Theodore Roosevelt High School (Los Angeles)

Theodore Roosevelt High School

"Don't flinch, don't foul, hit the line hard!"
Location
456 South Matthews Street, Los Angeles, California, United States 90033
Coordinates 34°02′18″N 118°12′40″W / 34.03833°N 118.21106°W / 34.03833; -118.21106Coordinates: 34°02′18″N 118°12′40″W / 34.03833°N 118.21106°W / 34.03833; -118.21106
Information
Type Public
Established 1922
School district Los Angeles Unified School District
Principal Mr. Ben Gertner
Grades 9-12
Enrollment 5,047
Color(s) Cardinal, & Gold         
Athletics conference Eastern League
CIF Los Angeles City Section
Mascot Rough Rider, Teddy Bear
Rivals Garfield High School (Los Angeles County, California) Garfield High School[1]
Website Official website

Theodore Roosevelt High School is an educational institution of seven high schools (grades 9-12) located in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, California named for the 26th president of the United States.

Roosevelt is a public school in the Los Angeles Unified School District with an enrollment of 5,047 in 2007, making it one of the largest in the country, and second largest behind Belmont High School at the time. Up until the 2008-09 school year, the school followed a year-round calendar. In 2008, the school started to be managed by the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, which was started by Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. In 2010, the cohesive institution was split up into seven small schools, each with its own principal, CEEB code (used by SAT, colleges, etc.), students and staff. The outcomes of this have been debated by students and administrators.[2][3]

Its school colors are red and gold, the mascot is Teddy the Bear, and their sport teams are known as the Rough Riders. The school's motto is "Don't flinch, don't foul, hit the line hard!", which is a Theodore Roosevelt quote.[4]

Students come from Boyle Heights, South Central, East Los Angeles, and City Terrace.

Roosevelt participates in the annual "East L.A. Classic" against Garfield High School. It is the homecoming game for both schools and attracts over 20,000 people every year.

History

Roosevelt was founded in 1922, but opened in 1923 in Boyle Heights to the east of the Los Angeles River.

During World War II the Japanese were removed to internment camps. Many returned after the war. A Japanese garden that had been destroyed was restored in 1996 with funds raised by alumni and students.

As the population grew in the area, Roosevelt sought expansion. The R-Building (R for Roosevelt) was the main building and faced Fickett Street. The street was vacated and a new administration (A-Building for administration) was constructed. Many new buildings were created and added to campus. The R-building has an interesting history and distinct architecture. There was a fourth floor to the building which had to be closed due to damage from a fire. The basement was built with a shooting range for the Junior ROTC (JROTC), although only air rifles may be used now.

Roosevelt was one of the five schools to initiate the student walkouts in 1968, and contributed to the walkouts in 2006, in protest to the HR 4437 bill. The school has partnered with Planned Parenthood, which operates a clinic at the school providing birth control, pregnancy testing, screening for sexually transmitted diseases and counseling, in an effort to reduce the area's high incidence of teenage pregnancies.[5]

In 2009 the opening of the Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez Learning Centers helped to expand Roosevelt.[6]

Academic Performance Index (API)

API for High Schools in the LAUSD District 5 and local small public charter high schools in the East Los Angeles region.

Roosevelt High School.
School 2007[7] 2008[8] 2009[9] 2010[10] 2011[11]
Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School 807 818 815 820 832
Marc and Eva Stern Math and Science School 718 792 788 788 809
Oscar De La Hoya Animo Charter High School 662 726 709 710 744
James A. Garfield High School 553 597 593 632 705
Abraham Lincoln High School 594 609 588 616 643
Woodrow Wilson High School 582 585 600 615 636
Theodore Roosevelt High School 557 551 576 608 999
Thomas Jefferson High School 457 516 514 546 546
Santee Education Complex 502 521 552 565

The East LA Classic

The East L.A. Classic is the homecoming game for Roosevelt High School and Garfield High School, . The classic has taken place since a few years after the opening of the two schools, with the exception of the Depression and World War II. The classic brings out alumni from all parts of the world, usually fielding 20,000 people per game and has been held at the East Los Angeles College at the Weingart Stadium although it has been held at the The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.[12]

Artwork

The artist Nelyollotl Toltecatl painted a 400 feet (120 m) mural,[13] known as the Anahuac Mural,[14] on two outside walls of Roosevelt depicting murder, rape, and enslavement of Native Americans by European colonizers. In 1996 Toltecatl, who was previously known under a Spanish name, began to work on a mural intended to depict Chicano history and assimilation. After about a year of work on the project, the tone of his mural changed after attending a lecture by Olin Tezcatlipoca.[13]

The Sixth Street Viaduct, also known as the Sixth Street Bridge was demolish. Prior to the demolition, Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti recorded the rap song "101SlowJam", backed by musicians from Roosevelt High School, and issued it via a video on his own YouTube channel. The public service announcement video advertised the closure of parts of the 101 Freeway to accommodate the demolition of the viaduct.[15][16]

Notable alumni

References

  1. Mario Villegas , A 'Classic' for many reasons, ESPN Los Angeles, November 4, 2010
  2. http://www.boyleheightsbeat.com/reform-at-roosevelt-verdict-is-still-out-674
  3. http://www.boyleheightsbeat.com/roosevelt-high-school-directed-to-restructure-current-system-2023
  4. http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Image:Roosevelt_-_Address_to_the_Boys_Progressive_League.ogg
  5. Unusual partnership offers students birth control, Los Angeles Times, 5 June 2012
  6. "2. Proposed Changes to Lincoln High School Area Schools, School Year 2009-2010." Los Angeles Unified School District. Retrieved on March 17, 2010.
  7. 2006-07 Accountability Progress Reporting (APR) Retrieved on September 25, 2009
  8. 2007-08 Accountability Progress Reporting (APR) Retrieved on September 25, 2009
  9. 2008-09 Accountability Progress Reporting (APR) Retrieved on September 8, 2012
  10. 2009-10 Accountability Progress Reporting (APR) Retrieved on September 8, 2012
  11. 2010-11 Accountability Progress Reporting (APR) Retrieved on September 8, 2012
  12. http://www.lasports.org/lafacilities/display.php?s=Stadium&id=17
  13. 1 2 Sipchen, Bob. "Assimilation plays no part in this history lesson." Los Angeles Times. March 26, 2007. Retrieved on August 9, 2010.
  14. "Welcome." Anahuac Mural. Retrieved on August 9, 2010.
  15. Pedersen, Erik (January 28, 2016). "[WATCH] 101 Freeway Closure: LA Mayor Eric Garcetti Slow-Jams Reminder". Deadline. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  16. #101SlowJam on YouTube
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