Garfield High School History

James A. Garfield High School was founded in 1920 at its current location as East High School. Its original class consisted of only 282 students, transferred from Broadway High School. In three years, however, the school's enrollment grew enough that the 12-room building was replaced with a brand-new, Jacobean-style building designed by Floyd Naramore. In 1929, the city commissioned the architect to design an addition for the school as enrollment peaked at 2,300 students.

Garfield High School has long played a key role in its neighborhood, and as what is now known as the Central District has changed, so has the school's population. In its early decades, the school was noted for its Jewish, Japanese and Italian populations. After World War II, the neighborhood evolved into a predominantly African-American one, and by 1961, 51 percent of Garfield students were black, compared to only 5.3 percent of the general Seattle school district population. In the late 1960s and 1970s, Garfield was at the center of the school district's attempts to avoid forced busing through various schemes, including turning it into a "magnet" school. This began the focus on music and science that has continued to this day.

Located along 23rd Avenue between East Alder and East Jefferson Streets in the Central District, Garfield draws students from all over the city. Garfield is also known as the magnet school for the school district's Accelerated Progress Program for especially gifted students. As a result it has many college level classes for students to take ranging from calculus-based physics to Advanced Placement studio art.

Remodel

The buildings have lasted for over eight decades, but are being partially demolished in a sweeping redesign of the school, which began in June 2006. The remodel is scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2008 making the class of 2009 the only class to attend both the old and new Garfield. There was a fight to hold off the remodel to preserve the building's history including a city initiative to preserve the Quincy Jones auditorium as a historic site, thereby blocking the remodel. The new design has wider hallways to better accommodate the mass of students during passing periods and a new state-of-the-art performing arts center.

Academics

Each year there are dozens of valedictorians, most of whom go on to the top universities. In June of 2005, 44 valedictorians graduated. During the 2006-2007 school year Garfield offered over 120 different classes across 9 departments, including a huge array of advanced classes. A growing number of Garfield students also take classes from local community colleges through a program called Running Start, online from Stanford's EPGY, online from Johns Hopkins University's CTY program, or on-campus at the University of Washington.

Athletics

Basketball: Garfield basketball teams have won many regional and state titles, including a stretch from 1980 to 1991 during which time the Bulldogs won five Class AAA titles, eight Seattle Metro League championships, qualified for the state tournament nine times, and won the state tournament five times. The boys' basketball team has been state champions a total of eleven times and runner-up five times since 1949. The team has had several notable alumni, including Portland Trailblazers 2007 Rookie of the Year Brandon Roy (GHS c/o 2002, UW c/o 2006), and University of Washington alumni Will Conroy and Tre Simmons (GHS c/o 2001, UW c/o 2005). Both the girls' and boys' teams were state champions in 1980 and 1987. More recently, the girls' team was state champions in 2005.

Tennis: Garfield's tennis teams have been very successful recently in the KingCo 4A division. The Boys were League Champs in 1997, 2004, 2006, and 2007. In 2004, 2006, and 2007 the Boys Tennis Team was undefeated (10-0).

Track and field: Garfield track and field teams have won multiple metro, district and state titles. Garfield won state titles in boys and girls track in 1987.

Swimming:The girls swimming and Diving Team has been consistently in the top four in conference ever since joining KingCo. In fall of 2005, they finished 2nd at State. In the fall of 2006, they finished 3rd. and in the fall of 2007, the girls team won the conference, won the district title and capped their undefeated season by winning the state championship.

Programs, clubs, and activities

Drama: Garfield's Drama Club is the school's second-largest student organization. The Drama Club is run entirely by students, who decide what shows to produce each year. Annually it supports six productions, including the mainstage Winter Show. The five remaining shows are collections of student-directed one acts and musical reviews; there are four "Dramatic Paws" productions, and one "Senior Directed One Acts". All of Drama Club's productions are produced, directed, stage managed, and performed by Garfield students.

In 2005, Garfield's performance of Cabaret received nominations for Outstanding Male in a Leading Role and Outstanding Male in a Supporting Role. It also won the Outstanding Program and Poster Design award and Special Honors in Educational Impact and Student Achievement.

The Garfield Messenger: The Messenger is Garfield's bi-weekly student-run newspaper. The typical issue is over 20 pages, and many go over 30. The Messenger has been awarded by the Journalism Education Association and the National Scholastic Press Association: placing in Best of Show in the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Conventions in 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004; honorable mention in the annual design competitions in 2000; placing in the annual best photo competitions in 1998 and 2001; placing in the annual best story competitions in 1998 and 2003; and winning their most prestigious honor, the Pacemaker Award, in 1997 and 2006 and was a finalist in 2000 and 2004. The paper won an honorable mention from the Society of Professional Journalists in their 2001 Excellence in Journalism Competition. It received an IRC and the Environmental Foundation Award Grant in 2005 for its Sustainability Edition. A column from the paper was reprinted by All About Jazz in 2004. In 2006 and 2007, staff reporters won the NSPA's Brasler Prize, also known as the high school Pulitzer Prize.

