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Ballard High School (Seattle)

Coordinates: 47°40′36″N 122°22′30″W / 47.676564°N 122.375037°W / 47.676564; -122.375037
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ballard High School
Address
Map
1418 Northwest 65th Street

, ,
98117

United States
Coordinates47°40′36″N 122°22′30″W / 47.676564°N 122.375037°W / 47.676564; -122.375037
Information
School typePublic, coeducational High School
MottoTo honor thee we trophies bring
Established1909, 115 years ago
StatusOpen
School districtSeattle Public Schools
PrincipalAbigail Hunt
Athletic DirectorEric Ensign
Staff156
Faculty90
Teaching staff75.59 (FTE)[1]
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,590 (2022-23)[1]
Average class size25
Student to teacher ratio21.03[1]
CampusUrban
Campus size12.71 acres (51,436 m²)
Color(s)Red & Black
   
Fight song"Cheer Cheer"
Athletics18 varsity teams
Athletics conferenceSea-King: Metro 3A
MascotBucky The Beaver
NicknameBeavers
RivalsRoosevelt High School Ingraham High School
NewspaperThe Talisman[2]
YearbookThe Shingle
Budget$9,012,087
Communities servedBallard, Queen Anne, Magnolia, Greenwood, Crown Hill, Phinney Ridge, Fremont, Interbay
Feeder schoolsWhitman Middle School, McClure Middle School, Salmon Bay K-8, Hamilton International Middle School, Catharine Blaine K-8
WebsiteBallard H.S.

Main entrance
Ballard High School was founded in this long-gone building on Tallman Avenue, in 1901.
Main south facade

Ballard High School is a high school in Seattle, Washington, United States, located in the Ballard neighborhood.

History

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The first 9-12 school in Ballard was part of the Central School, and operated under the Ballard School District. A few years after the neighborhood of Ballard was annexed into the city of Seattle, Seattle Public Schools renamed the high school portion of the school, and it opened as Ballard High School on September 7th 1909. In January of 2016, Ballard High School was given their own campus, which the historic school still occupies today.[3]

Background

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Prior to the Seattle Public School's construction, high schoolers in Ballard used a building that opened in the fall of 1901, when the Ballard School District added grades eleven and twelve to the already existing Central School, creating the first four-year high school in the Ballard area. The very small school was located at 5308 Tallman Avenue. There were three people on the faculty, including the principal, Harry F. Giles. The first graduating class had four students and held its commencement on June 23, 1902.[4]

By 1905, enrollment had grown to 80 students. Ballard became part of the city of Seattle in 1907, and the Central School high school became part of the Seattle Public School System.[4]

In 1909 Ballard High School was given its name, and then moved to its present location during Christmas vacation 1915. The school could accommodate 1,000 students. Three hundred of them were transferred from Lincoln.

The building was remodeled three times, once in 1925, then again in 1941, and for the last time in 1959. At that time, the student body had grown to over 2,000.[4]

That structure was demolished in the summer of 1997 due to asbestos contamination, and was replaced with the current facility. The student body was housed in the old Lincoln High School building during the 1997–98 and 1998-99 school years. Lincoln was undergoing a remodel to become a middle school. The students who attended Ballard at Lincoln High had no bells to mark classes, limited classrooms, and cubically separated classrooms in the library and gymnasium facilities for the 1997–98 school year. This was due to the fact that half of the facility at Lincoln was still closed for renovations (the half that held the majority of the divided classrooms). Finally in September 1999, Ballard High School returned to 1418 NW 65th Street to occupy a new building with the ability to accommodate evolving technology and more than 1,500 students. There are several classrooms that do not have windows.[4]

1994 shooting

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The first murder ever of a student on Seattle School District property happened in 1994 outside Ballard High School.[5] Then 16-year-old Brian Ronquillo, a student at Shorewood High School, fired a gun eight times into a group of students as a car he was in drove past Ballard High School. Melissa Fernandes, a 16-year-old Ballard student, was shot and killed, although she was not the intended target, a 16-year-old male student was also injured. Ronquillo was sentenced to 51 years in prison for the gang-related shooting and then 19-year old Cesar Sarausad who was the car driver was sentenced to more than 27 years in prison.[6][7]

Academic programs

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Academies

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Ballard High maintains two formal academies on campus: The Academy of Finance, and the Maritime Academy. Both comprise an integrated curriculum across content areas. Students enrolled in these academies are part of the Ballard student population but have chosen to participate in a specific content area of focus.

FIRST Robotics Competition

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Ballard High School hosts Viking Robotics, a FIRST Robotics Competition team, assigned team number 2928. Viking Robotics provides a place for students to learn and apply skills in STEM fields to a cooperative/competitive championship.

In 2017, Viking Robotics[8]

  • Was a finalist in the Mount Vernon district event
  • Won the Glacier Peak district event
  • Won the Pacific Northwest district championship
  • Won the Roebling division on the Houston championship
  • Won the Houston world championship

Notable alumni

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Ballard High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  2. ^ The Talisman
  3. ^ https://www.historylink.org/file/10458
  4. ^ a b c d "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-06-22. Retrieved 2019-05-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ^ Tizon, Alex. "The Story Of A Drive-By Murder". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  6. ^ de Leon, John. "Man sentenced 2nd time for 1994 shooting at Ballard High School". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  7. ^ "FindLaw's Court of Appeals of Washington case and opinions".
  8. ^ "Viking Robotics - Team 2928 (2017)". The Blue Alliance. 2017-03-17. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Wall of Recognition". Ballard High School Foundation. Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
  10. ^ Pentz, Matt (October 28, 2016). "Handwalla Bwana could be the next Seattle soccer star. But first he must conquer his American Dream". Seattle Times. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
  11. ^ Iridescent Light: The Emergence of Northwest Art, by Deloris Tarzan Ament (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2002)
  12. ^ Tucker, Cheryl (January 30, 1983). "Art Hansen captures the world around him". The News Tribune. Tacoma. Retrieved December 28, 2022. Vashon Island artist is being featured during February in one-man show at Tacoma gallery
  13. ^ "Dori Monson - KIRO". MyNorthwest.com. 2008-01-24. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved 2013-10-24.
  14. ^ "Smart '69". Ballard High School Foundation. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
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