Francis C. Hammond Middle School in Alexandria, Virginia, is located at 4646 Seminary Road in the west end of the city. Opened as a four-year high school in 1956, it was named after Alexandria native Francis Hammond (1931–1953), a U.S. Navy hospital corpsman who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in the Korean War. Francis C. Hammond Middle School applied to be part of the International Baccalaureate program in 2010. It has since ended its involvement.

History

In 1971,

Alexandria City Public Schools Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) is a school division which is funded by the government of Alexandria, Virginia, United States. Administration Superintendent The superintendent of Alexandria City Public Schools is Gregory C. Hutchings, ...

(ACPS) changed to a 6-2-2-2 system, and reassigned its three high schools from four-year to two-year campuses. The newest and most geographically central, T.C. Williams, took all of the city's juniors and seniors, while Hammond and

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

split the freshmen and sophomores. Prior to the consolidation, the city was approximately one-fifth black, but Hammond High School's student body in the spring of 1971 was nearly all white. Both Hammond and George Washington became junior high schools in 1979, with grades 7-9, and

middle schools A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

in 1993, with grades 6-8. In 2009, Morton Sherman, superintendent for ACPS, introduced a new plan for the school system's two middle schools, to have numerous schools inside one building. This was designed to allow students to have a more personalized education in smaller schools. Hammond had 3 schools (e.g., FCH 1, FCH2, FCH3), while George Washington Middle School had two schools (e.g. GW1, GW2). Starting in the 2014–15 school year the schools were unified again, with students either attending Francis C. Hammond or George Washington.

Demographics

As of September 2014, the 1436 students at Francis C. Hammond are 35% African American, 40% Hispanic, 14% White, 8% Asian, 1.2% Multi-racial, 1% Native American, and 0.4% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.

Notable alumni

Jack Fisk Jack Fisk (born December 19, 1945) is an American production designer and director. As a production designer, he is known for his collaborations with Terrence Malick, designing all of his first eight films including ''Badlands (film), Badlands'' ...

, production designer and director, Class of 1964 *

Angus King Angus Stanley King Jr. (born March 31, 1944) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Maine since 2013. A political independent since 1993, he previously served as the 72nd governor of Maine from 1995 ...

, Senator from Maine, Class of 1962 *

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

, filmmaker, Class of 1964

References

External links

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"Alexandria City School Board Votes on New Future for Middle SchoolsFrancis C. Hammond High School Alumni Association
{{Coord, 38.826, N, 77.111, W, display=title Public middle schools in Virginia Educational institutions established in 1956 Schools in Alexandria, Virginia 1956 establishments in Virginia