The English High School
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The English High School 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 ...
,
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 ...
, United States, is one of the first public high schools in America, founded in 1821. Originally called The English Classical School, it was renamed The English High School upon its first relocation in 1824. The current building is located in the
Jamaica Plain Jamaica Plain is a neighborhood of in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Settled by Puritans seeking farmland to the south, it was originally part of the former Town of Roxbury, now also a part of the City of Boston. The commun ...
neighborhood of Boston. The school is a part of
Boston Public Schools Boston Public Schools (BPS) is a school district serving the city of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest public school district in the state of Massachusetts. Leadership The district is led by a Superintendent, hired by the ...
(BPS).


History

Boston English was created at the urging of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanics Association and was modeled after the Royal High School in Edinburgh, Scotland. The School Committee to establish English High School was chaired by Samuel Adams Wells, grandson of former Governor
Samuel Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and ...
. Its first headmaster was
George B. Emerson George Barrell Emerson (September 12, 1797 – March 14, 1881) was an American educator and pioneer of women's education. Biography He was born in Kennebunk, Maine. He graduated from Harvard College in 1817, and soon after took charge of an acad ...
, an early leader in educational reform. English, like
Boston Latin School The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in the British America and the oldest existing school in the United States. Its curriculum f ...
, only admitted boys when established—although a separate high school for girls was established in Boston by Emerson in 1824. Boston English became coeducational in 1972, 151 years after its founding. Boston English has had seven locations. Its first site was on Derne Street at the rear of the Massachusetts State House and is marked by a metal plaque. Its second home was a building (still standing) at the corner of Pinkney and Anderson Streets, which eventually became the
Phillips School The Phillips School was a 19th-century school located in Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts. It is now a private residence. It is on the Black Heritage Trail and its history is included in walking tours by the Boston African American National Hi ...
, a school for then free born and emancipated African-Americans before the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
. From 1844 to 1922, Boston English was adjacent to the Boston Latin School, first near downtown Boston and then in a building (now demolished) on Warren Street in the South End. From 1954 to 1989, Boston English was at 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, across the street from Boston Latin (78 Avenue Louis Pasteur). This site is now part of
Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...
. The motto of the school has been: "The aim of every English High School boy is to become a man of honor and achievement." The current motto of the school is "Honor, Achievement, Service to Mankind".


Curriculum

English High was created originally to educate working-class schoolboys in preparation for business, mechanics, and engineering trades as opposed to "Latin-grammar" schools like Boston Latin that prepared schoolboys for the college, ministry and scholarly pursuits, and private academies that were open only to affluent residents. Its original curriculum consisted of such courses as English, surveying, navigation, geography, logic, and civics as well as a strong emphasis on mathematics. Nowadays, English High has opened up its curriculum to include more liberal arts subjects such as foreign languages and writing as well as performing arts and more college preparatory courses. It has received an experimental "Commonwealth Co-Pilot School" status, geared toward improving the curriculum of urban schools. For a while, the school had an award-winning mock trial team as well. English High School has an English-Language Learners program, which was run for many years by Francisco Ruiz.


AVID

This is one of the few schools that offer AVID. AVID is the acronym for Advancement Via Individual Determination, an American college-readiness system. AVID is designed to increase the number of students who enroll in four-year colleges, focusing on students in the academic middle by raising the expectations of students. Originating at the high school level, the program now serves grades 4–12 (roughly, ages 10–18).


Extracurricular activities


Athletics

Each
Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden and ...
since 1887, English has played
Boston Latin School The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in the British America and the oldest existing school in the United States. Its curriculum f ...
in
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
in the oldest continuing high school rivalry in the United States. It is also the fourth longest U.S. high school rivalry of all time. In the 1993 football season, the football team made history by being the first team in school history to ever qualify for the Massachusetts State Championship. The Bulldogs (or Blue & Blue) defeated the Nantucket Whalers by the score of 16–7 to claim its school's first state championship. The '97 football team was the first team to go undefeated with a 12–0 record and English's second football state championship. Since 2005 the baseball team has started by a winning record of 18–0 and defeating their rivals the Brighton Bengals, and since then the baseball team has never let up and has won 2 city championships. English High also has competitive basketball, softball, volleyball, and track teams. Up until the 1980s, the school had a boys' hockey team, a golf team, and swimming teams for both boys and girls.The 1961-1963 football team went 39 and 0 under coach Bill Stewart.


Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps

This school offers a
JROTC The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC -- commonly pronounced "JAY-rotsee") is a federal program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools and also in some middle schools across the United States and at US military ...
program. The program's mission is to motivate students to become better citizens. The program is led by Col. D. Bennett and Command Sergeant Major Hornbuckle. The students participate in drill competitions, community service projects, academic competitions, and town parades to name a few. Selected cadets also attend a summer leadership camp at Fort Devens, MA in place of school for one week in June where they do activities such as obstacle courses, aquatics, rifle marksmanship, and rappelling off of 30 and 60-foot towers. English High JROTC has many partnerships with civic organizations, most notably the Roslindale Parade Committee, the Columbus Day Parade Committee, the City of Boston Veterans Day Committee and the Dorchester Day Parade Committee and the annual
Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and physical disabilities, providing year-round training and activities to 5 million participants and Unified Sports partners in 1 ...
at White Stadium in Jamaica Plain.


Notable alumni

* Bruce Bolling - first black president of the
Boston City Council The Boston City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is made up of 13 members: 9 district representatives and 4 at-large members. Councillors are elected to two-year terms and there is no ...
*
Benjamin A. Botkin Benjamin Albert Botkin (February 7, 1901 – July 30, 1975) was an American folklorist and scholar. Early life Botkin was born on February 7, 1901, in East Boston, Massachusetts, to Lithuanian Jewish immigrants. He attended the English High Schoo ...
folklorist Folklore studies, less often known as folkloristics, and occasionally tradition studies or folk life studies in the United Kingdom, is the branch of anthropology devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currenc ...
* Robert A. Brooks, 1949, telecommunications pioneer *
Percy Jewett Burrell Percy Jewett Burrell ( – ) was an American author and director of historical and civic pageants. Known for his skills in oratory and elocution, he also taught public speaking and drama, and was known as a "public reciter." A native and lif ...
– dramatist and playwright *
Herb Chambers Herbert G. Chambers (born November 24, 1941) is an American billionaire businessman, owner and president of The Herb Chambers Companies, a group of 60 car dealerships in the greater Boston, Massachusetts area. In 2015, at the age of 74, he wa ...
– automotive dealer *
George W. Coleman George W. Coleman (June 16, 1867 – July 31, 1950) was an American publisher. Early life and education George William Coleman was born, Boston, June 16, 1867. His parents were George and Mary (Carville) Coleman. Coleman graduated from The Englis ...
– publisher *
Allan Crite Allan Rohan Crite (March 20, 1910 – September 6, 2007) was a Boston-based African American artist. He won several honors, such as the 350th Harvard University Anniversary Medal. Biography Crite was born in North Plainfield, New Jersey, o ...
– painter *
William Healey Dall William Healey Dall (August 21, 1845 – March 27, 1927) was an American naturalist, a prominent malacologist, and one of the earliest scientific explorers of interior Alaska. He described many mollusks of the Pacific Northwest of America, and w ...
malacologist Malacology is the branch of invertebrate zoology that deals with the study of the Mollusca (mollusks or molluscs), the second-largest phylum of animals in terms of described species after the arthropods. Mollusks include snails and slugs, clams, ...
and explorer of
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
*
Louis Farrakhan Louis Farrakhan (; born Louis Eugene Walcott, May 11, 1933) is an American religious leader, black supremacist, anti-white and antisemitic conspiracy theorist, and former singer who heads the Nation of Islam (NOI). Prior to joining the NOI, h ...
, minister * Maxwell Finland, physician and infectious diseases expert *
Kahlil Gibran Gibran Khalil Gibran ( ar, جُبْرَان خَلِيل جُبْرَان, , , or , ; January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931), usually referred to in English as Kahlil Gibran (pronounced ), was a Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist ...
– artist *
