Paul Robeson High School was 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 sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

four-year

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

located in the Englewood neighborhood on the south side of

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, United States. Opened in September 1977, Robeson was a part of the

Chicago Public Schools Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the List of the largest school districts in the United States by enrollment, fourth-large ...

district. The school was named in honor of African-American entertainer and athlete

Paul Robeson Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, actor, professional American football, football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for h ...

. After years of declining enrollment and low academic performance, the school closed after the 2017–2018 school year and was later demolished in September 2018.

History

Prior to becoming Robeson High School, the school was known as Parker High School from 1901 to 1977. Parker was located at 68th and Stewart Avenue (6800 S. Stewart Avenue) about 100 yards away from the present Robeson location in the Englewood area of Chicago. At the time, the school was located on the same campus with Wilson Junior college and Chicago Teachers College. The new school building was constructed on the former Normal Avenue Park site, named for Robeson, opened on September 6, 1977. During the 2003–2004 and 2004–2005 school years, Robeson served as a receiving school for students affected by the closings of Englewood High School (which was located about 2.5 miles away) and Calumet High School, which led to Robeson being overcrowded. By the 2014–2015 school year, CPS considered the campus for consolidation due to its low–enrollment. Due to low enrollment and poor academic performance, Chicago Public Schools decided to close Robeson along with three other neighborhood high schools:

Harper Harper may refer to: Names * Harper (name), a surname and given name and place names, for example: Harper Islands, Nunavut. Places ;in Canada * Harper Islands, Nunavut * Harper, Prince Edward Island ;In the United States *Harper, former name ...

, Hope College Prep and Team Englewood. Robeson held its last graduation on June 12, 2018 and closed. The building was later demolished in September 2018. Englewood STEM High School was built on the site, opening on September 3, 2019.

Athletics

Robeson competed in the

Chicago Public League The Chicago Public High School Athletic Association, commonly known as the Chicago Public League (CPL), is the interscholastic competition arm of the Chicago Public Schools. The governance of the CPL is set through the Department of Sports Admi ...

(CPL) and was a member of the

Illinois High School Association The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is an association that regulates competition of interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level for the state of Illinois. It is a charter member of the National F ...

(IHSA). The school teams were stylized as the Raiders for boys' teams and the Lady Raiders for girls' teams. The school's boys' tennis team won IHSA state championships in 1937–1938 and 1938–1939 as Parker High School. Since 1974, when the IHSA began sponsoring a state championship tournament in football, Robeson was the only CPL team to play in a state championship football game, finishing second in 5A in 1982–1983, until Phillips won the 4A title in 2015–2016.

Notable alumni

Carol Moseley Braun Carol Elizabeth Moseley Braun, also sometimes Moseley-Braun (born August 16, 1947), is an American diplomat, politician, and lawyer who represented Illinois in the United States Senate from 1993 to 1999. Moseley Braun was the first African-Ameri ...

, (Parker; 1964) – former

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 ...

(1993–99) and

United States Ambassador to New Zealand The United States has maintained a consular presence in New Zealand since 1838. The first consul was James Reddy Clendon. Born in England, Clendon was a ship owner and merchant who bought land and settled in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand. In ...

(1999–2001). Braun was the first African–American woman elected to the U.S. Senate. *

Eugenia S. Chapman Eugenia Sheldon Chapman (January 10, 1923 – September 30, 1994) was an American educator and politician who served as a Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives from 1965 to 1983. During her final term, she became the fi ...

, (Parker; 1939) – educator and Illinois state representative *

Lil Durk Durk Derrick Banks (born October 19, 1992), known professionally as Lil Durk, is an American rapper. Regarded as a pioneering artist in the Chicago-based hip-hop subgenre drill music, he is often considered the subgenre's most commercially suc ...

(Durk Banks), (attended) – rapper * Bo Ellis, (Parker; 1973) – former

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

player (1977–80) who spent his entire career with the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

. He was a member of the 1977 NCAA Division I basketball champion Marquette Warriors. * Tom Hawkins, (Parker; 1955) – former NBA player (1959–69) and first round draft pick. *

Holle Thee Maxwell Holle Thee Maxwell (born Holly Maxwell; October 17, 1945) is an American singer and songwriter. Maxwell has performed with soul and blues artist Ike Turner and jazz organist Jimmy Smith. Maxwell wrote a song for Bobby Bland's 1978 album, ''Come ...

, (Parker; 1964) – singer-songwriter with a six decade career and a command of a wide range of genres including

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

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 ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

, R&B,

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

, and

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

. *

Jannero Pargo Jannero Pargo (born October 22, 1979) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who serves as an assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Neosho Co ...

, (1998) – professional basketball player. *

Jeremy Pargo Jeremy Raymon Pargo (born March 17, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for Grindavík of the Úrvalsdeild karla. He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs. In 2011 he reached the EuroLeague Final with Maccabi Tel Avi ...

, (2005) – professional basketball player. * Mickey Pruitt, (1983) – former

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 ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

(1988–92). Pruitt was a member of the

Super Bowl XXVII Super Bowl XXVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...

champion

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

. He is currently in charge of football for the Chicago Public League. *

Young Chop Tyree Lamar Pittman (born November 14, 1993), better known by his stage name Young Chop, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He is best known for producing drill hip hop music, and for producing many of Chief Keef's early hit ...

(Tyree Pittman), (attended) – record producer and rapper. *

Mavis Staples Mavis Staples (born July 10, 1939) is an American rhythm and blues and gospel music, gospel singer and civil rights activism, activist. She rose to fame as a member of her family's band The Staple Singers, of which she is the last surviving memb ...

, (Parker; 1957) –

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

and

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

singer. *

Jermaine Stewart William Jermaine Stewart (September 7, 1957 – March 17, 1997) was an American R&B singer, best known for his 1986 hit single " We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off", which peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It also peaked w ...

, (Parker; 1975) –

and

singer, best known for " We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off". *

Famous Dex Dexter Tiewon Gore Jr. (born September 6, 1993), better known by his stage name Famous Dex, is an American rapper. His debut studio album, '' Dex Meets Dexter'' (2018) peaked at number 12 on the ''Billboard'' 200 while its singles, " Pick It Up ...

(Dexter Gore Jr.), (attended) – rapper.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robeson, Paul High School Public high schools in Chicago Educational institutions established in 1977 School buildings completed in 1977 Defunct high schools in Illinois 2018 disestablishments in Illinois Educational institutions disestablished in 2018 Demolished buildings and structures in Chicago Buildings and structures demolished in 2018