James A. Garfield High School is a public high school in the

Seattle Public Schools Seattle Public Schools is the largest Public school (government funded), public school district in the state of Washington (state), Washington. The school district serves almost all of Seattle. Additionally it includes sections of Boulevard Par ...

district of

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

. It is named after

James A. Garfield James Abram Garfield (November 19, 1831 – September 19, 1881) was the 20th president of the United States, serving from March 1881 until his death in September that year after being shot two months earlier. A preacher, lawyer, and Civi ...

, the 20th

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

. The school is located at 400 23rd Avenue between E. Alder and E. Jefferson Streets in the Central District section of

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

. Garfield is a high school designated to serve students identified by the district as academically highly gifted, so the school offers many college-level classes, ranging from

calculus Calculus is the mathematics, mathematical study of continuous change, in the same way that geometry is the study of shape, and algebra is the study of generalizations of arithmetic operations. Originally called infinitesimal calculus or "the ...

-based

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Colleges and universities in the US and elsewhere ...

(AP) studio art.

History

20th century

James A. Garfield High School was founded in 1920 as East High School at its current location. The first graduating class consisted of 282 students who transferred from Broadway High School. In three years, the school's enrollment forced the 12-room building to be scrapped for the Jacobean-style building designed by Floyd Naramore. In 1929, the city commissioned the architect to design an addition for the school as enrollment peaked at 2,300 students. Garfield High School has long played a key role in its neighborhood, the Central District. As the Central District has changed, so has the school's population. In its early decades, the school was noted for its Jewish, Japanese and Italian populations. After World War II, the neighborhood became predominantly African-American and by 1961, 51 percent of Garfield students were black, compared to only 5.3 percent of the general Seattle school district population. In the late 1960s and 1970s, Garfield was at the center of the school district's attempts to avoid forced busing through various plans, including turning it into a "

magnet school In the U.S. education system, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. Normally, a student will attend an elementary school, and this also determines the middle school and high school they attend unless they mo ...

". This began the focus on music and science that persist to the present day. The school introduced an APP Program in 1979, and due to the success of this program, an alternative program, IBx, was opened for APP students at Ingraham International High School in North Seattle to help relieve pressure on an overcrowded Garfield.

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

Jesse Jackson Jesse Louis Jackson (Birth name#Maiden and married names, né Burns; born October 8, 1941) is an American Civil rights movements, civil rights activist, Politics of the United States, politician, and ordained Baptist minister. Beginning as a ...

, and

Stokely Carmichael Kwame Ture (; born Stokely Standiford Churchill Carmichael; June 29, 1941November 15, 1998) was an American activist who played a major role in the civil rights movement in the United States and the global pan-African movement. Born in Trini ...

are among notable people who have spoken at the school.

21st century

The buildings have lasted for more than eight decades, but they were partially demolished in a sweeping redesign of the school that began in June 2006. The remodel was mostly completed by the fall of 2008, making the class of 2009 the only class to attend classes in both the old and new buildings. There was a movement to hold off the remodeling to preserve the building's history, including a city initiative to preserve the Quincy Jones auditorium as a historic site, thereby blocking the remodeling. The new design has a state-of-the-art performing arts center. After its renovation, Garfield had become the second most expensive high school in the state, after

Stadium High School Stadium High School is a public high school located in the Stadium District near downtown Tacoma, Washington. A historic landmark, the original building opened as a school in 1906 after conversion of an uncompleted railway hotel project. The ...

, with Stadium High at $106 million and Garfield at $105 million. The school reopened in time for 2008 classes on September 3. Faculty and students vacated their temporary quarters at Lincoln High School at the end of the 2007–2008 school year. In March 2006, then

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

spoke at the school on innovation in education.

Terracotta work

Garfield High School's architecture makes extensive use of

terracotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...

. Among the many terracotta details worked into the building are emblems of botany, the trades, arts and crafts, industry, intelligence, and the sciences. File:Seattle - Garfield High School terracotta - botany 01A.jpg, "Botany" (south face) File:Seattle - Garfield High School terracotta - trades 01A.jpg, "Trades" (south face) File:Seattle - Garfield High School terracotta - arts & crafts 01A.jpg, "Arts & Crafts" (west face) File:Seattle - Garfield High School terracotta - industry 01A.jpg, "Industry" (east face) File:Seattle - Garfield High School terracotta - intelligence 01A.jpg, "Intelligence" (east face) File:Seattle - Garfield High School terracotta - sciences 01A.jpg, "Sciences" (west face)

Incidents

*In 2012, during a school field trip, one of the school's students allegedly raped another student. The school's mishandling of the ensuing investigation resulted in a federal investigation of the school district for Title IX sexual violence violations. *In June 2024, junior student Amarr Murphy-Paine was shot and killed outside the school after attempting to break up a fight between two other students.

