Framingham High School, or FHS, is an urban/suburban

public high school State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...

in the city of Framingham, Massachusetts, United States, located approximately west of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. Founded in 1792, as Framingham Academy, the high school is the result of the merger of Framingham North and Framingham South High Schools in 1991. Like most high schools in the United States, it enrolls students in the ninth to twelfth grades. The school has an approximate enrollment of 2000 students, making it the twelfth largest high school in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

.Enrollment Data
from the Massachusetts Department of Education Framingham High School has a racially, ethnically, economically, and linguistically diverse population (20 percent of its students are considered low-income and 30 percent have a language other than English as their first language). The school is classified as an urban high school by the state of Massachusetts. Framingham High School has received numerous awards for being a successful urban school, including a designation as a Commonwealth Compass School by the state of Massachusetts and as a Vanguard Model School by MassInsight. The Framingham High School Flyers compete in the Bay State League-Carey Division of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association's Division I and their mascot is the Flyer.

History

The Framingham Academy was established in 1798, replacing the organization known as the Proprietors of the Brick School House which had formed in 1792. The town of Framingham gave the academy $1000, but some time later this was found to be illegal, and the academy was dissolved. In 1852 the high school was formed, and later became the legal successor to the academy. Thus, the high school can be considered to be founded in either 1792 or 1852. In 1958, mid year, a new building on Flagg Drive replaced the original high school on Union Ave. that was built in the 1920s. The original building was eventually converted to house several facilities, including the

Danforth Museum Danforth Art Museum at Framingham State University (formerly Danforth Museum of Art) is a museum and school in Framingham, Massachusetts. It is part of Framingham State University. History The Danforth Museum Corporation was established on Augus ...

and the Callahan Senior Center. In 1963, due to an increasing school population, the original Framingham High was split into two schools, Framingham North High School and Framingham South High School. South High was located in the Flagg Drive campus in South Framingham (in the now-demolished Fuller Middle School, which was replaced with a new building at 31 Flagg Drive in 2021) and North High was located at the new school building at Winch Park on A St. in Saxonville. Originally, North High shared facilities with Winch Park Middle School ("E" & "F" halls in the current building) until 1974 when the first Cameron Middle School opened on Elm St. The two high schools remained separate until 1991 when they were merged to create a unified school under the name Framingham High School. The two high schools were distinguished by their colors and mascots: North had the

Spartans Sparta (Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referred t ...

in yellow and green while South had the original town mascot Flyers in blue and white. When the time for the merger of the schools came, the district held an election to determine the fate of the colors and mascots. The winning combination was to be the Spartans in blue and white, however alumni of the original Framingham High raised a protest that the town should revert to the original mascot and colors which happened to be used by Framingham South. After discussion with the student body, it was agreed that the colors and mascot would revert to the original set. On a visit on October 20, 1994,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

signed the

Improving America's Schools Act {{Infobox U.S. legislation , shorttitle = Improving America's Schools Act of 1994 , othershorttitles = {{unbulleted list, Alaska Native Educational Equity, Support and Assistance Act, Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Act o ...

(IASA) in the school's

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...

gymnasium.

Academics

In the late 1990s, Framingham High School was labeled underperforming. Through multiple school reforms in the early and mid 2000s, Framingham High dramatically increased their MCAS (Massachusetts state graduation assessment) scores and the number of students taking

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. American colleges and universities may grant placement and course ...

courses increased. In recent years, Framingham High has been labeled an "over-performing" school on standardized assessments, compared to other districts of similar student populations. In 2008, Framingham High was ranked by Newsweek in the top 500 high schools in the United States. Framingham High School has received press for its success with students in the English as a Second Language Program. Noting that 69 percent of Framingham students are considered proficient in English after three or more years and the school has higher graduation rates and MCAS scores than most other districts with large groups of English-learners. Only 17 percent of Framingham's English Language Learners drop out of school, half that of districts with similar demographics. Part of this successes is attributed to Framingham's use of a provision in the Massachusetts law by having parents waive their right to an all-English education. In Framingham, very few parents of high schoolers have chosen the English-only option. Framingham High School has a unique co-teaching program, where most teachers at the school co-teach a course with a colleague from the same discipline. This helps reduce the student-teacher ratio in the classroom and intends to lead to greater faculty collegiality and collaboration. It contributed to the school's earning of Commonwealth Compass School designation. Framingham High School also has several innovative programs for at-risk and struggling students, including Resiliency for Life, Step Up to Excellence, Mazie Mentoring Program, Academic Development Center (peer-to-peer school day tutoring) and the Phoenix Program, as well as the Thayer Campus, an alternative high school located in south Framingham. In 2004, Framingham High School launched a "homeroom adviser" program, hoping to reduce the high rate of

