Baton Rouge Magnet High School

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Baton Rouge Magnet High School
Location
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
Information
School district	East Baton Rouge Parish
Principal	Nanette Greer
Enrollment	1,420
Faculty	85
Type	Free public
Grades	9-12
Campus	Downtown
Campus size	12 acres (0.05 km²)
Motto	A Celebration of Attitudes... Creating Bright Lights and Determining Bright Futures for Our Students
Mascot	Bulldog
Color(s)	Green and Gold
Established	Early 1890s
Homepage	http://brmhs.ebrschools.org/

Baton Rouge Magnet High School is a magnet school in the East Baton Rouge Parish School system and was founded in the early 1890s. The current school building was built in 1925,^[1] and was added to the national registry of historic places in Louisiana in 1986 (Building #86003130).^[1] The school requires students to pass enrollment standards and exceed graduation standards. As a result, nearly all graduating students attend college.^[2]

Contents 1 BRMHS History 2 Academics and Awards 3 Sports and athletics 4 Visual and Performing Arts 4.1 Choral Studies 4.2 Performing Arts 4.3 Piano Department 4.4 Visual Arts 5 Condition of physical plant 6 Extracurricular Activities 7 The Library 8 Traditions 8.1 Rivalries 8.2 Spirit Day 8.3 Fall Fair 8.4 Dances 9 Alma mater 10 Notable Alumni 11 References 12 External links

[edit] BRMHS History

The present campus was put into use in 1925 (although some sources cite 1927 or 1928 as the year the new building opened) when the main four-story building was built. Additional buildings were added and renovations made during the 1950s. By 1972, the present facilities were completed and air conditioning was installed. In the fall of 1976, BRMHS began operating under the new Magnet School Curriculum, and the Class of 1980 became the first graduating class to attend four full years under the Magnet Program. Numerous district and state championships have been won as is attested by the vast collection of trophies on view in the lobby. Though the major sports of football, basketball, and baseball were discontinued in 1976, the individual and life-time sports have continued a tradition of winning district and state championships. State and district rally honors have increased as the number of National Merit Students among the student body.^{[citation needed]}

The 4th floor of BRMHS used to be home to the band and orchestra, but is now closed off to the student body. Elvis Presley played on the Baton Rouge High stage with Faron Young on May 2, 1955^[3][4]

[edit] Academics and Awards

BRMHS was awarded the Blue Ribbon for Academic Excellence for the school years 1982-1983 and 2003-2004.^[5][6] The school offers 19 Advanced Placement classes, including Science Lab, with an additional American Government course speculated for 2008-2009. It has 20 honors courses, two dual enrollment courses through Baton Rouge Community College, and four foreign languages; French I-V, Spanish I-V, Latin I-V, and Arabic I-III (as Honors only). Due to funds being cut by the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board in the wake of Hurricane Katrina^{[citation needed]}, Japanese is no longer offered. Greek is offered sporadically and was last offered in 2006. Due to faculty shortage, since 2007 German and Russian are no longer available. Having a college-preparatory Magnet program, BRMHS employs a rigorous curriculum resulting in almost all of its graduates attending college. The school regularly has the most National Merit Scholarship Award recipients of the state. The 270 students graduating in 2006 were offered over $8 million in college scholarships, with almost all going on to enter college.^[2]

The school is self proclaimed to be the highest academically achieving school in the state of Louisiana.^{[citation needed]}

It received a special award in 2004 from the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., distinguishing it as one of five schools in the nation excelling in performing arts. It was one of two high schools to receive this award. On March 21, 2005, the school performed and displayed aspects of its arts and performances programs on one of the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stages.^{[citation needed]}

BRMHS is one of the few high schools in the nation to offer two student run radio stations on campus. The original station, WBRH, was joined in 1997 by KBRH. They are both non-profit radio stations and are run with the financial support of the listening community. They publicly broadcast jazz on WBRH 90.3 FM, and classic R&B and local music on KBRH 1260 AM.^[7]

[edit] Sports and athletics

The school's football team won state championships in 1944 & 1964 ^[8] before being disbanded in 1976.^[9]

The school continues to have an athletics program. It has won the Southern Quality Ford Cup (previously Picadilly Cup) several times^{[citation needed]}, despite not competing in football, basketball, or baseball.^[9]