Academics

Of the approximately 400 students who graduated in 2011, 70 percent planned to attend four-year colleges, and 20 percent planned to attend two-year colleges. Garfield has over 200 students in IEP (Individualized Learning) and ELL (English Language Learners) programs, along with 415 APP (Accelerated Progress Program) students. The school currently offers 21

courses and 10 honors courses. In 2012, the mean reading, math and writing

SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and Test score, scoring have changed several times. For much of its history, it was called the Scholastic Aptitude Test ...

scores for Garfield students were 575, 578 and 569, respectively.
Languages offered are Spanish language, Spanish, French, and

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

. Garfield was one of 14 schools in

King County, Washington King County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. The population was 2,269,675 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of counties in Washington, most populo ...

, in 2007 to receive the "School of Distinction" award from the office of superintendent of public instruction for making the most progress over six years in reading and writing on the WASL. The school won a silver medal of distinction from ''U.S. News & World Report'' in 2008 and 2009 for being among the top-performing high schools in terms of college readiness, and continues to be highly rated. Each year there are many

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the class rank, highest-performing student of a graduation, graduating class of an academic institution in the United States. The valedictorian is generally determined by an academic institution's grade poin ...

s, most of whom go on to top universities. Over time, the school has faced criticism that its AP and honors programs excluded students of color, leading to the 2017 implementation of "Honors for All," in which all students are placed in honors level language arts and social studies courses. During the 2006–2007 school year Garfield offered more than 120 different classes across nine departments, including an extensive selection of advanced classes. Garfield students can take classes from local colleges through a program called

Running Start Running Start is a dual credit enrollment program in Washington, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Montana and Illinois which allows high school juniors and seniors to attend college courses numbered 100 or above, while completing high school. It is simi ...

. Some students attend on-campus courses at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

Testing controversy

In January 2013, the entire teaching body of Garfield High School refused to administer the standardized Measures of Academic Progress, or MAP, which is administered system-wide, three times per year. The teachers called the tests useless and a waste of instructional time. After their protest became public, teachers at local schools nearby such as Ballard High School and Chief Sealth International High School joined the movement. The

American Federation of Teachers The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is the second largest teacher's labor union in America (the largest being the National Education Association). The union was founded in Chicago. John Dewey and Margaret Haley were founders. About 60 pe ...

has endorsed the school's boycott of the tests.

Athletics

Seattle - Garfield High School soccer practice 01A

Garfield athletics have been strong historically. Athletic successes for the 1950s included four city football championships, two tennis titles, two baseball championships, and a state AA tournament trophy in basketball. The boys basketball team has won the most Washington state championships in state history. Garfield basketball teams have won many regional and state titles. The boys basketball team has won the state championship 16 times and was the runner-up eight times since 1949. The team has notable alumni, including Brandon Roy (GHS c/o 2002), Tony Wroten (GHS c/o 2011), and

alumnus Will Conroy. The girls team boasts alumna

Joyce Walker Joyce Walker (born July 1, 1962) is an American women's basketball player who is most renowned for being the third woman to join the Harlem Globetrotters, following fellow LSU All American, Jackie White. Walker was a basketball star at Garfiel ...

(GHS c/o 1980), who is best known as the third woman to join the Harlem Globetrotters. Both the girls and boys teams were state champions in 1980, 1987, 2020 and 2023. The girls team also won state championships in 2005, 2022 and 2024. The win in 2024 was the fourth consecutive state championship for the girls (as no champion was crowned during the 2021 pandemic year). In 2001, the boys swimming and diving team won the state championship. In 2007, the girls swimming and diving team won the state championship. Garfield won state titles in boys and girls track in 1987 and 2017. The boys cross country team won the Metro League championship in 2016. The

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

team made national headlines when they knelt during the U.S. national anthem to protest an allegedly racist verse continued within and

police brutality in the United States Police brutality is the use of excessive or unwarranted force by law enforcement, resulting in physical or psychological harm to a person. It includes beatings, killing, intimidation tactics, racist abuse, and/or torture. Police brutality, rac ...