Frank Bunker Gilbreth Frank Bunker Gilbreth (July 7, 1868 – June 14, 1924) was an American engineer, consultant, and author known as an early advocate of scientific management and a pioneer of time and motion study, and is perhaps best known as the father and ce ...
– time and motion engineer * Bobby Guindon, 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 (
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
) * Paul X. Kelley
Commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...
of
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
, 1983–1987 *
Jordan Knight Jordan Nathaniel Marcel Knight (born May 17, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He is a singer in the boy band New Kids on the Block (NKOTB), who rose to fame in the 1980s and 1990s, using a falsetto style of singing influenced by ...
– singer * Charles W. Lyons
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and president of several universities *
Samuel Pierpont Langley Samuel Pierpont Langley (August 22, 1834 – February 27, 1906) was an American aviation pioneer, astronomer and physicist who Invention, invented the bolometer. He was the third secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and a professor of a ...
director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...
of the
Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
* Bill Meanix – hurdler *
J. P. Morgan John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age. As the head of the banking firm that ultimately became known ...
– financier *
Leonard Nimoy Leonard Simon Nimoy (; March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor, famed for playing Spock in the ''Star Trek'' franchise for almost 50 years. This includes originating Spock in the original ''Star Trek'' series in 1966, then ...
– actor *
Matthew Ridgway General Matthew Bunker Ridgway (March 3, 1895 – July 26, 1993) was a senior officer in the United States Army, who served as Supreme Allied Commander Europe (1952–1953) and the 19th Chief of Staff of the United States Army (1953–1955). Altho ...
– general *
Mickey Roach Michael Richard Roach (May 7, 1895 – April 1, 1977) was a Canadian-born professional ice hockey player who played eight seasons in the National Hockey League for the Toronto St. Pats, Hamilton Tigers and New York Americans. He was born in Glace ...
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
player (
Hamilton Tigers The Hamilton Tigers were a professional ice hockey team based in Hamilton, Ontario. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1920 to 1925. The Tigers were formed by the sale of the Quebec Bulldogs NHL franchise to Hamilton intere ...
) *
Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago School, a mentor to Frank Lloy ...
– architect *
Vito Tamulis Vitautis Casimirus Tamulis (July 11, 1911 – May 5, 1974) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Browns, Philadelphia Phillies and Brooklyn Dodgers from 1934 to 1941. Biog ...
– MLB player (
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
,
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 p ...
,
Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...
,
Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
) *
William H.C. Whiting William Henry Chase Whiting (March 22, 1824 – March 10, 1865) was a United States Army officer who resigned after 16 years of service in the Army Corps of Engineers to serve in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He ...
Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
general * Jerry Colonna – trombonist, actor, comedian, singer and songwriter


Image gallery

File:2010 PhillipsSchool AndersonSt PinckneySt Boston.png, Former building of English High School, Pinckney St., Boston (photo 2010) File:EnglishSchool KingsBoston1881.png, English and Latin Schools, Boston, ca.1881 File:1920 English High School Boston 2589540239.jpg, English High School, 1920 File:English High School - 403002054 - City of Boston Archives.jpg, English High School on Montgomery St., the 1920s (?)


References


Further reading


''Annals of The Massachusetts Charitable Mechanics Association, 1795–1892''. The Massachusetts Charitable Mechanics Association, Boston, MA.

''Semi-centennial Anniversary of the English High School, May 2, 1871''. Robert Cassie Waterston, Editor. Boston: Printed for the English High School Association, 1871

''Annual Report of the School Committee of Boston, Boston, MA, 1820–1821''.


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:English High School Of Boston Educational institutions established in 1821 High schools in Boston Jamaica Plain, Boston Public high schools in Massachusetts 1821 establishments in Massachusetts