Sam Houston High School (Houston)
Encyclopedia
| Principal Administrator | Jane Crump (10-12), Rolando Treviño (9) |
| Grade levels | 9 - 12 |
| Founded | 1878 |
| School type | Public school (U.S.) |
| Religious affiliation | |
| Location | 29°50′51"N 95°21′37"W Houston, Texas |
| Enrollment | 2,897 students (2003-2004 school year) |
| Campus surroundings | Urban |
| Mascot | Tiger |
| School colors | Black, Gold |
| Magnet |
Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center and the Ninth Grade Preparatory Academy are secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s located at 9400 Irvington Boulevard in Northside
Northside, Houston
The Northside is a district of Houston, Texas, United States. It is within the Greater Northside Management District.-History:House Bill 3634, authored by state representative Jessica Farrar and sponsored in the Texas Senate by Mario Gallegos, created the management district...
Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center and its ninth grade academy handle grades nine through twelve and are part of the Houston Independent School District
Houston Independent School District
The Houston Independent School District is the largest public school system in Texas and the seventh-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the city of Houston and several nearby and insular municipalities...
. Before 1955 it was located in Downtown Houston
Downtown Houston
Downtown Houston is the largest business district of Houston, Texas, United States. Downtown Houston, the city's central business district, contains the headquarters of many prominent companies. There is an extensive network of pedestrian tunnels and skywalks connecting the buildings of the district...
.
The school has the oldest high school newspaper in Texas, the Aegis, established in 1889. The world's first girls' Military Drill Squad, initially the Black Battalion, but now called the Tigerettes, originated at Houston High School.
Sam Houston High School is often nicknamed "Sam" by its students.
Sam Houston High School Baseball Field is located at 29°51′03"N 95°21′41"W.
History
It was founded in Downtown HoustonDowntown Houston
Downtown Houston is the largest business district of Houston, Texas, United States. Downtown Houston, the city's central business district, contains the headquarters of many prominent companies. There is an extensive network of pedestrian tunnels and skywalks connecting the buildings of the district...
in 1878 as Houston Academy. Since then, it had several name changes.
- Houston Academy: 1878 to 1881
- Clopper Institute: 1881 to 1886
- Houston Normal School: 1886 to 1895
- Houston High School: 1895 to 1926
- Central High School: 1926 to 1955
- Sam Houston High School: 1955 to 2008, after Sam HoustonSam HoustonSamuel Houston, known as Sam Houston , was a 19th-century American statesman, politician, and soldier. He was born in Timber Ridge in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, of Scots-Irish descent. Houston became a key figure in the history of Texas and was elected as the first and third President of...
- Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center
Until the 1950s the block bordered by Austin, Capitol, Caroline, and Dowling in Downtown Houston housed the institutions that make up what is now Sam Houston High School. Houston Academy was there in the 1850s. In 1894 Central High School was built. J.R. Gonzales of the Houston Chronicle
Houston Chronicle
The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA, headquartered in the Houston Chronicle Building in Downtown Houston. , it is the ninth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States...
said that the school was "[d]escribed as one of the finest high schools in this part of the country" and "also attracted negative attention for its incredible cost." The school had a price tag of $80,000, $1.9 million in 2010 dollars. In March 1919 the school burned down. A new Sam Houston opened two years later.
According to a 1936 Houston Chronicle article, Sam Houston was to be renamed after Dick Dowling, while the Sam Houston name would be taken by a new high school in southwestern Houston. This did not occur, and the school remained named after Sam Houston.
In 1955, Houston High School moved from its Capitol Street location in Downtown to its current location. The previous Sam Houston High School became the Houston Independent School District
Houston Independent School District
The Houston Independent School District is the largest public school system in Texas and the seventh-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the city of Houston and several nearby and insular municipalities...
administrative headquarters. In July 1970 the first Hattie Mae White Administration Building became the new HISD administrative offices. The Downtown Sam Houston building was demolished. As of 2011 a parking lot owned by HISD now occupies that site. A historical marker is on the south side of that block. In meetings it had been proposed as a new location for the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts
The High School for the Performing and Visual Arts is a secondary school located at 4001 Stanford Street in the Montrose district of Houston, Texas. The school is a part of the Houston Independent School District....
.
