Howard W. Blake High School is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichk ...

magnet A magnet is a material or object that produces a magnetic field. This magnetic field is invisible but is responsible for the most notable property of a magnet: a force that pulls on other ferromagnetic materials, such as iron, steel, nicke ...

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

, with an emphasis on the arts, in Tampa,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, United States. It is operated by the

School District of Hillsborough County Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) is a school district that runs the public school system of Hillsborough County in west central Florida and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida. It is frequently referred to as the School District of Hillsb ...

. Originally opened in 1956 as a school for African-Americans, it was integrated as a junior high school after the end of

segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of humans ...

. The current building opened in 1997, when Blake again became a high school.

History

Don Thompson Vocational High School opened as a segregated school for African-Americans in 1956. It was soon renamed Howard W. Blake Comprehensive High School in honor of Howard Wesley Blake, an African-American educator and educational activist from Tampa. The original Blake High School closed after the 1970–71 school year as

Hillsborough County Public Schools Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) is a school district that runs the public school system of Hillsborough County in west central Florida and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida. It is frequently referred to as the School District of Hillsb ...

desegregated Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups, usually referring to races. Desegregation is typically measured by the index of dissimilarity, allowing researchers to determine whether desegregation efforts are having impact o ...

. It reopened in the following year as Blake 7th Grade Center, an integrated school that only taught one grade level of students. In the early 1990s, the school housed students from 7th through 9th grade and was renamed Blake Junior High School, a

middle school 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. ...

. This school closed in 1996, and the old building was demolished soon thereafter.

Magnet school

In the fall of 1997, the Blake name was transferred to Blake High School, a new high school housed in a new building opened as a

magnet school In the U.S. education system, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. "Magnet" refers to how the schools draw students from across the normal boundaries defined by authorities (usually school boards) as school ...

for the visual, communication and performing arts. The 2007–2008 school year marked Blake's 10th anniversary as a magnet school. Part of the celebration was organised by the school's Magnet Arts Coordinator. Her event for the anniversary featured Blake alumni from the previous ten years, and included gallery pieces and performances by artists such as Ari Richter and Chicago's star of ''Wicked'', Dan'yelle Williamson. The school performed the play ''

Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind ''Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind: 30 Plays in 60 Minutes'' (Too Much Light or TML) was the longest running show in the history of theater in Chicago and was the only open-run Off-Off-Broadway show in New York. The show was originally perfor ...

'' and the choir and symphony orchestra performed the Requiem by Mozart.

Academic standards

Blake Accelerated Curriculum Program'is an online high school magnet program in the school district of Hillsborough County. It is one of seven franchises of

Florida Virtual School Florida Virtual School (FLVS) was founded in 1997 as the first statewide Internet-based public high school in the United States. In 2000, FLVS was established as an independent educational entity by the Florida Legislature. Recognized as its own ...

. Students only report to campus for FCAT testing, and optional extracurricular activities. Students can customize their education to be accelerated or to just accommodate their needs. Some students accelerate their high school career and graduate 1–2 years early.

Graduation rate

In 2012 Blake's graduation rate was 80% as compared to a statewide rate of 74.5% and a Hillsborough County rate of 72.6%.

Florida Department of Education grade

* 2014 - B * 2013 - B * 2012 - B * 2011 - B * 2010 - A * 2009 - D * 2008 - D * 2007 - D * 2006 - C * 2005 - C * 2004 - D * 2003 - C * 2002 - C * 2001 - C * 2000 - C * 1999 - C

Magnet programs

Theater

The theater program provides for the study of drama, musical theater and technical theater/design. The theater department is part of the

International Thespian Society The International Thespian Society (ITS) is an honor society for high school and middle school theatre students. It is a division of the Educational Theatre Association. Thespian troupes serve students in grades 9–12; Junior Thespian troupes s ...

and competes annually at Florida State Thespians, where they have won Superior ratings in virtually all categories. The theater department produces seven shows a year: two plays, two musicals, a musical concert, a one-act play, and a Senior Showcase. Many students of the theater department have continued into university or community theater. Several have appeared professionally on stage or screen, such as: *Danyelle Williamson, actress * Shannon Magrane, singer * Taylor Trensch, actor *

Owen Teague Owen William Teague (born December 8, 1998) is an American actor. He was born and raised in Tampa, Florida, and is known for his roles in ''The Stand'', '' Mrs. Fletcher'', '' Inherit the Viper'', '' To Leslie'', '' Montana Story'', '' Gone in t ...

