Coolidge Senior High School (Washington, D.C.)

Calvin Coolidge Senior High School

Coolidge Senior High School
"Integrity"[1]
Address
6315 Fifth Street Northwest[2]
Washington, DC, 20011
United States
Coordinates 38°58′02″N 77°01′09″W / 38.96722°N 77.01917°W / 38.96722; -77.01917
Information
School type Public high school
Established 1940
School district District of Columbia Public Schools
Principal Jackson[1]
Faculty 51.0 FTE[3]
Grades 9 to 12[1]
Enrollment 689 (as of the 2010-2011 school year)[1]
Student to teacher ratio 11.39[3]
Campus type Urban
Color(s)      Orange
     Grey
Mascot Colts
Feeder schools LaSalle-Backus Education Campus, Takoma Education Campus, and Whittier Education Campus[1]
Website School Website

Calvin Coolidge High School is a public high school located in the Northwest quadrant of the District of Columbia.

History

In order to relieve crowding at Roosevelt High School, Superintendent Frank W. Ballou proposed building a new high school for students living in Manor Park and Takoma Park.[4] Dr. Ballou suggested that the new high school should be built at Fifth and Sheridan streets NW,[4] on property that the District of Columbia had purchased five years earlier[5] and across the street from Whittier School, which had been built in 1925.[6]

Temporarily named Northern Senior High School,[7] the building of the school was supported by many Takoma Park, Manor Park, Chillum Heights, and Sixteenth Street Heights residents and North Dakota Senator Lynn Frazier.[5][8] The finance committee of the Board of Education approved the plan soon after Dr. Ballou's recommendation.[9] The House of Representatives originally appropriated $450,000 for the building of the school,[10] but a Senate subcommittee reduced the appropriation to $350,000, despite protests by Senator Frazier.[11]

In 1937, the question of a permanent name for the school was raised.[12] The Manor Park Citizens Association and the Brightwood Citizens Association wanted to name the school for Calvin Coolidge, the only former president without a school named after him.[12] Other residents favored using the name Northern High School because it would fit in with existing schools named Eastern, Western, and Central.[12] Those favoring Coolidge won out.[13]

The Board of Education planned to build a two-story brick school with a flat roof.[13] Local citizens associations said the planned school would look like a factory.[13] They preferred a colonial style similar to that of nearby Roosevelt High School.[13] The Manor Park Citizens Association held firm, and the plans were modified to include three stories, a pitched roof, and a cupola.[14][15] Architect Nathan C. Wyeth changed the design to a modern Georgian style.[16]

Jeffress-Dryer Inc. won the bid to build the school, and construction began in 1938.[17] The original plans called for one boys' gymnasium and one girls' gymnasium.[17] Because two gymnasiums could not be afforded with the funds appropriated by Congress, the girls' gymnasium was eliminated from the plans.[17] After the Takoma Park Citizens Association petitioned Congress,[18] the District's Board of Commissioners agreed to appropriate an additional $16,000 in order to build the girls' gymnasium.[19] Construction was completed in February 1940,[20] at a cost of $1,500,000.[21]

Coolidge opened its doors on September 23, 1940.[20] Its first principal was Thomas J. Holmes, previously the assistant principal of Eastern High School.[20] Holmes did not end up completing his first year as principal, as he took a leave of absence to serve as an officer at Fort Meade in April 1941.[22] During its first school year, Coolidge had 31 teachers,[20] 750 students enrolled, and a capacity of 1,801.[23]

Academics

Coolidge High School offers Advanced Placement courses in science, English, math, and history.[24] It has an art room, a media center, a computer lab, and a science lab.[1]

According to the 2011 District of Columbia's Comprehensive Assessment System, 32% of students met or exceeded math standards, and 42% of students met or exceeded reading standards.[25] In 2010, the school's graduation rate was 95%, and 47% of graduating students registered at a college or university in the following fall semester.[25]