. Their protest continued for the entirety of the 2016 season. Players on the team stated that they had received death threats and had their car's tires slashed due to the protests. The fastpitch softball team in 2019 swept the postseason, winning the Metro League championship, Sea-King District championship, and WIAA 3A State Championship. The team defeated Yelm 10–6 to become the first Seattle school to take the state title.

Programs, clubs, and activities

Drama

In 2005, Garfield's performance of ''

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

'' won the Outstanding Program and Poster Design award and Special Honors in Educational Impact and Student Achievement from the

5th Avenue Theatre The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in the Skinner Building, in the downtown core of Seattle, Washington, United States. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building ...

. Subsequent musicals have been unable to enter the 5th Avenue Awards due to scheduling. One of the main draws of Garfield's drama program is its large student-led Drama Club, an important element that is missing from many other local area schools. The Garfield Drama Club produces collections of short one-act plays, all of which are directed and produced by current students. The department also performs three teacher-directed shows per year: an Autumn Play, a Children's Show for local elementary schools, and a Spring Musical. A notable element of Garfield's drama program is that student leadership is present in all areas of theater. Student stage managers often help the director lead the production, while students run the costuming, hair and makeup, lighting, sound and set design programs. Musical direction is run by Garfield's choir teacher, who is sometimes assisted by a student assistant musical director.

Newspaper

''The Messenger'' is Garfield's monthly student-run newspaper. ''The Messenger'' has earned awards from the Journalism Education Association and the

National Scholastic Press Association The National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1921 for high school and secondary school publications in the United States. The association is membership-based and annually hosts high school journalism con ...

, placing in Best of Show in the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Conventions and winning its most prestigious honor, the Pacemaker Award, in 1997 and 2006. A column from the paper was reprinted by ''All About Jazz'' in 2004. In 2006 and 2007, staff reporters won the NSPA's Brasler Prize.

Robotics

Garfield has two ''FIRST'' Tech Challenge robotics teams: team 4042, Nonstandard Deviation and team 12788, Ultraviolet. Team 4042 was founded in 2009, and received the Rockwell Collins Innovate award at the 2018 West-Super Regional Championship and Washington State Championship, ultimately attending the Houston

FIRST Championship The FIRST Championship is a four-day robotics championship held annually in April at which FIRST student robotics teams compete. For several years, the event was held at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, but moved to the Edward Jones Dome ...

in April 2018.

Policy debate

Garfield is one of two schools in

with an active

policy debate Policy debate is an American form of debate competition in which teams of two usually advocate for and against a resolution that typically calls for policy change by the United States federal government. It is also referred to as cross-examinat ...

program. One of Garfield's teams beat Ingraham in the finals of the 2019 season's culminating tournament to become state champions.

Music

Seattle - Garfield High School Quincy Jones Performance Center 01A

The music program at Garfield High School has won numerous awards. Several notable musicians attended the school, including

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

Lil Tracy Jazz Ishmael Butler (born October 3, 1995), professionally known as Lil Tracy, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Butler was also known under the name Yung Bruh during the beginning of his career. Tracy is best known for his collabor ...

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

Macklemore Benjamin Hammond Haggerty (born June 19, 1983), better known by his stage name Macklemore ( ; formerly Professor Macklemore), is an American rapper. A native of Seattle, Washington, he started his career in 2000 as an independent artist rele ...

, and

Ernestine Anderson Ernestine Anderson (November 11, 1928 – March 10, 2016) was an American jazz and blues singer. In a career spanning more than six decades, she recorded over 30 albums. She was nominated four times for a Grammy Award. She sang at Carnegie Hall, ...

Vocal department

The choirs at Garfield include a Treble Choir, Concert Choir and a Vocal Jazz group. In 2009, the vocal jazz ensemble received a special commendation for its performance at Lionel Hampton. In 2024, they took home a trophy, winning the Sweepstakes competition.

