Archie Williams High School Explained

Archie Williams High School
Other Name:High School 1327
Former Name:Sir Francis Drake High School
Streetaddress:1327 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard
Zipcode:94960
School Number:CEEB Code: 052770
Oversight:Western Association of Schools and Colleges,
Accrediting Commission for School
Superintendent:Tara Taupier
Principal:Jacob Gran
Principal Label:Principal
Grades:9-12
Feeder Schools:Lagunitas School District
Nicasio School District
Ross Valley School District
Campus:Suburban
Mascot:Peregrine falcon
Team Name:Falcons
Colors:Green and White and Black
Founded:1951
Enrollment:1,342 (2019–20)[1]

Archie Williams High School is a public secondary school located in San Anselmo, California. It is named after a former math and computing teacher Archie Williams, who was also a gold medalist in the 1936 Summer Olympics, a flight instructor with the Tuskegee Airmen, and one of the first African-American meteorologists.[2] It was originally named Sir Francis Drake High School, after Francis Drake. It changed its name in 2021, after the George Floyd protests spurred a worldwide reexamination of place names and monuments connected to racism.

The school was established in 1951 as the second high school in the Tamalpais Union High School District. It is located at 1327 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, situated on a 21-acre (85,000 m2) campus bordered by two creeks. The site was formerly known as Cordone Gardens.[3]

The graduation rate in 2015 was approximately 99%.[4]

History

Archie Williams High School was founded as Sir Francis Drake High School (aka Drake High School) in 1951 to serve students in grades 9–12 from Corte Madera, Larkspur, Kentfield, Greenbrae, Ross, San Anselmo, Fairfax, Woodacre, Lagunitas, Forest Knolls, San Geronimo, and Nicasio. This was the second high school to be introduced into the Tamalpais Union High School District, the first being Tamalpais High School. In 1958, Redwood High School opened to accommodate students from Corte Madera, Larkspur, Kentfield, Ross, and Greenbrae.

From 1971 until 1984, Drake High School operated a separate "School Within A School" (SWAS) within the pre-1950 Devonshire Hall, for students who wanted to explore alternative community-building, interactive, and experiential pedagogy. SWAS was a pioneer in developing such an alternative school within a public school system.[5]

Between 1992 and 1995, Drake High School started a new program of small learning communities due to the poor performance of students, which was affecting the perception of the school. Drake has received two state grants for these programs; one in 1996–1997 and the other being in 2000. Since then, there have been four Freshman-Sophomore Academies and two Junior-Senior Academies.[6]

During the protests against police brutality and racism that followed the murder of George Floyd, school officials initiated a process to consider changing the name of Sir Francis Drake High School, citing "the racist and violent acts of Francis Drake, a slave trader, slave owner, and colonizer, and the legacy of white supremacy he represents," and noting that "honoring such a person is counter to the values held by our community and counter to the lessons and values we wish our students and colleagues to learn."[7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] During the renaming process, the school adopted the temporary name "High School 1327", a reference to its address.[13] On May 6, 2021, an elected school committee composed of students, parents and staff voted unanimously to rename the school after former teacher and Olympic athlete Archie Williams.[14] The Tamalpais United School District Board of Trustees unanimously approved the new name on May 11, 2021.[15]

School awards

In 1990 the school was designated as a Next Century School by RJR Nabisco Foundation for its "entrepreneurship in education."[16] Drake was one of thirty schools to receive this award.

In 1999 Drake High School was designated as a California Distinguished School.[17]

In 2003 Drake was the first high school to be recognized has a Bay Area Green Business School for its environmental awareness around campus.[18]

Extracurricular activities

Basketball

In 1982 both the boys and girls basketball teams took the state division II title. The boys basketball team returned to the states championship in 2014 but lost.

The Pitch

The school newspaper, originally named the Jolly Roger, is published almost every month. The 1986-87 edition was a winner of Columbia University’s Silver Crown Award for high school newspapers in 1988.[19] The Jolly Roger has been a regular recipient of the Medalist rating, given to the top 5% among high school newspapers in its class in United States.

Following the school's name change in 2021, the newspaper also changed its name from Jolly Roger to The Pitch.

Mountain biking club

The school's NICA NorCal League mountain bike team is notable for being one of the first in the nation and has won numerous regional and statewide competitions.[20] The team is eleven-time NorCal League champions (2004, 2006, 2009–2017) and eight-time California State champions (2009-2012, 2015–2018).[21]

