Sunset 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 sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

secondary 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., b ...

located in the North

Oak Cliff Oak Cliff is an area of Dallas, Texas, United States that was formerly a separate town in Dallas County; established in 1887 and annexed by Dallas in 1903, Oak Cliff has retained a distinct neighborhood identity as one of Dallas' older establ ...

area of

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, United States. The school enrolls students in

grades Grade most commonly refers to: * Grading in education, a measurement of a student's performance by educational assessment (e.g. A, pass, etc.) * A designation for students, classes and curricula indicating the number of the year a student has reach ...

9- 12 and is a part of the

Dallas Independent School District The Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD or DISD) is a school district based in Dallas, Texas, United States. It operates schools in much of Dallas County, Texas, Dallas County and is the second-largest school district in Texas and t ...

(DISD). The school serves a portion of the Dallas and Cockrell Hill catchments. In 2015, the school was rated " Met Standard" by the

Texas Education Agency The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is the branch of the government of Texas responsible for public education in Texas in the United States.

History

Opened in 1925, Sunset was the second high school in the Oak Cliff area, preceded only by Adamson High School. The origin of the school's name is uncertain; however, it may be due to its location. At the time it opened, Sunset was the westernmost school in the DISD, and the subdivision surrounding the school on the western side of Dallas was called "Sunset Heights". The school opened in 1925 with 1,400 students and 39 teachers as southwest Oak Cliff became increasingly developed. At the time, it was the high school with the largest capacity in DISD; it had the same general architectural plan as

Forest Avenue Forest Avenue (formerly known as Green Street; colloquially known as Forest Ave) is a major street in Portland, Maine, United States. It runs for around ,

North Dallas North Dallas is an area of numerous communities and neighborhoods in Dallas, Texas (United States). The phrase "North Dallas" is also sometimes used to include any suburb or exurb north of Dallas proper within the metropolitan area. The majority ...

and Oak Cliff (now W. H. Adamson) high schools. Its opening relieved Oak Cliff High of an overcrowding problem. The mascot is the

American Bison The American bison (''Bison bison''; : ''bison''), commonly known as the American buffalo, or simply buffalo (not to be confused with Bubalina, true buffalo), is a species of bison that is endemic species, endemic (or native) to North America. ...

; it was chosen since early students had to cross open fields to get to school. In the summer of 2006, Anthony Tovar, a

Mexican American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexico, Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the Unite ...

raised in Dallas who was previously an assistant principal at W. H. Adamson High School and Moises Molina High School, began work as the principal of Sunset. He gained a reputation of being an excellent principal partly due to his hands-on, involved approach in which he actively communicated with students.Part Coach, Part Cheerleader, Sunset High Principal Anthony Tovar Aims to Prove That Inner-City Schools Can Be Winners
" ''

Dallas Observer ''Dallas Observer'' is a free digital and print publication based in Dallas, Texas. The ''Observer'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music, and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue circ ...

''. Thursday May 28, 2009. Retrieved on June 11, 2016. In 2013, he planned to resign due to frustration with DISD central office reforms, but he later rescinded his resignation. That year Tovar had been placed on a "growth plan" (a DISD notice asking the principal to improve his school's metrics or face termination).Haag, Matthew.
Dallas Sunset High School principal Anthony Tovar rescinds his resignation
." ''

The Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation in 2022 of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ' ...

''. April 16, 2013. Retrieved on June 11, 2016. Tovar left DISD in 2013 but stated that he was not forced to resign; in 2015, he returned as an interim assistant principal at Kathlyn Joy Gilliam Collegiate Academy. In 2009, the school had 155 teachers and 2,200 students. On May 28, 2014, Sunset High School was designated a Dallas Historical Landmark by vote of the

Dallas City Council The Dallas City Council serves as the legislative body in the City of Dallas. It consists of 14 members. City council members are chosen by plurality elections in each of fourteen districts. The city operates under a council-manager system of ...

. The City of Dallas Historical Commission and DISD supported the nomination. In April 2015, the

Texas Historical Commission The Texas Historical Commission is an agency dedicated to historic preservation within the U.S. state of Texas. It administers the National Register of Historic Places for sites in Texas. The commission also identifies Recorded Texas Histor ...

named Sunset High School a Texas Historical Landmark. On September 26, 2015, Sunset High School Celebrated the 90th Anniversary of the school and officially unveiled and dedicated its "Texas Historical Landmark" marker and "Dallas Historical Landmark" marker. It also formally dedicated the Sunset Byron Rhome Football Fieldhouse with a huge ceremony at the school attended by some 700 people.