Orchestra

The orchestra program includes a

symphony orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

, a concert orchestra, and a chamber music program. Every year, many students from the orchestra play in the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestras, often in principal positions. Garfield students also play in the Seattle Conservatory of Music Starling Scholar Chamber Orchestra, and many community ensembles. Garfield orchestra members have had their original

composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography * Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include ...

s debuted by the

Seattle Symphony The Seattle Symphony is an American orchestra based in Seattle, Washington. Since 1998, the orchestra is resident at Benaroya Hall. The orchestra also serves as the accompanying orchestra for the Seattle Opera. History Beginnings The orchest ...

and SYSO. In 1995, Garfield guest conductor

Gerard Schwarz Gerard Schwarz (born August 19, 1947), also known as Gerry Schwarz or Jerry Schwarz, is an American symphony conductor and trumpeter. As of 2019, Schwarz serves as the Artistic and Music Director of Palm Beach Symphony and the Director of Orc ...

, music director of the

, said, "I don’t recall hearing a high school orchestra perform anywhere in this country on such a high level." Garfield has won numerous first-place awards in festivals around the world, including the Best Orchestra for Downbeat Magazine in both 1999 and 2007, and the National Orchestra Cup in 2011. The Garfield Symphony Orchestra has also toured and performed in Japan, Europe, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

and

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and Philanthropy, philanthropist whose donations assis ...

in New York.

Jazz Band

Garfield's

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

program has won state, national and international awards and accolades in big band, combo and individual categories. Jazz Ensemble I has toured Europe numerous times, visiting the Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Italy, and playing at venues including the

Montreux Montreux (, ; ; ) is a Municipalities of Switzerland, Swiss municipality and List of towns in Switzerland, town on the shoreline of Lake Geneva at the foot of the Swiss Alps, Alps. It belongs to the Riviera-Pays-d'Enhaut (district), Riviera-Pays ...

and

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

Jazz Festivals. It has also attended the International Association of Jazz Educators' conference, as well as the

Essentially Ellington Competition The Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival is an annual high school jazz festival and competition that takes place every May at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City. The festival is aimed at encouraging young musician ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. It is the only band to win the first-place trophy in consecutive years (2003–04 and 2009–10) and the only band to have been invited to Essentially Ellington for ten consecutive years. Overall showings at Essentially Ellington have included 1999 (honorable mention), 2000 (honorable mention), 2002 (2nd place), 2003 (1st place), 2004 (1st place), 2006 (3rd place), 2008 (2nd place), 2009 (1st place), 2010 (1st place). The band was a finalist 2013–16, 2019–20, and 2022–24. Its consistent placement in national competitions and long history of national recognition indicate its status as one of the best high school jazz bands in the country. Among the many other awards are seven sweepstakes wins since 2000 at the Clark College Jazz Festival in

Vancouver, Washington Vancouver ( ) is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, located in Clark County, Washington, Clark County. Founded in 1825 and incorporated in 1857, Vancouver had a population of 190, ...

, three sweepstakes wins (including two by Jazz Band II) at the Bellevue High School jazz festival in

Bellevue, Washington Bellevue ( ) is a city in the Eastside (King County, Washington), Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, located across Lake Washington from Seattle. It is the third-largest city in the Seattle metropolitan area, and the f ...

, six sweepstakes awards at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in

Moscow, Idaho Moscow ( ) is a city and the county seat of Latah County, Idaho. Located in the North Central Idaho, North Central region of the state along the border with Washington (state), Washington, it had a population of 25,435 at the 2020 United States ...

, and others wins at the

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

and

Mount Hood Mount Hood, also known as Wy'east, is an active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range and is a member of the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It was formed by a subduction zone on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast and rests in the Pacific N ...

jazz festivals.

School Shooting

A 17-year-old student was shot and killed in front of the school on June 6, 2024, prompting increased security measures.

Notable alumni

, jazz and blues singer * Debbie Armstrong, alpine ski racer and Olympic gold medalist * David Baker, biochemist and 2024

Nobel Prize in Chemistry The Nobel Prize in Chemistry () is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outst ...

laureate * Fred Bassetti, architect *

Jack Benaroya Jack A. Benaroya (July 11, 1921 – May 11, 2012) was a pioneering real estate developer who built what became the Northwest’s largest privately-held commercial real-estate empire which he sold in 1984 for $315 million. After selling his compa ...

, real-estate mogul and philanthropist * Terrell Brown Jr., basketball player for the

Greensboro Swarm The Greensboro Swarm are an American basketball team of the NBA G League based in Greensboro, North Carolina, and are affiliated with the Charlotte Hornets. The Swarm play their home games at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex. The team became the ...

