McClymonds High School

McClymonds High School is a public high school in the West Oakland neighborhood of Oakland, California, United States.

McClymonds High School
Address
2607 Myrtle Street

Oakland
,
California 94607

United States
Information
TypePublic secondary
MottoSchool of Champions
Established1915 [1]
School districtOakland Unified School District
Teaching staff24.80 (FTE)[2]
Grades9-12
Enrollment383 (2018-19)[2]
Student to teacher ratio15.44[2]
Color(s)Orange and black    
MascotWarrior
Websitewww.ousd.org/Domain/2263

In addition to being the third oldest high school in Oakland, it is the larger of the two high schools in West Oakland (the other being Bunche High School), and the only high school in West Oakland operated by the Oakland Unified School District.

History

Early history (1915-2005)

In January 1915, McClymonds High School started in a small building formerly occupied by Oakland Technical High School. Originally, 60 students were enrolled in the school, which at that time was called Vocational High School. It was the first public school in California to offer summer school.

The school was named after J.W. McClymonds, who at one time was the superintendent of the Oakland Unified School District. Ida Louise Jackson, the first black teacher in the Oakland district, taught at McClymonds before her retirement in 1953.

In 1927, with $325,000 spent on additional classrooms, the school became more of a regular school than a summer school. In 1933, the legislative act was passed, regulating school building construction. This required that schools have steel and structural support on the inside. The building did not meet these requirements.

The school decided to move to 14th and Myrtle Street in the same building with Lowell Junior High School. McClymonds High thereby became a four year high school. The name changed from J.W. McClymonds to Lowell McClymonds, then to McClymonds Lowell High School. Finally, in September 1938, the official name of the school became McClymonds, and it was moved to 26th and Myrtle.

McClymonds Educational Complex (2005-2010)
Main article: McClymonds Educational Complex

In 2005, McClymonds was split into three smaller schools: BEST, EXCEL, and Kizmet Academy, collectively known as McClymonds Educational Complex.

"Mack Is Back!" (2010-present)

In 2010, McClymonds Educational Complex returned to being McClymonds High School. The school's 2010-11 theme was "Mack is Back!"

On September 24, 2010, the school opened a new, state-of-the-art football field, William Belford Stadium, named in honor of the late William "Bill" Belford (often called the "godfather" of McClymonds sports).[3]

Notable events and mentions in the media

Malcolm X gave a speech at McClymonds at a function sponsored by the Afro-American Association. A young Muhammad Ali also spoke at the function. The Black Panthers co-founder Huey P. Newton was in attendance.[4]

Currently, many students are working in conjunction with students from nearby UC Berkeley to revitalize a dilapidated drug-ridden park into a history learning park and expand it into the school's campus.[5]

McClymonds was featured in the book Black in School: Afrocentric Reform, Urban Youth & the Promise of Hip-Hop Culture, by Shawn Ginwright.

Academics

McClymonds's average SAT score for 2013 was 1155 out of 2400. The nation's average SAT score for the year was 1497.

In 2007, McClymonds had over 100 graduates.

In 2008, McClymonds had the highest CAHSEE test scores in the Oakland Unified School District.

Sports

The McClymonds varsity football team which was led by captain and starter on both sides of the ball Dwayne Washington won the Division 5A state championship in January 2017. The Warriors defeated the La Jolla Country Day HS with a score or 20-17. The following year, McClymonds won a second consecutive state championship, defeating the Golden West High School Trailblazers in the California Division 5AA Football Championship 42-12.[6]

The McClymonds varsity basketball team won a state Tournament of Champions held in 1978 at the Oracle Arena.

McClymonds offers a variety of sports, including football, baseball, basketball, cross-country, and track. Although McClymonds is separated into two schools, the sports teams are still one, with the mascot of the Warrior.

On May 16, 2006, the Oakland City Council adopted a resolution, sponsored by Council Member Nancy J. Nadel (District 3), congratulating the McClymonds Football Team For Excellence in Athletics and Academics,[7] recognizing that McClymonds High School had ranked #1 in the East Bay and Northern California as the high school with the most football players (9) attending Division I universities, under the direction of head football coach Alonzo Carter. McClymonds was the only high school in the nation that year with three Top 100 prospects, and, with only 600-650 students, ranked #1 in Northern California for Division I Signees, and ranked #2 in the State, behind Long Beach Poly, which had 5,000 students.

On March 15, 2008, McClymonds achieved its first ever Division I state championship basketball win over Dominguez High School of Compton, California, 73-54, at the Arco Arena, as the culmination of their undefeated streak of 32 wins and no losses.[8]

Chappell Hayes Health Center

McClymonds' health center, founded by Children's Hospital doctor and UC Berkeley alumna Barbara Staggers, and named after activist Chappell Hayes, was opened in 2005. In creating the Health Center, Dr. Staggers partnered with Lisa Hardy, MD., Division Chief of Psychiatry at Children's, to ensure that mental health services would also be available to the school community. It serves McClymonds' students and alumni, and members of the West Oakland community.[9]

Groundwater contamination

In February 2020, a report stated that groundwater beneath the school was contaminated with a cancer-causing chemical.[10]

Notable alumni
This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

See also

References
  1. The West Oakland Project A Photo Essay by Alison Yin
  2. "McClymonds High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  3. Archived 2012-10-09 at the Wayback Machine McClymonds High dedicates new football field
  4. Hillard, David, Huey: The Spirit of the Panther, Thunder's Mouth Press, 2006.
  5. News & Events: McClymonds Students Study to Rejuvenate Park
  6. "Oakland Will Hold Victory Parade Friday for McClymonds Warriors - Oakland Post". Oakland Post. 2018-01-17. Retrieved 2018-02-08.
  7. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2011-03-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_8589820
  9. Public Health Heroes Awards Ceremony Archived 2009-02-17 at the Wayback Machine
  10. https://www.ktvu.com/news/community-meeting-hastily-called-over-mcclymonds-campus-contamination
  11. Lupien, Tony; Lowenfish, Lee (1980). The Imperfect Diamond: The Story of Baseball's Reserve System and the Men Who Fought to Change It. New York: Stein and Day. ISBN 0-8128-2709-0.
  12. Oakland Museum of California: Object Detail: Catalog ID: H96.1.2067 Archived 2009-07-14 at the Wayback Machine
  13. "Lee Lacy Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  14. "Ernie Lombardi Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  15. Phillips, Frosene (December 16, 2004). "Musical Paradise". East Bay Times. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
  16. "Frank Robinson Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  17. "Willie Tasby Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  18. Thompson, Jerry; Deterville, Dwayne (2007). Black Artists in Oakland. Charleston, SC: Arkadia Publishing. p. 47. ISBN 978-0-7385-4725-1.
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