Booker T. Washington High School (Pensacola)
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Booker T. Washington High School
"The Citadel of Learning"
6000 College Parkway
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
32503
1916
Public secondary
Secular
Coeducational
9 to 12
Florida State Department of Education
Escambia County School District
Escambia County School District
The Escambia County School District is the organization responsible for the administration of public schools in Escambia County, Florida, in the United States...
Wildcat
Blue, White, and Gold
Graffiti
www.btwash.org
Booker T. Washington High School is a secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
currently located at 6000 College Parkway in Pensacola
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, and is part of the Escambia County School District
Escambia County School District
The Escambia County School District is the organization responsible for the administration of public schools in Escambia County, Florida, in the United States...
. It was named after the African-American education pioneer Booker T. Washington
Booker T. Washington
Booker Taliaferro Washington was an American educator, author, orator, and political leader. He was the dominant figure in the African-American community in the United States from 1890 to 1915...
. The previous location for the school is now in use as the J.E. Hall Center.
Booker T. Washington is also the primary location for disabled students in the county.
Facility
The school is contained within a single structure and features separate sections for each area of academic instruction. Although the school has always had portable classroomPortable classroom
A portable classroom A portable classroom A portable classroom (in Australian English a demountable and often referred to as a demountable, a "Terrapin" or a "Portakabin" (after the two companies) in the UK and called a prefab in Ireland (not to be confused with a prefabricated building) is a...
s, many more have been added due to the recent influx in student population.
Outlying sites include a driving instruction range, basketball courts, fields for baseball, football, and soccer, as well as a track. The Roy Jones Jr./Derrick Brooks Athletic Complex is situated next to the school with Sherman Robinson Stadium being the main feature of the facilities. Ronnie and Janis Bond Gymnasium is home to the Wildcat basketball and volleyball teams.
The new Performing Arts Building has been completed and its tenants couldn't be any more ecstatic. The facility is equipped with a T.V. Production Studio where students deliver the morning announcements each day, a ticket booth, a fully functioning Concessions Stand that sells snacks during performances, a dance studio, male and female dressing rooms, a large and roomy stage (much more space than Drama students were originally used to), a cat walk, and an Orchestra Pit. One who might visit the auditorium for a performance will find the seating to be comfortable and intimate, allowing one to view the whole of the stage easily. The auditorium has been fixed with amazing acoustics that permit even the person in the back row to hear the goings-on of the production. The Orchestra students couldn't be happier for their new home, recently being moved into the auditorium from a proverbial storage closet and finding their new surroundings to be much more agreeable. We all look forward to the continuation of excellence in the Drama department and note that the space is able to be rented out. Break a leg!
Recently, the City of Pensacola installed signs in front of the College Parkway school that state, “Sherman L. Robinson Way designated by B.T. Washington High Class of 1987, Pensacola City Council.” The signs were donated by Sid Farish, Jr. of Advanced Signs and Graphics, and Peaden said, "it was a timely process working through the City of Pensacola and the Florida Department of Transportation guidelines to meet sign specifications".
The school itself almost lacks windows completely, making it a prime place for a hurricane shelter, which had been done before and can be done again.
History
The school first opened in 1916 as a segregated black school and remained that way until 1970, when it was integrated as a result of a federal court order. It moved from its previous location on Texar Drive in 1982.Notable alumni
- Roy Jones, Jr. --World renowned boxer
- General Daniel "Chappie" James, Jr.
- Derrick BrooksDerrick BrooksDerrick Dewan Brooks is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buccaneers 28th overall in the 1995 NFL Draft. He played college football at Florida State....
--NFL linebacker, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Florida State University - Kenneth B. BellKenneth B. BellKenneth B. Bell is a former Associate Justice of the Florida Supreme Court.- Education :Bell attended Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina as an undergraduate, and received his Juris Doctor from the Florida State University College of Law in 1982.- Career :Commencing from 1982 and for...
"Former Florida Supreme Court Judge" - Beth BarrBeth BarrElizabeth Cynthia Barr is a former backstroke swimmer from the United States, who won the silver medal in the 4x100m Medley Relay at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea...
- David Elder - Former Major League Pitcher
- Tanner Williams - Celebrated singer/songwriter of the popular band The Co-Pilots.