This article contains wording that promotes the subject in a subjective manner without imparting real information. Please remove or replace such wording and instead of making proclamations about a subject's importance, use facts and attribution to demonstrate that importance.(December 2023) ( Learn how and when to remove this message )
Framingham North and South High Schools merged in 1991
Framingham High School (FHS) is a public high school in Framingham, Massachusetts, United States, serving grades 9 through 12. It is located approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Boston and enrolls about 2,500 students, making it one of the largest high schools in the state.[2]
The school traces its origins to the late 18th century through the Framingham Academy and related institutions. The modern Framingham High School was established in 1991 through the merger of Framingham North High School and Framingham South High School.
History
The Framingham Academy was established in 1798, replacing the organization known as the Proprietors of the Brick School House which had formed in 1792.
The current high school was created when Framingham North High School and Framingham South High School merged in 1991.[3]
The town of Framingham gave the academy $1000, but some time later this was determined to be illegal, and the academy was dissolved.[4]
In 1852 the high school was formed, and later became the legal successor to the academy. Thus, the high school can be considered to be founded in either 1792 or 1852.[5]
In 1958, mid-year, a new building on Flagg Drive replaced the original high school on Union Avenue that was built in the 1920s. The original building was eventually converted to house several facilities, including the Danforth Museum and the Callahan Senior Center.
In 1963, due to an increasing school population, the original Framingham High was split into two schools, Framingham North High School and Framingham South High School.
South High was located in the Flagg Drive campus in South Framingham (in the now-demolished Fuller Middle School, which was replaced with a new building at 31 Flagg Drive in 2021[6]) and North High was located at a new school building at Winch Park on A St. in Saxonville.
Originally, North High shared facilities with Winch Park Middle School ("E" & "F" halls in the current building) until 1974 when the first Cameron Middle School opened on Elm Street.
The two high schools remained separate until 1991 when they were merged to create a unified school under the name Framingham High School.
The two high schools were distinguished by their colors and mascots: North were the Spartans in yellow and green while South were the Flyers, the original town mascot, in blue and white. When the schools merged in 1991, the district held an election to determine the fate of the colors and mascots. The winning combination was to be the Spartans clad in blue and white. Subsequently, original Framingham High supporters protested that the town should revert to the original mascot and colors, which were used by Framingham South. After discussion with the student body, it was agreed that the colors and mascot would revert to the original set.
Academics
In the late 1990s, Framingham High School was identified as an underperforming school. After a series of reforms in the early and mid-2000s, student performance improved, with higher state test scores and increased participation in Advanced Placement courses.[8] In later years, the school performed better on standardized assessments than many districts serving similar student populations.[8][9] In 2008, Newsweek listed Framingham High among the top 500 high schools in the United States.[10]
The school has also been noted for outcomes among students learning English as a second or foreign language. Many students become proficient in English after several years of instruction,[11] and Framingham reports higher graduation rates and test scores than other districts with large English-learner populations. State law allows families to choose English-only instruction, but few parents of high school students in Framingham select this option.[12]
Framingham High uses a co-teaching approach in many classes, with two teachers working together. The model emphasizes collaboration and has been cited as a factor in the school’s designation as a Commonwealth Compass School.[13]
The school offers a range of programs to support students who need additional help, including mentoring, peer tutoring, academic support services, and an alternative high school campus.[8][14][15][16][17][18]
In 2004, it also introduced a homeroom adviser program to help identify struggling students early and improve freshman retention.[19]
Framingham High School has received several state recognitions, including designation as a Commonwealth Compass School[13] and as a Vanguard Model School by the Massachusetts School Building Authority.[20]
Total number of enrolled students: 2,534 Total number of full-time equivalent educators: 199.2 Therefore, the student to teacher ratio for this school is 12.7:1
* Approximate number of enrolled pupils is calculated based on total number of students in district, multiplied by reported percentage, and rounded to nearest whole student.
Framingham High School is a racially, ethnically, and economically diverse school and in part this relates to the town of Framingham being historically a hub for immigrants to the United States.[22] The student body of Framingham High is made up of significant immigrant (or children of immigrant) populations from Brazil, the Caribbean, South and Central America, Russia, Asia, and Africa.[citation needed]
The school offers a theatre program for all levels of young actors.[25]
The Drama Company presents three annual shows, one of which is a one-act play for a statewide festival ran by the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild.[26] Framingham has won numerous awards for acting and technical design and often makes it to the state finals.[27] In 2006, and 10 years later in 2016, the Drama Company won the METG state finals with their productions of Tales of Trickery (2006) and Sideways Stories from Wayside School (2016).
FHS-TV (Home of "Flyer News")
Framingham High School Television's (FHS-TV) news show "Flyer News" began broadcasting a live newscast at 7:15a.m. every day to the high school in 1997, and then to the entire town in 2005.[28] Flyer News is run by televisionproduction students. A Flyer News episode may consist of student-produced segments such as Sez-You, which interviews the student body on various topics; Webcrawler, a technology segment; Word of the Week, asking students to define a different word each week and broadcasting the more entertaining responses; New England Sports Minute, which covers the latest news in the New England professional sporting world; Sports Update, which brings updates about Framingham High School sports; and a daily segment, Homeroom Headlines, giving morning announcements, among other things. One of Flyer News' focal points is to get the student opinion on the issues to voice the student-body's beliefs. The station also airs numerous sports games, as well as student-produced movies, music videos, and public service announcements.
Exchange program
The school participated[when?] in a sister-city exchange program with Lomonosov, Russia, a suburb of St. Petersburg. George Perrone, now-retired Music Director, brought a contingent of musicians to perform at several venues in Lomonosov. In return, Lomonosov residents visited Framingham and Framingham High. Students participated in an exchange program with China in 2016.[29]
David Blatt (born 1959), class of 1977, basketball player and coach, Israel and various European teams, 2012 Olympic coach, former head coach of Cleveland Cavaliers
Royal L. Bolling, Massachusetts state senator and the school's first African-American class president [32]
↑Framingham History Center. A Beautiful Eminence. Framingham, MA: Framingham History Center, 2022. https://framinghamhistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/A-Beautiful-Eminence_001.pdf
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