Sam Houston has Texas' oldest high school newspaper, the Aegis, started in 1889. In addition, the world's first girls' Military Drill Squad (formerly known as the Black Battalion, but now called the Tigerettes) originated at the school.
The school was originally all white; it was desegregated in 1970 and today has a mostly Hispanic student body.
The names of the individual schools currently occupying the Sam Houston campus were chosen in 2008.
On Saturday February 12, 2011, a state historic marker was dedicated at Sam Houston. The Oran M. Roberts Chapter 440 of the United Daughters of the Confederacy
United Daughters of the Confederacy
The United Daughters of the Confederacy is a women's heritage association dedicated to honoring the memory of those who served in the military and died in service to the Confederate States of America . UDC began as the National Association of the Daughters of the Confederacy, organized in 1894 by...
organized the event. Lynna Kay Shuffield, the president of the chapter, wrote a historical narrative about the school and its former location in Downtown.
Rating
Sam Houston, with Jack Yates High School and Kashmere High SchoolKashmere High School
Kashmere High School is a secondary school in Houston, Texas that serves grades 9 through 12; it is a part of the Houston Independent School District.Kashmere contains the Conrad O. Johnson School of Fine Arts, a Houston ISD magnet school program....
, are the three high schools in Houston ISD that were consistently low-performing in test scores from 2001 to 2004. Because of this problem, there were movements to have the state or another organization take over the schools for a period so the test scores will be at acceptable levels. While Yates got an acceptable rating in 2005, Houston and Kashmere continued to get unacceptable ratings. Abelardo Saavedra, the superintendent of HISD, described Houston as being "close" to getting an acceptable rating. In August 2006 the school learned that it again got an unacceptable rating from the Texas Education Agency
Texas Education Agency
The Texas Education Agency is a branch of the state government of Texas in the United States responsible for public education. The agency is headquartered in the William B...
. HISD threatened to close Sam Houston. Sam Houston was not closed and it received another unacceptable rating from the TEA. Houston ISD, stated that the board would consider spending $300,000 to find a method to improve Sam Houston's marks from the TEA.
In 2008 the Texas Education Agency
Texas Education Agency
The Texas Education Agency is a branch of the state government of Texas in the United States responsible for public education. The agency is headquartered in the William B...
Commissioner Robert Scott ordered the closure of Sam Houston; the Houston Chronicle
Houston Chronicle
The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA, headquartered in the Houston Chronicle Building in Downtown Houston. , it is the ninth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States...
said that HISD would likely replace 75% of the teachers and change the name of the school. The campus now houses Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center for 2010–2012 and a ninth grade academy. The administration hopes that the changes would cause Sam Houston to get an acceptable rating.
In 2007, an Associated Press/Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
study referred to Sam Houston as a "dropout factory" where at least 40% of the entering freshman class does not make it to their senior year.
Student body
During the 2005-2006 school year, the school had 2,678 students.- 91% were Hispanic AmericanHispanic and Latino AmericansHispanic or Latino Americans are Americans with origins in the Hispanic countries of Latin America or in Spain, and in general all persons in the United States who self-identify as Hispanic or Latino.1990 Census of Population and Housing: A self-designated classification for people whose origins...
- 6% were African AmericanAfrican AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
- 3% were White AmericanWhite AmericanWhite Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
- Less than 1% were Asian AmericanAsian AmericanAsian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
No Native Americans
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
were enrolled during that school year.
Approximately 89% of the students qualified for free/reduced lunch.
Neighborhoods served by Sam Houston
Several areas of Houston outside of the 610 Loop that are far north of DowntownDowntown Houston
Downtown Houston is the largest business district of Houston, Texas, United States. Downtown Houston, the city's central business district, contains the headquarters of many prominent companies. There is an extensive network of pedestrian tunnels and skywalks connecting the buildings of the district...
and south of the neighborhood of Aldine
Aldine, Houston, Texas
Aldine is a census-designated place in unincorporated central Harris County, Texas, United States, located within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of Houston. The population was 13,979 at the 2000 census. In 2007, the population was 16,008, according to City-Data...
are zoned to Sam Houston.
Neighborhoods include Melrose Park, Hardy Acres, Hardy Heights, Assumption Heights, Roos Acres, Virginia Acres, Sunnyland Farms, Oakwood, and Northline Terrace.
