Booker T. Washington High School (Miami)


Booker T. Washington High School is a secondary school located at 1200 NW 6th Avenue in Miami, Florida, United States. It is located in the Overtown neighborhood, and serves families in the Overtown, Downtown, Park West, and Arts & Entertainment District neighborhoods. Its principal is William Aristide.

History

Booker T. Washington Senior High School opened its doors in 1926. It is the second oldest public high school built for the black residents of Dade County, after George Washington Carver Sr. High. The school was started by the St. Paul A.M.E. Church of Coconut Grove. Students from as far as Palm Beach County came to this school.
It was converted to a middle school in 1967, to help desegregate the Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Construction for the current Booker T. Washington Senior High began in 1996 and the school was converted back to a high school as an overcrowding reliever facility for Miami High School and Miami Edison Senior High School in 1999.
In 2006, 11% of its students scored at or above proficiency in reading on the FCAT state examination, and 39% scored at or above proficiency in math. Booker T. Washington was included in the district's School Improvement Zone up until the end of the 2007-2008 school year, which includes an extended day and lower class size.
The school has a 40-ft. diameter teaching planetarium.

Demographics

Booker T. Washington is 54% black, 44% Hispanic, and 2% white non-Hispanic.

Athletics

The Booker T. Washington Tornadoes' athletic rival within the city of Miami is Miami Northwestern High School.
In May 2007 the Tornadoes were crowned Florida's FHSAA Class 3A State Champions in track and field.
After finishing as runner-up in the 2011 championship game, the Tornadoes won consecutive FHSAA Class 4A Football State Championships in 2012 and 2013.
With Tim Harris as head coach, the team was also selected as the 2013 winner of the High School Football National Championship, an honor awarded on rankings from USA Todays National Prep Poll. The Tornadoes' national championship selection was supported by a 14-0 season that included a 55-0 defeat of the then-national #6 ranked Blue Devils of Norcross, Georgia, followed with a win over the then-national #2 ranked Miami Central Rockets, 28-17 on September 6, 2013.