Вудроу Вильсон жоғары мектебі: Тарих және жетістіктері

Public high school on Dallas

Woodrow Wilson High School, commonly known locally in short as Woodrow, is a public high school located in East Dallas, Texas (U. S.). Woodrow enrolls students in grades 9–12 and is a part of the Dallas Independent School District (DISD). It is located adjacent to the Junius Heights historic district. It was named in honor of former U. S. president Woodrow Wilson, who died just three years before the school building was completed. The structure is a Dallas Landmark, as well as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, the highest honor the state can bestow on a historic structure. The National Trust for Historic Preservation wrote that the Woodrow Wilson school "defines how a historic neighborhood school can remain a vital and integral part of the educational process and continue to serve surrounding historic neighborhoods." In 2009, DISD authorized Woodrow to apply to become certified as the first Dallas school to be authorized as an IB World School offering the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB degree). It earned its official designation as an IB World School on March 18, 2011. In 2015, the school was rated "Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency.

Designed by Dallas architect Mark Lemmon, the school opened in 1928, and was constructed in the Elizabethan style. At the cornerstone laying ceremony in April 1927, a piece of the wedding cake of Woodrow Wilson's second daughter, Jessie, was included in the cornerstone "in memory of Mr. Wilson." At US$700,000, the school's cost exceeded that of the district's previous four high schools by at least $100,000. The ornamental lighting was made by Potter Art Metal Studios of Dallas; a 90 year company still in existence. Special features of the building included a gymnasium boasting "one entire wall of glass windows" and an auditorium that was to be the "best equipped and best lighted" in the district, with footlights and a separately ventilated orchestra pit. A theater organ was later placed in the pit and pipes put in special lofts on the third level. The September 1928, Dallas Herald said the school "presents a rare spectacle from afar." Photos and the original blueprints of the school building were featured in an exhibition celebrating the works of Mark Lemmon at The Meadows Museum. The school has been colloquially called "Woodrow" by students and community members from its beginning, fostered by first principal G. L. "Pop" Ashburn, who led the school until 1956. The mascot of the school is the Wildcat. A Parent Teacher Association chapter was formed for the school even before its 1928 opening. Until 1957 (when Bryan Adams High School opened), Woodrow was the only "East Dallas" high school. The original principal of Woodrow Wilson served for 30 years.

Woodrow Wilson integrated in the 1970s as the percentage of black and Hispanic students increased year after year. Gene Lyons of Texas Monthly stated in 1979 that "In short, everything that has been happening demographically within the DISD and, by extension, within U. S. big city high schools has been happening to Woodrow Wilson." In 1976 federal judge William McLaughlin Taylor Jr. wrote a school integration order for Dallas. This initial order stated that the enrollments should be balanced by closing Woodrow Wilson. The school remained open after residents of Lakewood protested, saying that it would close an already integrated school. His order did not require education levels after grade 8 to use integration busing. Lyons wrote that therefore Woodrow Wilson was "one of the few "naturally integrated" schools in Dallas." Many students, including the late Lance Bircher '83 (cited for his scene by imdb. com), were used in the filming. Of course, Woodrow students (actually the old alumni) were thrilled to receive a visit from Miss Woodward's husband, Paul Newman. In 1979, Woodrow Alums planned and held Woodrow's 50th Anniversary Celebration, established the Woodrow Wilson High School Hall of Fame, and inducted the Hall of Fame's first class of members. Nine years later, in 1988, Woodrow Alums formalized their activities by creating the Woodrow Wilson High School Alumni Association, Inc. as an IRS approved 501(c)(3) Texas nonprofit corporation, to maintain and improve communications for and among Woodrow Alums. In 1989 and 1999, the Alumni Association held Woodrow's 60th and 70th Anniversary Celebrations and, at each, inducted additional members into Woodrow's Hall of Fame. Since the 70th, Woodrow's Anniversary Celebrations have been held at 5 year intervals. In 2004, thousands attended Woodrow's 75th Anniversary Celebration, which included a parade (from Lakewood to the school, with Congressman Sam Johnson as Grand Marshal, chauffeured in a new Ford Mustang driven by fellow alumnus Carroll Shelby, the legendary auto designer and builder), followed by an auditorium packed program at which a new group of members was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Scores of "mini reunions" also were held during that day in assigned rooms throughout the school. In October 2007, the school was cited as one of 39 model schools in Science and Math by the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