The Watchdog: The Watchdog is the "Student-run political newspaper of Garfield High School," founded in 2007 by members of the class of 2008. The paper has no staff advisers and is distributed on a monthly basis. Issues generally focus on global or national problems, touching such topics as the environment, immigration, abortion, and education.

Global Technology Academy: Global Technology Academy (GTA) is a non-profit organization formerly run through Garfield High School that takes students and computers to underserved nations around the world. High school students take old computers donated to GTA and refurbish them. The students then take the computers to various countries, set up computer labs, and teach the students there how to use them. GTA has taken 27 trips abroad, bringing computers to children in Ghana, Russia, Mozambique, the Gambia, Guatemala, Ethiopia, Philippines, Poland, India, Chile, Tanzania, and Turkey. This program is no longer associated with Garfield High School.

Math Team: The Garfield Math Team is composed of several four-person teams. The teams consistently place at the top of Washington State math contests like the Northwest Math Championship, Mu Alpha Theta and Math is Cool. The team also participates in national contests like the American Mathematics Contest, the American Invitational Mathematics Examination and the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad. Several team members have attended prestigious summer math camps like the Mathematical Olympiad Program, which prepares high school students for the International Math Olympiad. Six of the twelve members of the '05-'06 school year team represented Washington State at the American Regions Mathematics League in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Garfield Math Team also hosts the Garfield Annual Math Extravaganza. Only one adult (a teacher) is closely involved in the staging of the event, making it an enormous undertaking. The team must write several hundred unique problems, find sponsors and manage the contest itself, with hundreds of competitors. The competition is open to other math teams in Washington.

Music

The music program at Garfield High School has won numerous awards. It has seen several noted artists, including Jimi Hendrix, Quincy Jones, and Ernestine Anderson, although Jimi Hendrix rarely attended school.

Orchestra: The orchestra, under the direction of Marcus Tsutakawa, currently holds Downbeat magazine's Best Overall Orchestra award, and has won the award multiple times previously. The orchestra program includes a symphony orchestra, a concert orchestra, and a thriving chamber music program. The orchestra has toured in Japan on numerous occasions. One tour included a joint concert with the Kobe Philharmonic Orchestra and a performance at the Asakuchi Music Festival in Satosho. It has also toured central Europe, finishing second in the internationally renowned Vienna, Austria, Austria Youth and Music Festival in 1997. The symphony orchestra went to Boston in March of 2007, winning first place, and plans on a tour Japan in 2008.

The orchestra routinely takes first place at the Northwest Orchestra Festival in Gresham, Oregon. It was a finalist for the 2004-2005 GRAMMY Signature School Program award. Each year many students participate in the Washington State Solo and Ensemble Contest and bring home awards. In 2007, Marcia Croft placed first in bassoon and Emily Choi second in violin. Every year around 20 students from the Orchestra play in the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra, often in principal positions. Garfield students also play in the Youth Symphony's Junior and Debut Orchestras, the Seattle Conservatory of Music Starling Scholar Chamber Orchestra, and many community ensembles. Garfield Orchestra members have had their original compositions debuted by the Seattle Symphony and the Youth Symphony. In 1995, Garfield guest conductor Gerard Schwarz, Music Director of the Seattle Symphony, said, "I don't recall hearing a high school orchestra perform anywhere in this country on such a high level."

Graduates of the Garfield Orchestra have been admitted to many of the top music programs around the country, including those at The Juilliard School, the Manhattan School of Music, The Curtis Institute of Music, The Cleveland Institute of Music, Rice University, New England Conservatory of Music, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Eastman School of Music, and Oberlin College[citation needed]. Former Garfield Orchestra musicians hold principal positions in some of the country's leading orchestras, including The Cleveland Orchestra and the Seattle Symphony.

Marching Band: The Marching Band plays at all school football games and it has been said that the band is the only reason that people even come to the games, due to the football team's poor performance. The marching band also plays at home basketball games. The trumpets have been known to play so loud, they have earned the nickname, "wall of sound".

Drumline: The Garfield High School Drumline, also known as "Rick's Bricks" or "Purple Haze", represents the traditional styles of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities of the South. This style of drumming was recently exhibited in the 2002 film Drumline starring Nick Cannon. Each year, the drumline focuses on a different member of the HBCU (i.e. Southern University, Grambling State University, Hampton University, Jackson State University, Morehouse College, Morris Brown College, etc.) and learns their style. In these traditions, the drumline is an ensemble meant to demonstrate musicianship and technique. A great deal of importance is placed on choreography, dance ability, and the overall quality of the cadences and performances. The Garfield Drumline uses a traditional New Orleans instrumentation, and includes members from the Garfield marching band, jazz band, orchestra, and choir. Members of the drumline performed a Stomp-like show in 2005 called Conundrum, using every day objects like water bottles and trash cans to make beats.