Ishmael Butler Ishmael Reginald Butler (born July 3, 1969) is an American rapper, record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his work with such groups as Digable Planets in the 1990s and Shabazz Palaces in the 2010s. Early life Butler was born in 196 ...

, former College Basketball Player ( UMASS) and Grammy award-winning musician with

Digable Planets Digable Planets () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987. The trio is composed of rappers Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler, Mariana "Ladybug Mecca" Vieira, and Craig "Doodlebug" Irving. The group is notable for their contributions to the subgen ...

and

Shabazz Palaces Shabazz Palaces is an American hip hop group from Seattle led by Ishmael Butler a.k.a. Palaceer Lazaro (formerly Butterfly of jazz rap group Digable Planets). Much of Butler's work as Shabazz Palaces has been made in collaboration with multi ...

Linda Lee Cadwell Linda Claire Emery Lee Cadwell (née Emery; born March 21, 1945) is a retired American teacher and writer, the widow of martial artist and actor Bruce Lee (19401973), and the mother of actor Brandon Lee (19651993) and actress Shannon Lee (born 19 ...

, author and widow of martial arts master and actor

Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...

* Irwin Caplan, creator of the cartoon ''Famous Last Words'' * Deandre Coleman,

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

player for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

* Will Conroy, NBA and NBADL player * Peter DePoe, drummer, Redbone * Michael B. Druxman, screenwriter, playwright, biographer, film director *

Emma Dumont Nick Dumont (born November 15, 1994), known professionally as Emma Dumont, is an American actor, model, and dancer. They are known for their roles as Melanie Segal in the ABC Family series '' Bunheads'', Emma Karn in the NBC series '' Aquarius'', ...

, actress *

Tari Eason Tari Jordan Eason ( ; born May 10, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Cincinnati Bearcats and the LSU Tigers. Eason was ...

, NBA player * Gisele Fox, high fashion model * Frank E. Garretson, Brigadier general, U.S. Marine Corps *

Bruce Harrell Bruce Allen Harrell (born October 10, 1958) is an American politician and attorney serving as the 57th and current Mayor of Seattle, mayor of Seattle, Washington (state), Washington. He was a member of the Seattle City Council from 2008 to 2020. ...

, mayor of Seattle * Tre'Shaun Harrison, NFL wide receiver for the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

* Jeff Heath, former

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player (

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) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

, Washington Senators,

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

Boston Braves The Boston Braves were a Major League Baseball club that originated in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, and played from 1871 to 1952. Afterwards they moved to History of the Atlanta Braves#Milwaukee, Milwaukee (and became the Milwaukee Braves). ...

) * Richard Hedreen, hotelier *

, rock musician (attended but did not graduate) *

Steven Hill Steven Hill (born Solomon Krakovsky; ; February 24, 1922 – August 23, 2016) was an American actor. He is best known for his television roles as district attorney Adam Schiff (Law & Order), Adam Schiff on the NBC television drama series ''Law & ...

, actor (attended as Solomon "Sol" Krakovsky) *

Bill Hosokawa William Kunpei Hosokawa (, January 30, 1915 – November 9, 2007) was an American writer and journalist. Of Japanese descent, while internment of Japanese Americans, interned at the Heart Mountain Relocation Center, he was the editor of the ...

, author and journalist * B. J. Johnson, swimmer * Lyndell Jones, former

cornerback *

, music producer * Shirley Kaufman, poet * Aaron Kovar, professional footballer for the

Los Angeles FC Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Los Angeles. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. It was establi ...

* Aki Kurose, activist; completed high school in Minidoka Internment Camp *

Leah LaBelle Leah LaBelle Vladowski (September 8, 1986 – January 31, 2018) was an American singer. She rose to prominence in 2004 as a contestant on the third season of ''American Idol'', placing twelfth in the season finals. In 2007, LaBelle began reco ...

, singer * Dave Lewis, rock musician *

Peter Scott Lewis Peter Scott Lewis (born August 31, 1953 in San Rafael, California) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. Career Lewis's works have been commissioned and/or performed by the Rotterdam Philharmonic; Princeton Symphony Orchestra; ...