Notable alumni

Notable faculty

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sir Francis Drake High. National Center for Education Statistics. May 26, 2021.
  2. Web site: A Meteorologist Who Changed the World. . 2015-02-06. The Front Page. American Meteorological Society. 2021-05-09.
  3. Web site: History of Drake - DHS Handbook / History of Drake - DHS Handbook. www.tamdistrict.org. 2015-08-25.
  4. Web site: Sir Francis Drake High School - San Anselmo, California - CA - School quality. www.greatschools.org. 2015-06-27.
  5. Book: Allen . Martha. & the Students of SWAS . The Alternative: School Within A School . 2016 . Balboa Press . 978-1504361859 . 142 . 11 April 2021.
  6. Web site: Academies / Academies Homepage. www.tamdistrict.org. 2015-06-27.
  7. Web site: Communication to Community. Google Docs. 2021-05-09.
  8. News: Marin School Board Votes To Rename Drake High After Beloved, Former Teacher Archie Williams . 29 June 2021 . KPIX-TV . 11 May 2021.
  9. Book: Loades. David. David Loades. 2007. Drake, Francis (1540–1595) English seaman and circumnavigator. https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195130751.001.0001/acref-9780195130751-e-0245. Hattendorf. John J.. John B. Hattendorf. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Maritime History. subscription. en-GB. Oxford. Oxford University Press. 2007. 9780195307405.
  10. Book: Lane. Kris E.. Kris Lane. 1998. Smugglers, Pirates, and Privateers: The Elizabethans. https://archive.org/details/trent_0116405270582/page/32/. Pillaging the empire: piracy in the Americas, 1500-1750. en. Armonk, N.Y.. M.E. Sharpe. 1998. 0-7656-0256-3.
  11. Book: Thrower. Norman J. W.. 2007. Drake, Francis. https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/view/10.1093/acref/9780195149227.001.0001/acref-9780195149227-e-0201. Buisseret. David. The Oxford Companion to World Exploration. subscription. en-GB. Oxford. Oxford University Press. 2007. 9780195307412.
  12. Book: White, Richard. Richard White (historian). 2020. California Exposures. New York, N.Y.. W. W. Norton & Company. 1–31. 978-0-393-24306-2. 1102467481.
  13. News: Brenner. Keri. 2020-09-23. Tam Union board: 'High School 1327' is temporary. 2021-05-09. live. Marin Independent Journal. San Rafael, CA. https://web.archive.org/web/20200925024330/https://www.marinij.com/2020/09/23/tam-union-board-high-school-1327-is-temporary/. 2020-09-25. en-US.
  14. News: Brenner . Keri . Marin panel taps Olympic gold medalist, Tuskegee Airman Archie Williams for new high school name . 29 June 2021 . The Mercury News . 9 May 2021.
  15. News: Brenner. Keri. 2021-05-12. Tam Union board renames Drake school for Archie Williams. live. Marin Independent Journal. San Rafael, CA. https://web.archive.org/web/20210513054000/https://www.marinij.com/2021/05/12/tam-board-oks-archie-williams-for-new-drake-high-school-name/. 2021-05-13. 2021-05-12.
  16. News: Nabisco Awards $9.7 Million in Grants to 15 Schools. The New York Times. 1991-04-17. 2015-08-25. 0362-4331.
  17. Web site: 2009 Distinguished Middle and High Schools - California Distinguished Schools Program (CA Dept of Education). www.cde.ca.gov. 2015-08-25. 2015-09-01. https://web.archive.org/web/20150901033748/http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/sr/cs/disting2009.asp. dead.
  18. Web site: ABAG Green Business Program. www.greenbiz.ca.gov. 2015-08-25. 2015-09-24. https://web.archive.org/web/20150924023606/http://www.greenbiz.ca.gov/GreenGovAgencies.html. dead.
  19. http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cspa/docs/contests-and-critiques/crown-awards/recipients/1988-scholastic-crown.html Columbia Scholastic Press Association, 1988 Scholastic Crown Recipients
  20. Web site: About Drake MTB « Drake MTB Online. www.drakemtb.org. 2015-06-27. 2015-06-25. https://web.archive.org/web/20150625194040/http://www.drakemtb.org/category/about-drake-mtb/. dead.
  21. Web site: Drake MTB Online. www.drakemtb.org. 2021-10-13.
  22. Web site: Beall . Garm . Garm Beall — IMDb . IMDb . Internet Movie Database . 12 April 2021.
  23. Web site: Joel Blum – Broadway Cast & Staff | IBDB. www.ibdb.com.
  24. Web site: Farey . John . The Pulsators Biographies . The Pulsators . 12 April 2021.
  25. News: Drake Junior Selected For Swedish Trip . 2 April 2019 . Daily Independent Journal . 23 Jan 1960.
  26. News: Genzlinger . Neil . Linda Gregg, Poet of Taut, Vivid Verse, Is Dead at 76 . 2 April 2019 . The New York Times . March 27, 2019.
  27. Web site: Real . Carole . Carole Real: Playwright/Screenwriter/Actor . Carole Real . 13 April 2021.
  28. Web site: Faculty - UW ART . University of Wisconsin . 12 April 2021.
  29. http://www.sfchroniclemarketplace.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/17/BASB10O523.DTL Michael Taylor, San Francisco Chronicle, May 17, 2008, "'60s activist Michael Rossman dies in Berkeley"
  30. Web site: Joe Ryan . . MLB.com . MLB . 3 September 2021 .
  31. Web site: Smith . Kirk R. . Kirk R. Smith, Nobel Prize recipient and environmental health giant, dies at 73 . Berkeley Public Health . 18 June 2020 . University of California, Berkeley . 12 April 2021.
  32. Web site: Torn . Margaret . Earth & Environmental Sciences . Margaret S. Torn . Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory . 12 April 2021.
  33. Web site: Weiss . Eric . Eric Weiss Clinical Associate Professor, Emergency Medicine . Stanford Profiles . Stanford University . 13 April 2021.
  34. Web site: Thinking really small . 2006-04-17 . Nanotechnology Now . July 11, 2009.