Athletics

The school's athletic teams are named the Colts.[26] Coolidge was the first high school in the District to require physical education classes five period per week.[27] Because the school was so new, it could not organize any athletic teams in time for the 1939-1940 school year, but it did have teams organized for the 1940-1941 school year.[28] In December 1940, The Colts' first basketball game was played against Woodward Prep.[29] Because the delivery of its basketball hoops was delayed, the game was played at a local Y.M.C.A.[30] Coached by the former head coach of Anacostia High School, Julian Colangelo,[31] Coolidge beat Woodward Prep, 42 to 19.[32] Coolidge also won its second-ever basketball game, winning an away game against Briarley Military Academy by a score of 25 to 17.[33] Coolidge's third basketball game was the first game played in its own gymnasium; it was a 19-to-12 win against Anacostia High School.[34]

The Colts first baseball team played its first game in April 1941, playing against Briarley Military Academy.[35] Coolidge lost the game 13 to 7 after committing six errors and walking nine batters.[35]

Coolidge's football team, coached by Sherman Rees and Gil Roberts, began playing in September 1941.[36] Coolidge lost its first game 27 to 0 against John Handley High School.[37] Coolidge played its second football game, and its first home game, against National Training School. Coolidge won the game 7 to 6.[38]

The 1946-1947 school year was particularly successful at Coolidge, with the school's baseball, basketball, football, golf, rifle, and archery teams all bringing in District championships that year.[39]

After years without a stadium, the District's Board of Education and the District's Board of Commissioners approved construction of a stadium behind the school at Third and Sheridan streets in 1945.[40] The land was owned by the federal government.[41] Coolidge did not want to build a stadium on federally owned land so it would not have to share ticket revenue with the federal government.[41] The federal government ended up giving the land to the District Board of Education, allowing Coolidge to continue plans for a 10,000-seat stadium, football and baseball field, and a quarter-mile track.[42] President Harry Truman cut the stadium's construction from the District's 1952 budget in order to keep the District's budget balanced.[43] The District's Board of Commissioners approved a 1955 budget that included Coolidge's stadium.[44] Congress ended up appropriating funds for the stadium's construction in the 1955 budget.[45]

In 2007, Coolidge opened its new football field, including a digital scoreboard, a press box, and a new public-address system.[46]

