bonnie Garrett won one of 80 Milken Family Foundation National Educator Awards in 2007. The $25,000 check was presented during a November 2007 school assembly. Garrett, who teaches biology and aerospace science, was Alabama's only Milken Educator Award recipient for 2007.
Engineering outreach
In April 2001, teacher Doreen Forsythe and a group of students from Ed White Middle School visited NASANASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's Marshall Space Flight Center to help produce some of the mirrors for Starshine 3, an Earth-orbiting satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
that resembles "a high-tech disco ball" and was designed to help study the effect of solar activity on Earth's atmosphere. Ed White was one of 500 schools around the world whose students helped grind and polish mirrors for the Starshine project.
In 2002, students from Ed White Middle School participated in NASA's Earth-to-Orbit Engineering Design Challenge. Under the guidance of a mentor from the Marshall Space Flight Center
Marshall Space Flight Center
The George C. Marshall Space Flight Center is the U.S. government's civilian rocketry and spacecraft propulsion research center. The largest center of NASA, MSFC's first mission was developing the Saturn launch vehicles for the Apollo moon program...
, students built a scale model of a propeller designed by the Wright brothers
Wright brothers
The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur , were two Americans credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, on December 17, 1903...
.
Teacher Roberta Freeman and engineering mentor Gregory Miley led a team of students in the 2008 National Engineers Week Future City Competition. The Alabama Future City Competition was held on Saturday, January 19, 2008, at the University of Alabama in Huntsville
University of Alabama in Huntsville
The University of Alabama in Huntsville is a state-supported, public, coeducational research university, located in Huntsville, Alabama, United States, is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master's and doctoral degrees, and is organized in five...
.
Facilities and structure
The school gymnasium is a Huntsville-Madison County Permitted Fallout ShelterFallout shelter
A fallout shelter is an enclosed space specially designed to protect occupants from radioactive debris or fallout resulting from a nuclear explosion. Many such shelters were constructed as civil defense measures during the Cold War....
as designated by the Madison County Emergency Management Agency. The rated capacity is 295 persons.
Controversy
In late 2000, during a movement to ban corporal punishmentCorporal punishment
Corporal punishment is a form of physical punishment that involves the deliberate infliction of pain as retribution for an offence, or for the purpose of disciplining or reforming a wrongdoer, or to deter attitudes or behaviour deemed unacceptable...
across the state of Alabama, Ed White Middle School was one of just ten public schools in Huntsville that still used corporal punishment. Paddling incidents in 2003 again made headlines but the policy of the Huntsville City Schools leaves corporal punishment as an allowable but discouraged practice.