, composer * Miko Lim, fashion photographer *

(Ben Haggerty), Seattle hip hop artist * Mary McCarthy, novelist and critic *

Ari Melber Ari Naftali Melber (born March 31, 1980) is an American attorney and Emmy-winning journalist who is the Chief Legal Correspondent for MSNBC and host of '' The Beat with Ari Melber.'' Early life and education Melber is Jewish, the son of an Isra ...

, journalist, chief legal correspondent for

MSNBC MSNBC is an American cable news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Launched on July 15, 1996, and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, the channel primarily broadcasts r ...

William K. Nakamura William Kenzo Nakamura (, January 21, 1922 – July 4, 1944) was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in World War II.US Army Center of Military ...

, World War II

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipient * Billy North, former

player (

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

) * Jaylen Nowell, NBA Player * Frank Okada, painter * Kassa Overall, jazz and hip-hop artist * Marjorie Pitter King, first African-American woman to serve in the

Washington State Legislature The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the State of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 representatives, and the upper Washington State Senate, w ...

* Robert Prince, planner of successful

Raid at Cabanatuan The Raid at Cabanatuan (), also known as the Great Raid (), was a rescue of Allies of World War II, Allied prisoners of war (POWs) and civilians from a Japanese camp near Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija, Philippines. On January 30, 1945, during ...

that freed 500+ WWII prisoners * Henry Prusoff (1912–1943), tennis player * Irvine Robbins, co-founder of the

Baskin-Robbins Baskin-Robbins, Inc. is an American multinational chain of ice cream and cake specialty store, specialty shops owned by Inspire Brands. Baskin-Robbins was formed in 1945 by Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins in Glendale, California.Brandon Roy, former NBA Rookie of the Year and All-Star for the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

and

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

* Omari Salisbury, journalist, videographer, and founder of Converge Media *

Yasser Seirawan Yasser Seirawan (; born March 24, 1960) is a Syrian-born American chess grandmaster and four-time United States Chess Championship, United States champion. He won the World Junior Chess Championship in 1979. Seirawan is also a published chess au ...

, chess grandmaster *

Lynn Shelton Lynn Shelton (August 27, 1965 – May 15, 2020) was an American filmmaker, known for writing, directing, and producing such films as '' Humpday'' and '' Your Sister's Sister''. She was associated with the mumblecore genre. Early life Shelton was ...

, film director and writer * Roger Shimomura,

sansei is a Japanese and North American English term used in parts of the world (mainly in South America and North America) to refer to the children of children born to ethnically Japanese emigrants (''Issei'') in a new country of residence, outside o ...

artist *

Tre Simmons Chester Simmons III (born July 24, 1982), better known as Tre Simmons, is an American former professional basketball player and current coach. He played college basketball for Odessa, Green River CC and Washington before playing professionally i ...

, professional basketball player and coach * Doug Smart, college basketball player * Isaiah Stanback, NFL player * Jaylin Stewart, college basketball player *

, American rapper, singer, and songwriter *

, third woman to join the

Harlem Globetrotters The Harlem Globetrotters is an American Exhibition game, exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, entertainment, and comedy in their style of play. Over the years, they have played more than 26,000 exhibition games in 124 ...

Lindy West Lindy West (born March 9, 1982) is an American writer, comedian, and activist. She is the author of the essay collections '' Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman'' and ''The Witches Are Coming'' and a contributing opinion writer for ''The New York Ti ...

, feminist and journalist *

Eric Wilkins Eric Lamoine Wilkins (December 9, 1956 – November 17, 2024) was a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for one season. He pitched for the Cleveland Indians for 16 games during the 1979 Cleveland Indians season. Wilkins attended ...

, former professional player,

* Tony Wroten, NBA player *

Minoru Yamasaki was an American architect, best known for designing the original World Trade Center in New York City and several other large-scale projects. Yamasaki was one of the most prominent architects of the 20th century. He and fellow architect Edward ...

, architect of the former

World Trade Center World Trade Centers are the hundreds of sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may also refer to: Buildings * World Trade Center (1973–2001), a building complex that was destroyed during the September 11 at ...

References

External links

Garfield High School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garfield High School 1920 establishments in Washington (state) Buildings and structures in Central District, Seattle Educational institutions established in 1920 High schools in Seattle Landmarks in Seattle Magnet schools in Washington (state) Public high schools in Washington (state) Seattle Public Schools