Athletics

Until 2021, Sunset was only one of two high schools in the DISD to win a State Football Championship, having won the now-discontinued "Big City" State Championship in 1950 ( W. H. Adamson having won the other title in 1924, as Oak Cliff High School). The school was also state runner-up in 1942 and 1949. They were state semi-finalists in 1940, 1941 and 1955. David W. Carter High School won the 1988 Class AAAAA title but was later forced to forfeit the win. In 2021,

South Oak Cliff High School South Oak Cliff High School (colloquially referred to as SOC, pronounced "sock") is a public secondary school located in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas, Texas, United States. South Oak Cliff High School enrolls students in grades 9- 12 and is a pa ...

broke the drought by winning the 2021 Class 5A Division II state title. Sunset won the State Basketball Championship in 1944. Sunset won the State Track and Field Championship in 1953,. Future USA Olympic Silver Medalist

Eddie Southern Silas Edward Southern (January 4, 1938 – May 17, 2023) was an American sprinter and hurdler who won a silver medal in the 400 metres hurdles at 1956 Olympics. He won another silver medal in the 4 × 400 m relay at the 1959 Pan American Games. ...

(1956) won four state championships - 120 yard hurdles in 1954 and 1955 and 220 yard (20.7) and 440 yard dash (47.2) in 1955, setting state and national high school records in the latter two. In 1969, Don Randell won both the Shot Put State (67’11.5”) Championship and the mythical National (64’3/4”) Championship at the Golden West Invitational track meet in Sacramento, CA. The Sunset Golf Team won the state championship in 1938, 1943, 1944, 1945 and 1952. Future PGA Touring Pro and Home Pro at the Oak Cliff Country Club, Earl Stewart, Jr. would win the State Golf Championship in 1937, 1938 and 1939. In 1952, Sunset's Jimmy Powell won the individual state championship in golf. Sunset also won two state titles in UIL One Act Play in 1944 and 1947. In 1929, Sanger Brothers Department Store donated the Sanger Trophy to the Dallas Independent School District to be awarded annually to one of the six original DISD High Schools accumulating the most points in athletics. The Sanger Trophy was eventually awarded to Sunset for having won the Trophy more than any other of the Schools. The Sanger Trophy was restored in 2011 and now resides in the Old Red Museum of Dallas Culture and History, representing all six original Dallas High Schools.

Academic performance

In 2006, 53% of the students passed the

TAKS The Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) was the fourth Texas state standardized test previously used in primary education, grade 3-8 and secondary education, grade 9-11 to assess students' attainment of reading (activity), reading, wr ...

math test and 56% passed the science test. In 2008, 57% passed the math test and 62% passed the science test; in 2008, the reading/language arts pass percentage was 82%, and the social studies pass percentage was 91%. In 2005, the school's graduation rate was 38%. In 2013, it was 57%.

Feeder patterns

the school is fed by two middle schools: *W. E. Greiner Exploratory Arts Academy, fed by: **Lida Hooe Elementary School **Rosemont Lower School **Winnetka Elementary School *Raul Quintanilla Sr. Middle School STEAM Academy, fed by: **Anson Jones Elementary School **George Peabody Elementary School **Louise Wolff Kahn Elementary School

Athletics

The Sunset Bisons compete in the following sports: *

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

* Cross Country *

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 ...

Golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

Soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

Softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

* Swimming and Diving *

Tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

Track and Field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

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 Summ ...

Wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

Notable alumni

* Hank Foldberg, (1944), All America football player at West Point, 1946; member of Sunset 1944 State Championship basketball team * Dan Foldberg, (1946), Army officer; All-America football player at West Point, 1950 *

Louise Latham Johnie Louise Latham (September 23, 1922 – February 12, 2018) was an American actress, perhaps best known for her portrayal of Bernice Edgar in Alfred Hitchcock's 1964 film '' Marnie''. Background Latham was born on September 23, 1922, in Hami ...

, (1940), film, television and Broadway actress; "Bonanza"; "Gunsmoke"; Hawaii Five-O"; "Murder, She Wrote"; "Designing Women";

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

's "Marnie"; Sanger Trophy Honoree *

Linda Darnell Linda Darnell (born Monetta Eloyse Darnell; October 16, 1923 – April 10, 1965) was an American actress. Darnell progressed from modelling as a child to acting in theatre and film. At the encouragement of her mother, she made her first film in ...