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

students being forced to repeat their first year, a problem for many schools in the state. The advisers have around 25 students each, and watch the students' grades and attendance, meet with them individually, and may also consult with parents or teachers. It is hoped that the program will catch struggling students early and encourage them to feel more accountable for their studies

Demographics

Framingham High School's racial/ethnic demographics for the 2011–2012 school year are as follows:Framingham High School Enrollment Data
Massachusetts Department of Education. 2010–2011. , approximately 20 percent of the school's white population (and 14 percent of the entire school population) is of Brazilian descent. Other demographics: Framingham High School is a racially, ethnically, and economically diverse school and in part this relates to the town of Framingham being historically a hub for immigrants to the United States. The student body of Framingham High is made up of significant immigrant (or children of immigrant) populations from Brazil, the Caribbean, South and Central America, Russia, Asia, and Africa.

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

The Framingham High School Flyers compete in the Bay State League-Carey Division of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association's Division I. The school offers and competes competitively in a number of sports, including

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

cross-country Cross country or cross-country may refer to: Places * Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland * Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY * Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...

outdoor track Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping event ...

, indoor track,

cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...

american football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

, swimming,

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

, and

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

Drama company

The school offers a theatre program for all levels of young actors. The Drama Company presents three annual shows, one of which is a one-act play for a statewide festival ran by the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild. Framingham has won numerous awards for acting and technical design and often makes it to the state finals. In 2006, and 10 years later in 2016, the Drama Company won the METG state finals with their productions of ''Tales of Trickery'' (2006) and ''Sideways Stories from Wayside School'' (2016).

FHS-TV (Home of "Flyer News")

Framingham High School Television's (FHS-TV) news show "Flyer News" began

broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...

a live

newscast News broadcasting is the medium of broadcasting various news events and other information via television, radio, or the internet in the field of broadcast journalism. The content is usually either produced locally in a radio studio or televis ...

at 7:15 a.m. every day to the high school in 1997, and then to the entire town in 2005. Flyer News is run by

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

teacher Noah Lin and his students. A Flyer News episode may consist of student-produced segments such as Sez-You, which interviews the student body on various topics; Webcrawler, a technology segment; Word of the Week, asking students to define a different word each week and broadcasting the more entertaining responses; New England Sports Minute, which covers the latest news in the New England professional sporting world; Sports Update, which brings updates about Framingham High School sports; and a daily segment, Homeroom Headlines, giving morning announcements, among other things. One of Flyer News' focal points is to get the student opinion on the issues to voice the student-body's beliefs. The station also airs numerous sports games, as well as student-produced movies, music videos, and public service announcements.

Exchange program

The school participated in a sister-city exchange program with

Lomonosov, Russia Lomonosov (russian: Ломоно́сов; before 1948: Oranienbaum, ) is a administrative divisions of Saint Petersburg, municipal town in Petrodvortsovy District of the federal cities of Russia, federal city of Saint Petersburg, Russia, locate ...

, a suburb of St. Petersburg. George Perrone, now-retired Music Director, brought a contingent of musicians to perform at several venues in Lomonosov. In return, Lomonosov residents visited Framingham and Framingham High. Students participated in an exchange program with China in 2016.

Notable alumni

Boris Bede Boris Bede (born November 20, 1989) is a French-born Canadian football placekicker and punter for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He first enrolled at Tiffin University before transferring to Université Laval. Bede ...

, gridiron football player * Blake Bellefeuille, professional

player *

Stan Benjamin Alfred Stanley Benjamin (May 20, 1914 – December 24, 2009) was a right fielder in Major League Baseball for five seasons; four with the Philadelphia Phillies (1939–42), of the National League (NL), and one with the Cleveland Indians (194 ...

(1914–2009),

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player and scout *

Andrea Berloff Andrea Berloff (born 1974) is an American screenwriter, actress, director, and producer. Berloff is best known for writing the 2006 Disaster film, disaster Drama (film and television), drama film ''World Trade Center (film), World Trade Center'' ...