The soccer team competes in district 5 of the 5A classification of the Louisiana High School Athletic Association.^[10] In addition, the school has an intramural sports program consisting of American football and basketball.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Visual and Performing Arts

The school has music programs, including an award winning choir, a jazz band and concert band, and a string orchestra.^[11]

The Choral Department has been directed by Robbie Giroir, the organist at St. Joseph's Cathedral, for over twenty years. They host an annual candle-light Christmas Concert in downtown Baton Rouge. Giroir has taken the Festival Singers, a small vocal ensemble, to venues around the world.^[11]

[edit] Choral Studies

The BRMHS Department of Choral Studies offers choral singing, solo vocal literature, music theory, and the art of English handbell ringing. In 2007 the program had over seventy-five choristers.^[11]

The Honor Chorale is a principle choral ensemble of forty auditioned choristers. They perform in the Fall and Spring Concerts held in the Chapel of St.Alban's on the LSU Campus, and the annual formal Candlelight Concert traditionally held in St. Joseph's Cathedral in downtown Baton Rouge.^[11]

The Honor Chorale and Festival Singers have also performed in Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. The Festival Singers have toured the United Kingdom where solo choral performances were given at Winchester Cathedral, St.Paul's Cathedral, Ely Cathedral, and the World War II Memorial Chapel (Ely). In 2005, the Festival Singers performed a concert tour of Germany and Austria.^[11]

Through competitive auditions, many BRMHS choristers are chosen for All State and All District Honor Choirs. Under the tenure of Giroir, the Department of Choral Studies has sung over twenty major choral works by noted composers and has produced over fifteen major musical productions on the BRMHS stage.^[11]

Many BRMHS Choristers have gone on to professional performing and music education careers that include Broadway and University Professors.^[11]

[edit] Performing Arts

The BRMHS has the only student operated AM and FM radio stations in the country. The school was honored with a "Creative Ticket in the Arts" in 2005 by the Louisiana Division of the Arts and nominated for recognition on a national level.^[12][13]

In addition to the radio training program, the department offers multi-year courses in choral and instrumental music, drama, stagecraft, ballet, and television production.^[13]

The drama department produces several main stage and small stage plays each year. These include a Shakespearean play and a winter production in conjunction with the dance department. The later is performed each year for audiences of local elementary school children. The dance department also produces its own recitals, and many of the dancers perform with other dance companies.^[13]

The school offers instrumental courses including woodwind, jazz, and strings.^[13]

[edit] Piano Department

The piano department has a lab consisting of 17 full-size instruments and three 64-key Wurlitzer keyboards. Advanced students present two recitals each year. Students also perform for Nursing Homes, Retirement Centers, and other community functions. All styles of music are studied.^[14]

[edit] Visual Arts

Visual artists at BRMHS can take four years of art classes. Student artwork is displayed frequently at the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board office and various Baton Rouge galleries, and the department has its own show at the school each spring.^[15]

In 2008 art club members are finishing a full-color mural on an outside wall of the school Performing Arts building.^[15]

[edit] Condition of physical plant

BRMHS has had problems with building damage from moisture, and the school system is struggling with funding as well as the mechanics of how to continue education while undergoing a major renovation.^[16] The district is planning the details of a major reconstruction project.^[17]Various articles in Baton Rouge print media have highlighted the various physical problems on the Baton Rouge High campus.^[18][19] The Baton Rouge High Alumni Association also has documented deteriorating conditions at the school. ^[20]

Crumbling plaster and peeling paint on a classroom wall (September 2007).

Exterior of a classroom window (September 2007).

Section of gymnasium floor damaged due to leaky roof (September 2007).[20]

Facade of main building, seriously damaged by trapped moisture, has detached from the superstructure (September 2007).

[edit] Extracurricular Activities

Baton Rouge High School has many clubs for students to choose from. Clubs range from academic to social and clubs number at least 59.^[21] The following is a brief list of clubs at BRMHS:

• The academic clubs include:
  • Beta Club, Chess Club, Computer Science Club, Epidemiology Club, Law Club, Literary Travel, Mechanical Tech, Media Tech, Mock Trial, Mu Alpha Theta, National Honor Society, Quiz Bowl, and Science Club.