, film actress; co-star with Tyrone Power; "Forever Amber; "Unfaithfully Yours"; "Letter to Three Wives"; star on "Hollywood Walk of Fame"; Sanger Trophy Honoree * Henry Calvin, (1935), (born Wimberly Goodman), TV actor; played Sergeant Garcia on Disney's TV series "Zorro" * Earl Stewart, Jr., (1938), professional golfer who played on PGA Tour in 1950s and 1960s; head golf coach at SMU in 1970s and 1980s; only golf pro to ever win a major tournament on his home course *

Don January Donald Ray January (November 20, 1929 – May 7, 2023) was an American professional golfer, best known for winning the 1967 PGA Championship. Early life Born in Plainview, Texas, January graduated from Sunset High School in Dallas. He was a ...

, (1947), professional golfer; four-time NCAA champion at North Texas State University; winner of 10 PGA Tour titles and 22 Senior Tour events; winner of 1967 PGA Championship; Sanger Trophy Honoree * Gordon D. Gayle, (1934), Brigadier general in the Marine Corps * Jerry Rhome, (1960), runner-up for 1964

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

at Tulsa; member of

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

; played professionally for Cowboys, Browns, Oilers and Rams; coach of

Super Bowl XXII Super Bowl XXII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins and American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for th ...

champion Washington Redskins; Sanger Trophy Honoree * Billy Lee Brammer, (1947), journalist and novelist * Rudy Jaramillo, (1970), played baseball for University of Texas; former hitting coach for Texas Rangers for 15 years, also for Astros and Cubs; Texas Baseball Hall of Fame; Hispanic Heritage Baseball Hall of Fame at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Texas *

John Cerminaro John Paul Cerminaro, Jr. (born April 7, 1947) is an American horn player who is best known for his principal tenures with two notable American orchestras, the New York Philharmonic and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He was later principal horn of ...

, (1965), principal

horn Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family ...

player of the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic (LA Phil) is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. The orchestra holds a regular concert season from October until June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from ...

, and

Seattle Symphony Orchestra 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 ...

Terry Southern Terry Southern (May 1, 1924 – October 29, 1995) was an American novelist, essayist, screenwriter, and university lecturer, noted for his distinctive satirical style. Part of the Paris postwar literary movement in the 1950s and a companion to ...

, (1941), author of ''

Candy Candy, alternatively called sweets or lollies, is a Confectionery, confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, also called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, including chocolate, chewing gum ...

'', '' The Magic Christian'', and other novels; was screenwriter on ''

Easy Rider ''Easy Rider'' is a 1969 American road drama film written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Terry Southern. It was produced by Fonda and directed by Hopper. Fonda and Hopper play two bikers who travel through the American Southwest and the S ...

'', ''

Dr. Strangelove ''Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'' (known simply and more commonly as ''Dr. Strangelove'') is a 1964 political satire black comedy film co-written, produced, and directed by Stanley Kubrick. It is loosely ...

'' and other notable movies; contributed to scripts on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

'' in early 1980s; taught writing at

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a non-denominational all-male institutio ...

and

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in '80s and '90s; class of 1942; died in 1995 * Bill Meeks, (1940), music industry and radio station jingles entrepreneur * Frank Slay, Jr., (1947), wrote lyrics tossing "Silhouettes" by the Rays; co-wrote "Tallahassie Lassie" by Freddy Cannon; produced "Incense and Peppermint" by The Strawberry Alarm Clock *

Dick Penner Allen Richard "Dick" Penner (born 1936 in Chicago, Illinois – 24 September 2024) is an American retired professor of English, who, while in college in 1955, co-composed, with Wade Lee Moore, "Ooby Dooby", which was recorded and released by Wade M ...

, (1955), retired English professor and co-composer of "Ooby Dooby",

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...

's rockabilly classic * John M. Stemmons, (1927), donated right-of-way for Stemmons Freeway; President, Dallas Citizens Council, Greater Dallas Council of Churches, Dallas County United Fund, Dallas Better Business Bureau, Dallas Real Estate Board and Dallas County Flood Control District; Honorary Consul to Sweden; Linz Award; Sanger Trophy Honoree *

Betty Jameson Elizabeth May Jameson (May 9, 1919 – February 7, 2009) was an American professional golfer. She was one of the thirteen founders of the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) in 1950. She won three major championships and a total of thi ...