, screenwriter and author of

World Trade Center World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may refer to: Buildings * List of World Trade Centers * World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...

* David Blatt (born 1959), class of 1977, basketball player and coach, Israel and various European teams, 2012 Olympic coach, former head coach of

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

Royal L. Bolling Royal Lee Bolling (June 19, 1920 – July 16, 2002) was a Massachusetts politician and head of a prominent African-American political family. While serving in the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1965, he sponsored the state's Racial Im ...

, Massachusetts state senator and the school's first African-American class president * Arthur Raymond Brooks, World War I fighter ace * Bill Brooks, former NFL football player (1986–1996) *

Sashi Brown Sashi Brown (born May 15, 1976) is an attorney and American football executive who is the president of the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). Brown began his NFL career with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Cleveland Browns. Care ...

, President of the National Football League's

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

Michael J. Clouse Michael J. Clouse (sometimes credited as Michael J. Clouse III), an American record producer and songwriter was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He graduated from Framingham North High School in Framingham, Massachusetts and received a degree from ...

, record producer and songwriter * Monique Curnen, actress, notable for portraying Det. Anna Ramirez in '' The Dark Knight'' *

Leila Goldkuhl Leila Marie Goldkuhl Masterson ( ; born December 30, 1991) is an American fashion model. She is known for competing on ''America's Next Top Model, Cycle 19'', becoming the last eliminated overall. Early life and education Goldkuhl was born on D ...

, fashion model, contestant on '' America's Next Top Model: College Edition'' *

Rufus Harris Rufus D. Harris is a retired American professional basketball player. He was the America East Conference co-Player of the Year as a senior in 1979–80 while playing for the University of Maine. After graduating, Harris was selected in the 198 ...

, former professional basketball player *

Bill Hunnefield William Fenton Hunnefield (January 5, 1899 – August 28, 1976) was an American Major League Baseball infielder. He was a switch hitter, threw with his right hand, was tall, and weighed . Baseball career Hunnefield was a member of the Massachuse ...

, former

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player (

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

Boston Braves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

) *

Lou Merloni Louis William Merloni (born April 6, 1971), nicknamed "Sweet Lou", is an American radio personality and a former Major League Baseball player. Merloni played for his hometown Boston Red Sox from – and again for part of 2003. He also played for t ...

player,

NESN New England Sports Network, popularly known as NESN , is an American regional sports network, regional sports cable television, cable and satellite television, satellite television network owned by a joint venture of Fenway Sports Group (which ow ...

radio talk show host on WEEI 93.7 FM * Katie Nolan, television sports personality * Danny O'Connor, professional boxer * Cyrus Peirce, graduate of Framingham Academy circa 1806 and first head of what is now

Framingham State College Framingham State University (Framingham State or FSU) is a public university in Framingham, Massachusetts. It offers undergraduate programs as well as graduate programs, including MBA, MEd, and MS. History As the first secretary of the newly ...

R. J. Brewer John Stagikas (born July 31, 1979) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, R. J. Brewer. Brewer is known for his appearances with Lucha Libre USA, where he portrayed a Conservatism in the United ...

("Hurricane" John Walters),

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

, participated in

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

and

Ring of Honor Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011, when the promotion was so ...

Peter Taglianetti Peter Anthony Taglianetti (born August 15, 1963) is an American former NHL defenseman and former college hockey coach at Washington & Jefferson College. With the Pittsburgh Penguins, he won the Stanley Cup in 1991 and 1992. Taglianetti is also ...

, NHL hockey player *

Nancy Travis Nancy Ann Travis (born September 21, 1961) is an American actress. She began her career on Off-Broadway theater, before her first leading screen role in the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television miniseries ''Harem'' opposite Omar Sharif. ...

, actress *

Freedom Williams Frederick B. Williams (born February 13, 1966), better known by his stage name Freedom Williams, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter, who gained fame as the lead vocalist on C+C Music Factory's biggest hits. Career Born in Brooklyn in 1 ...

, musical performer, C+C Music Factory vocalist

References

External links

School websiteFramingham High School Photography Blog
{{Coord, 42, 19, 19.20, N, 71, 24, 17.83, W, display=title Educational institutions established in 1792 Framingham, Massachusetts Public high schools in Massachusetts Schools in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Bay State Conference