In 2010, Coolidge hired Natalie Randolph as its football coach, making her the only female head football coach in the nation.[47] Randolph had previously played wide receiver for the D.C. Divas women's professional football team.[48] Randolph also teaches environmental sciences.[49]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Coolidge High School". District of Columbia Public Schools. Retrieved June 19, 2012.
  2. ↑ GNIS entry for Calvin Coolidge Senior High School; USGS; December 31, 1981.
  3. 1 2 "Coolidge Senior High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Archived by WebCite. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Ballou Maps Building Plan For Schools". The Washington Post. January 3, 1936. p. 13.
  5. 1 2 "Citizens of Northwest Seek $450,000 for New School". The Washington Post. June 12, 1937. p. 13.
  6. ↑ "Manor Park School Project Under Way". The Washington Post. September 30, 1925. p. 12.
  7. ↑ "Houck Will Present Cup To Commander Malloy". The Washington Post. March 15, 1936. p. F6.
  8. ↑ Secrest, James D. (April 5, 1936). "Traffic Action Slated as Rider On Budget Bill". The Washington Post.
  9. ↑ "2 Night Schools To Close; Low Funds Blamed". The Washington Post. February 28, 1936. p. 17.
  10. ↑ "District Supply Bill Provides For 54 New School Teachers". The Washington Post. March 31, 1937. p. 5.
  11. ↑ Secrest, James D. (June 9, 1937). "D.C. Heads Back Senate Supply Bill". The Washington Post. p. 1.
  12. 1 2 3 "Debate Raging Over Names of Schools-to-Be". The Washington Post. November 14, 1937. p. 16.
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Citizen Groups Protest Plans Of New School". The Washington Post. December 22, 1937. p. 34.
  14. ↑ "Manor Citizens Urge Funds for P.U.C. Studies". The Washington Post. January 4, 1938. p. X13.
  15. ↑ "Coolidge School's Low Bid Is More Than Authorized". The Washington Post. September 14, 1938. p. X17.
  16. ↑ "Coolidge High Plan Approved By Arts Group: Georgian Type of Building Will Be Erected in Takoma Park". The Washington Post. January 15, 1938. p. X15.
  17. 1 2 3 "$1,326,950 High School Contract Let". The Washington Post. September 25, 1938. p. 11.
  18. ↑ "Takoma Park, DC.". The Washington Post. January 3, 1940. p. 13.
  19. ↑ "District's Extensive School Building Program Nears Completion". January 24, 1940. p. 12.
  20. 1 2 3 4 "Coolidge High Opens Sept. 23: 750 Students Will Enter New School When Term Begins". The Washington Post. August 25, 1940. p. A11.
  21. ↑ "80,000 Will Return To District Schools". The Washington Post. September 22, 1940. p. 14.
  22. ↑ "Recreation Board Plan Approved". The Washington Post. April 3, 1941. p. 17.
  23. ↑ Giddens, Lucia (March 4, 1941). "Calvin Coolidge High School To Be Dedicated Tonight". The Washington Post. p. 12.
  24. ↑ "Academics". Calvin Coolidge Senior High School. Retrieved June 19, 2012.
  25. 1 2 "2011-12 School Scorecard: Coolidge High School" (pdf). District of Columbia Public Schools.
  26. ↑ "Colts Boast Margin in Practice". The Washington Post. April 15, 1942. p. 26.
  27. ↑ "Draft Registry Aid Mapped by D.C. Schools". The Washington Post. September 12, 1940. p. 17.
  28. ↑ Burnett, Bill (December 21, 1939). "New School Opening Now Set for Fall". The Washington Post. p. 25.
  29. ↑ "Schoolboys Face Eight Games Today". The Washington Post. December 17, 1940. p. 24.
  30. ↑ "Schoolboy Basketball in Comeback Today". The Washington Post. January 3, 1941. p. 21.
  31. ↑ "Anacostia High Post May Go To Skip Lehr". The Washington Post. September 20, 1940. p. 25.
  32. ↑ "Coolidge High Wins First Game of Career". The Washington Post. January 4, 1941. p. 14.
  33. ↑ "Coolidge Quint Trips Briarly By 25-17 Count". The Washington Post. January 8, 1941. p. 17.
  34. ↑ "Coolidge Wins, 19-12, Over Anacostia". The Washington Post. January 15, 1941. p. 22.
  35. 1 2 "Briarley Nine 13-7 Winner Over Coolidge". The Washington Post. April 16, 1941. p. 25.
  36. ↑ "Eastern Game at Episcopal Tops Schedule". The Washington Post. September 27, 1941. p. 23.
  37. ↑ "Handley Routs Coolidge High 27-0 in Opener". The Washington Post. September 28, 1941. p. SP8.
  38. ↑ "Coolidge Gains First Football Victory, 7 to 6". The Washington Post. October 4, 1941. p. 19.
  39. ↑ Heft, Herb (June 19, 1947). "Colts Lose But Only by Graduations". The Washington Post. p. 19.
  40. ↑ "Coolidge Stadium Plans Tangled in Government Tape". The Washington Post. October 25, 1945. p. 13.
  41. 1 2 "Land Swap for Coolidge Stadium Urged". The Washington Post. April 6, 1950. p. 20.
  42. ↑ "Recreation Cedes Land to Coolidge". The Washington Post. May 4, 1950. p. 19.
  43. ↑ "1952 D.C. Budget $16 Million Above Figure for 1951". The Washington Post. January 16, 1951. p. B1.
  44. ↑ Bassett, Grace (May 20, 1954). "Hill Receives $172 Million D.C. Budget". The Washington Post. p. 1.
  45. ↑ "D.C. School Budget Gets Quick Study". The Washington Post. May 22, 1954. p. 21.
  46. ↑ McKenna, Dave (September 28, 2007). "Outside the Lines: Coolidge Senior High Gets a New Field and New Hope". Washington City Paper.
  47. ↑ "DC High School Hires Female Football Coach". Sentinel (Los Angeles, California). March 18, 2010. p. B2.
  48. ↑ Goldenbach, Alan (March 11, 2010). "'Diva' Has a New Job Description: Head Coast, High School Football". The Washington Post. p. A1.
  49. ↑ DiPerna, Jody (November 25, 2010). "Natalie Randolph Completes Her Inaugural Season". Washington Informer. p. 28.

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