, (1939), professional golfer, one of founders of Ladies Professional Golf Tour (LPGA); won 13 LPGA titles, including three majors; Sanger Trophy Honoree * Bettye Mims Danoff, (1940), one of founders of Ladies Professional Golf Tour (LPGA): won 1947 Texas Women's Open title that stopped Babe Didrikson Zaharias' 13 tournament winning streak * Robert S. Folsom, (1944), Mayor of Dallas; President of Dallas School Board; developer; President of Methodist Hospital Board; Hugh Prather Award; only four-sport letterman in SMU history; Sanger Trophy Honoree * Davey Williams, (1945), Major League Baseball player; entire career with New York Giants; appeared in 1953 All-Star Game; winner of 1954 World Series; coached for Giants, 1956 and 1957; Texas Baseball Hall of Fame; Sanger Trophy Honoree *

Carl Warwick Carl Wayne Warwick (February 27, 1937 – April 5, 2025) was an American professional baseball outfielder. He played six seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1961 to 1966 for the Los Angeles Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Colt .45 ...

, (1954), played Major League Baseball for Dodgers, Colt 45's, Orioles, Cubs; Won 1964 World Series with St. Louis Cardinals; tied World Series History with three pinch hits; Texas Baseball Hall of Fame * Clay Armstrong, PhD, (1952), physiologist; much present knowledge on ion channel structure and function traced to him; Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize; Sanger Trophy Honoree *

Yvonne Craig Yvonne Joyce Craig (May 16, 1937 – August 17, 2015) was an American actress who is best known for her role as Barbara Gordon/Batgirl in the 1960s television series ''Batman (TV series), Batman''. Other notable roles in her career include Dorot ...

, (1955), played Batgirl in "

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

" TV series; also roles in "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis", "The Six Million Dollar Man", "Love American Style", "Star Trek"; appeared with Elvis Presley, Bing Crosby and Dennis Hopper; began career with stint in the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo *

, (1955), 1956 Olympic Silver Medalist, 400 Meter Hurdles; 1959 NCAA 440 Yard Champion; Member, University of Texas World Record 440 and 880 Yard Relay Teams; Texas Track and Field Coaches Association Hall of Fame; Sanger Trophy Honoree * Jerry Mays, (1957), All Southwest Conference at SMU; member of 1962

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, AFL–NFL merger, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Foot ...

champion Dallas Texans; captain of Kansas City Chiefs in

Super Bowl I The first AFL–NFL World Championship Game (known retroactively as Super BowlI and referred to in contemporaneous reports, including the game's radio broadcast, as the Super Bowl) was an American football game played on January 15, 1967, at th ...

; member of

Super Bowl IV Super Bowl IV was an American football game played on January 11, 1970, at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the fourth and final AFL–NFL World Championship Game in professional football prior to the AFL–NFL merger taking ...

championship team; 6-Time All-AFL; All-Time All-AFL team; 1970 NFL Pro Bowl; Sanger Trophy Honoree * Jack N. James, (1937), assistant director, Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology * Edward Edwards, (1968), actor with minor roles in over 50 television shows since 1974, in series such as "House," "Desperate Housewives," "24," "Commander in Chief" and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" *

Mickey Jones Mickey Jones (June 10, 1941 – February 7, 2018) was an American musician and actor. He played drums with acts such as Trini Lopez and Bob Dylan, with whom he played on his 1966 world tour. He became a founding member of The First Edition ...

, (1959), musician, movie and television actor; drummer for Bob Dylan's World Tour; also for Trini Lopez and Johnny Rivers; numerous film and television credits as a "bad guy" * Michael Yeargan, (1964), winner of two Tony Awards for "Best Scenic Design in a Musical", "Light in the Piazza", 2005 and "South Pacific", 2008.

Fundraising

The Sunset High School Alumni Association is a 501(c)3 non-profit that raises money in support of teachers, students and the school. The Sunset Foundation is a group of alumni who raise money and award college scholarships to Sunset High School students.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sunset Dallas Independent School District high schools Public high schools in Dallas 1925 establishments in Texas

History

Athletics

Academic performance

Feeder patterns

Athletics

Notable alumni

Fundraising

See also

References

External links