• The athletic organization clubs include:
  • Dance Club, Frisbee, Gymnastics, Intramural Club, Woods and Waters, and SCUBA Club.

• The language and culture oriented clubs include:
  • African Heritage, Arabic Club, Chinese Club, French Club, German Club, International Cultural Association (ICA), Junior Classical League, Muslim Student Association, Spanish Club, and Indian Student Association.

• The political clubs include:
  • Amnesty International, Gay-Straight Alliance, Teenage Republicans, and Young Democrats.

• The service oriented clubs include:
  • 4-H, Best Buddies, Cancer Club, Interact, Key Club, Red Cross, and Habitat for Humanity.

• The student organization clubs include:
  • Hi-Y, Tri-Hi-Y, Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), and Student Government Association (SGA).

• Other clubs include:
  • Anime Club, Film Club, One Way, the Piano Club, Potpourri (the literary publication produced by Baton Rouge High students), The Musician's Guild, and WBRH/Radio Club.

Some of the most active clubs include Beta Club, Frisbee, ICA, Mu Alpha Theta, Junior Classical League and Habitat for Humanity. ICA and African Heritage co-host a cultural show each spring which features presentations by students from various, diverse backgrounds sharing cultural experiences. Beta Club, Mu Alpha Theta, and the Junior Classical League always attend their club's state convention, often sweeping many awards for their chapter.^{[citation needed]}

ICA, Hi-Y/Tri-Hi-Y, Frisbee, and Habitat for Humanity are the largest clubs at BRMHS.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] The Library

The library of Baton Rouge High boasts over 12,000 books and other volumes. The library and the adjoining lab have at least 45 computers, some are networked to a wireless network allowing access to laser printers, scanners, digital cameras and more.^[22]

[edit] Traditions

[edit] Rivalries

Istrouma High School (until 1976)

BRMHS excels in academic performance and competes in many events against its academic rivals:
Grace King High School
McKinley Senior High School
Caddo Magnet High School
Ben Franklin High School
Lafayette High School (Louisiana)

[edit] Spirit Day

On one of the first Fridays after school begins, BRMHS hosts a "Spirit Day" where each class represents their school spirit by wearing green and gold. Seniors traditionally wear completely outrageous costumes, including capes, Mitres, wigs, pom-poms, and matching shirts. A Spirit Assembly is held where each class is mocked by every other class. The freshmen are made fun of, in good taste, and the seniors are mocked by underclassmen.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Fall Fair

During the week leading up to Halloween, BRMHS has a different costume theme for each day of the week. In the past, there has been a "Toga Day", a "Decades Day", and a "Twin/Triplets/Duos/Famous Couples Day", a "Pirates Vs. Ninjas Day" and a "Superheroes Day".^{[citation needed]} The theme is changed each year by the Student Government Association. The last day of Fall Fair week is always "Masquerade Day", where everyone wears whatever costume they so choose. On this day, students are dismissed from class early, and go out to enjoy Fall Fair on the soccer field and track. School clubs are allowed to register booths, and they come up with inventive ways to raise money for their club. German Club traditionally holds a "German Disco", while the Junior Classical League has held "Gladiator Fights" with pool noodles and cardboard shields. Many of the culture clubs sell ethnic foods, such as fajitas, pita bread, and eggrolls.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Dances

Annual dances include: Get Acquainted, Turkey Jam, Winter Formal, and Prom.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Alma mater

^{[citation needed]}

For Baton Rouge High we raise our cry;
for the school we all adore
We will raise our standards high
Till known from shore to shore -
Then we'll fight! Fight! Fight!
With all our might till victory's in sight
Then we'll raise our banners high
For dear old Baton Rouge High

[edit] Notable Alumni

• Bobby Jindal: former U.S. Congressman and current Louisiana Governor^[23]
• Jay Dardenne: Longtime State Senator and Current Louisiana Secretary of State
• Karey Kirkpatrick: Screen writer of such films as Chicken Run, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and Over the Hedge.
• Jim Taylor: Hall of Fame Football Player
• Johnny Ramistella b.k.a. Johnny Rivers: 1950's & 60's rock & roll musician
• Jimmy Clanton: 1950's & 60's swamp pop and R&B musician
• Bob Pettit: Hall of Fame Basketball Player

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official Baton Rouge Magnet High School site