Some small sections of unincorporated
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
Harris County
Harris County, Texas
As of the 2010 Census, the population of the county was 4,092,459, White Americans made up 56.6% of Harris County's population; non-Hispanic whites represented 33.0% of the population. Black Americans made up 18.9% of the population. Native Americans made up 0.7% of Harris County's population...
are zoned to Sam Houston High School.
School uniform
As of 2006, each Sam Houston student is required to wear a school uniformSchool uniform
A school uniform is an outfit—a set of standardized clothes—worn primarily for an educational institution. They are common in primary and secondary schools in various countries . When used, they form the basis of a school's dress code.Traditionally school uniforms have been largely subdued and...
that consists of a polo shirt with the school's logo. Before fall 2006, students were required to wear khaki or denim trousers or skirts. As of school year 2006 - 2007 the school uniform has been modified to just official Sam Houston High School polo collared shirts. Students are allowed to wear trousers of their choosing.
The Texas Education Agency
Texas Education Agency
The Texas Education Agency is a branch of the state government of Texas in the United States responsible for public education. The agency is headquartered in the William B...
specifies that the parents and/or guardians of students zoned to a school with uniforms may apply for a waiver to opt out of the uniform policy so their children do not have to wear the uniform; parents must specify "bona fide
Bona Fide
Bona Fide is a studio album from rock band Wishbone Ash. It is the first studio album in six years and is the only studio album to feature guitarist Ben Granfelt...
" reasons, such as religious reasons or philosophical objections.
Feeder patterns
Elementary schools that feed into Sam Houston include:- Barrick
- Burbank
- Coop
- DeChaumes
- Durkee
- Janowski
- Lyons
- Moreno
- Northline
- Scarborough
(partial)
- Allen
- Berry
- Garcia
- Herrera
- Osborne
All of Fonville Middle School-zoned areas and some areas of the Burbank Middle and Henry Middle School zones feed into Sam Houston.
Notable alumni
- Joe BowmanJoe Bowman (marksman)Joe Bowman, born Joseph Lee Bowman , was a Houston bootmaker and marksman called "The Straight Shooter", considered to have been a guardian of Texas and western frontier culture. Shortly after his death, Bowman was inducted posthumously into the Texas Heroes Hall of Honor at the Frontier Times...
, Class of 1943, bootmakerShoemakingShoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand. Traditional handicraft shoemaking has now been largely superseded in volume of shoes produced by industrial mass production of footwear, but not necessarily in quality, attention to detail, or...
and marksmanMarksmanA marksman is a person who is skilled in precision, or a sharpshooter shooting, using projectile weapons, such as with a rifle but most commonly with a sniper rifle, to shoot at long range targets...
of the American West - Jeff Hunt - chief executive officerChief executive officerA chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of GCI Group, a public relationsPublic relationsPublic relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
firm. - Olga Gallegos - former Houston ISD board member and administrative aide to Texas state representatives Ben ReyesBen ReyesBen Torres Reyes , an American, is a former member of the Texas House of Representatives and a former Houston City Council member.-History:...
, Al Luna, and Roman Martinez. - Jack ValentiJack ValentiJack Joseph Valenti was a long-time president of the Motion Picture Association of America. During his 38-year tenure in the MPAA, he created the MPAA film rating system, and he was generally regarded as one of the most influential pro-copyright lobbyists in the world...
- was a long-time president of the Motion Picture Association of AmericaMotion Picture Association of AmericaThe Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...
.
Notable faculty
- Lyndon B. JohnsonLyndon B. JohnsonLyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
- In 1930 he took a position as teacher of public speaking at Sam Houston High School. - Noble WillinghamNoble WillinghamNoble Henry Willingham, Jr. was an American television and film actor.-Career:Willingham had appeared in more than thirty feature films, including Harry's War , Up Close and Personal , City Slickers , The Last Boy Scout , City Slickers II , Ace Ventura: Pet Detective , Chinatown...
- Economics teacher
External links
- Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center Homepage
- Ninth Grade Preparatory Academy
- Mellon, Ericka. "Success or just smoke and mirrors?." Houston ChronicleHouston ChronicleThe Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA, headquartered in the Houston Chronicle Building in Downtown Houston. , it is the ninth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States...
. May 9, 2010.