Around 2008, Woodrow parents launched "Choose Woodrow," a program aimed towards attracting families in the Lakewood neighborhood towards Woodrow. Rod Dreher, a politically conservative columnist in The Dallas Morning News, argued that the program was unfair. Dreher argued that even if the campaign attracted more white students who would raise the school's test scores overall, it would not help lower performing minority students who are enrolled at Woodrow. Rick Wamre, the president of Advocate Media, wrote in the Lakewood Advocate that Dreher had wrongly insinuated that the "Choose Woodrow" parents were racists. Jim Schutze of Dallas Observer wrote that the article had accurate observations about the campaign targeting white persons and the disparity of the school, but he criticized what he called the piece's "painting a picture of the white people who send their kids to Woodrow as somehow racist, because their kids are mainly in the advanced placement classes and the kids of color are mainly not." Michael Landauer wrote an editorial in the Dallas Morning News stating that Dreher made an "unfair" accusation against the Woodrow Wilson parents and that he "actively chooses to assign dark motives to people who are taking an active role in their neighborhood school." In response to the above articles, Dreher defended his column and posted rebuttals against his critics' arguments.

In addition to its regular program, Woodrow offers the IB program to students.

In 1979 Gene Lyons wrote that academic performance at Woodrow Wilson had declined in the 1970s; he wrote that when comparing performances of Woodrow to those of other schools as well Woodrow's younger students to its older ones, the trends together suggest "an incipient decline." In 2014 Woodrow Wilson was one of three DISD comprehensive high schools which had a percentage of tested students with a 990 or higher on the SAT higher than the DISD overall average of 13.3%. It had 204 students, 21.1% of the tested students, at that level in 2013. In 2014 it was 354 students, 28.8% of the total tested students, an increase by 59 students. The DISD administration stated that students who score 990 or above on the SAT are likely to not require remedial classes when attending universities and colleges. In 2014–15 Woodrow students earned an average SAT score of 898 out of 1600, however that number masks the large variation in scores between subgroups. White students scored an average of 1105 out of 1600, while African American students scored 856, and Hispanic students 818.

From the school's beginning, a Junior ROTC program has been part of Woodrow's high school program. In the 1930s, 1940s, and early 1950s, the school had the largest JROTC program in the nation, with 16 different companies and an ROTC band; a May 1941 article declared the program "largest of its kind in the world."

The Performing Arts Department got its start from a member of the original faculty, H. Bush Morgan. Mr. Morgan was also sponsor of the Senior Publication. J. William Brown, a math teacher who joined the faculty in 1952, subsequently took that sponsorship until the late 1980s. Morgan originally produced class plays and in 1929 "Giants Stairs" swept all the city contests. In the 1940s, some musical productions were added, such as "Best Foot Forward". In the 1957–58 school year, drama teacher Helen Eckleman started producing Broadway musicals each year with the first being "Oklahoma". She continued until 1971, when choir teacher Jerry McKinney took over the productions with "Calamity Jane". Marca Lee Bircher took over from McKinney in 1975–76 with her first production "Oliver!". She continued for 28 years, assisted by choreographer Patricia Hardman. Following this team, John Beaird and alumnus Sean Morrison '98 took over the program. Morrison left to earn his doctorate and Beaird continues. The 56th production was "Anything Goes" April 18–21, 2013. This was Woodrow's third production of that show. The 1980 effort produced American Ballet Theatre star Margie Hardwick. The 1999 show spawned Travis Willingham to a successful career in television, movies and anime. The Bircher Hardman era went from flying monkeys in "The Wizard of Oz" to a real rain storm onstage for "Singing in the Rain". In 1979, Bircher formed the school's award winning show choir, Variations. The group was originally formed just to perform at the school's 50th Anniversary Celebration, but continues to this day. Bircher and Hardman finished out in 2003 with a book end production of the school's first annual musical, "Oklahoma". "School Zone Dallas" did an extensive television show on this production and the history of the duo's reign. Many of their students have moved to New York and Los Angeles to pursue careers in theater, writing and acting.

By 2019 the school established a special education program, called the "Percolators," where special education students operate a coffee shop for the school community.

As of 2015, 66.3% of the total student body was Hispanic, 22.2% White, 9% African American, 1.2% Asian, 0.4% Native American. 0.8% of students were of two or more races. As of 2008, 68% of the students are Hispanic, mainly of Mexican origins. Many of them had immigrated from central Mexico, including Guanajuato. 18% of the students were white, most of them being middle class and some being upper class. Some white students had politically progressive/liberal parents and some had have more moderate political stances and were part of families who had attended Woodrow Wilson for generations. Many white students go on to attend colleges and universities across the United States. 12% of Woodrow students were black, including those residing in East Dallas apartments and some commuting from South Dallas. By 1979 multiple generations of Anglo White families in Lakewood had attended Woodrow Wilson. That year Gene Lyons of Texas Monthly wrote that "Woodrow is seen as a community school" in the Lakewood community. The Texas Education Agency 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" reasons, such as religious reasons or philosophical objections.