, actor During their high school careers, Blake students have worked as actors, directors, playwrights, stage managers, designers, and technicians. Some have worked at local theaters in the Tampa Bay area, including the American Stage Theatre, FreeFall Theatre, Stageworks, and Jobsite.

Music

Blake High School offers a music curriculum consisting of

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

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: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

, harp,

jazz ensemble A jazz band (jazz ensemble or jazz combo) is a musical ensemble that plays jazz music. Jazz bands vary in the quantity of its members and the style of jazz that they play but it is common to find a jazz band made up of a rhythm section and a ho ...

s and

marching band A marching band is a group of musical instrument, instrumental musicians who perform while marching, often for entertainment or competition. Instrumentation typically includes brass instrument, brass, woodwind instrument, woodwind, and percus ...

in addition to theory and history courses. The faculty of the music department comprises eight persons. There are opportunities for music students to perform in the community in All-State, All-County, Music Performance Assessment, and Solo and Ensemble festivals.

Dance department

The department is headed by two teachers who teach

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

and modern dance, including master classes. The department is host to guest faculties, and hosts classes from Dance Repertory, Ballet, Modern (Jazz, Pilate) Master Classes, Choreography I & II, Dance Honors and Senior Projects. With these the department runs five shows a year, two faculty shows, two student choreographies and one Senior Showcase. Some students participate in the Youth American International Grand Prix.

Creative writing

As in all the other majors at Blake High School, creative writing majors are selected by the department teachers through an audition process. Students wishing to be in the program prepare a

portfolio Portfolio may refer to: Objects * Portfolio (briefcase), a type of briefcase Collections * Portfolio (finance), a collection of assets held by an institution or a private individual * Artist's portfolio, a sample of an artist's work or a c ...

of their writing, and submit an application to be seen. At the end of their four years the students will be able to publish a chapbook of their best work.

Journalism

The journalism program is working on having all their material posted via their new website. The program has achieved awards at school competitions such as the Florida Scholastic Press Association. Students are selected to be in the program based on their portfolios containing previous editorials, short stories, articles, and any other writing. There is then an interview with the advisor for the program.

Visual arts

Visual arts students are selected for enrollment through an audition process that considers all their works of art, sketchbooks, potential, academic achievement, and attendance. Visual arts students take all level-one courses in drawing, painting, printmaking, jewelry, photography, sculpture and ceramics. Students can then decide to take level 2 and 3 classes in any given fine art. By the end of their junior year, they may audition to become an AP studio / portfolio student and will concentrate in one media. Master certification is available for students who are willing to work extra hard to have ten (instead of the usual eight) visual art credits by the time they graduate, including AP Art History. Students attend professional artist lectures, gallery openings, and submit work to contests.

Television and film

TV/Film students are selected by an audition process. The award-winning TV and Film Production program prepares students for careers in the broadcast and film industries. From scriptwriting to video editing, students will develop skills necessary to become a broadcast journalist and/ or filmmaker. Whether it's participating in student short film contests, covering live events as a reporter, or hosting a radio podcast, the choices are endless as a crew member of the WBUZ team.

Athletics

Men's

Men's sports include

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

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 t ...

, cross country, football,

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 ...

, soccer,

track and field 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 eve ...

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 ...

, and

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 ...

Women's

Women's sports include

flag football Flag football is a variant of American football where, instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier ("deflagging") to end a down. The sport has a strong amateur following ...

, soccer, cross country,

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 ...

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 Sum ...

, and

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 ...

Alumni

* Ryan Davis, former NFL player * Earl Edwards, former NFL player * Eddie McMillan, former NFL player *

Leon McQuay Leon McQuay (March 19, 1950 – November 29, 1995) was an American football running back. College career McQuay played college football with the now disbanded University of Tampa Spartans (from 1968 to 1970.) He was the second black athlete t ...

, former NFL player * Isaiah Rodgers, NFL player

References

External links

School website

hwbsota.org - Blake High School Friends of the Arts website

BlakeTheater.com - Department of Theater website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake High School Educational institutions established in 1956 1956 establishments in Florida Educational institutions established in 1997 1997 establishments in Florida Schools of the performing arts in the United States High schools in Tampa, Florida Public high schools in Florida Magnet schools in Florida