Pep Squad: The Pep Squad plays at all home volleyball games and occasionally travels to nearby away games. The band consists of: one snare drum, a tom or tenor drum, a bass drum, trumpets, and occasionally trombones, saxophones, and cymbals. The squad typically cheers between games and during time-outs. Pep Squad plays marching band songs, drum cadences and songs from popular culture, like the theme to The Godfather or Jeopardy!.

Jazz: Garfield's jazz program has won many state, national, and international awards and accolades in big band, combo, and individual categories. The Jazz Ensemble has toured Europe at least five times, most recently in the Montreaux and North Sea Jazz Festivals, and has attended the International Association of Jazz Educators' conference, as well as the Essentially Ellington Competition in New York City. It is the only band to win the 'First Place' trophy in consecutive years (2003-04). Its consistent placement in national competitions and long history of national recognition make it one of the best high school jazz bands in the country.

Notable alumni

Musicians and singers
• Ernestine Anderson — jazz and blues singer
• Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler — rapper, member of Digable Planets
• Jimi Hendrix — rock guitarist (never graduated, awarded an honorary diploma in 1968)
• Quincy Jones — United States music legend, record, television and film producer, musician, arranger and songwriter

Athletes
• Debbie Armstrong — the 1984 Olympic gold medallist in the giant slalom
• Chuck Carroll — earned 17 varsity letters as a multi-sport high school athlete, Garfield Athlete of the First Half of the Century, first-team All-Coast and second-team All American at University of Washington, set multiple University of Washington records, jersey retired by UW, member of College Football Hall of Fame, the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame, and University of Washington Husky Football Hall of Fame Will Conroy
• Homer Harris — first African American captain in any sport in Big Ten Conference history, member of the University of Iowa Athletic Hall of Fame
• Tony Harris (1970-2007) - Washington State University and international basketball player
• Bruce Lee — martial arts legend attended Garfield briefly while he was living with the illustrious Chow family on Seattle's Beacon Hill
• Billy North — played 11 seasons in Major League Baseball, won the 1974 World Series with the Oakland Athletics, was one game away from winning World Series in 1978
• Malia O'Neal - University of Arizona Women's Basketball. Two time state player of the year.
• Shyril O'Steen '78 -- 1984 Olympic gold medalist, rowing, Women's Eights
• Brandon Roy — 2005-06 Pac-10 Player of the Year as a guard for the University of Washington Men's Basketball Team, named to 2006 first-team All-America squad, drafted 7th overall (by Minnesota, traded to Portland) in the 2006 NBA Draft. He then won the 2006-2007 NBA Rookie of the Year award
• Isaiah Stanback — University of Washington quarterback, drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the 2007 NFL draft
• Joyce Walker — 1984 Olympic women's basketball gold medalist, former Harlem Globetrotter, women's basketball All-American at LSU, member of the LSU Hall of Fame, holder of multiple Washington State high school records
• (Lloyd) Patrick Allen - Graduated class of 1980 and played seven seasons for the Houston Oilers. (contributed by Monica "Monie" Ordonia)

Others
• Jack Benaroya — philanthropist, funder of Benaroya Hall, which houses the Seattle Symphony
• Linda Emery — widow of martial arts legend Bruce Lee. Garfield is also where the couple met for the first time K. Thor Jensen - author and comic artist
• Mary McCarthy (author), novelist and critic (did not graduate, wrote about her time at Garfield in her memoir "How I Grew")
• Yasser Seirawan — Chess grandmaster, U.S. Junior Chess Champion, led Garfield to top five finish nationally, graduated early so he could become the World Junior Champion in what would have been his senior year
• Mike Selinker — award-winning game designer and author of poker books
• Minoru Yamasaki — architect of the late World Trade Center in New York City, the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, and Conservatory of Music buildings at Oberlin College

[source: History compiled from Wikipedia]

How well do you know Garfield?

Quiz yourself! See if you can answer the following trivia questions about Garfield High School students and history.

1. Who was the school's longest serving teacher?
2. Name two Principals named Frank that served the same year.
3. What famous chairman of the Southern Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) spoke to a large group of students on the playfield in 1967?
4. When was the field house built?
5. Who was the first female principal?
6. What student, and later Saturday Evening Post illustrator, painted the mural in room 312?
7. What Seafair Pirate was also a custodian at Garfield?
8. Which Garfield graduate married Bruce Lee?
9. What year did Jimi Hendrix return to Garfield for a pep assembly?
10. When did Quincy Jones graduate?
11. When did the Garfield Basketball team win the State Championship two years in a row?
12. Which former Governor coached Jimi Hendrix in youth sports?

Scroll down for the answers!

1. Parker Cook
2. Frank Fidler and Frank Hanawalt
3. Stokley Carmichael
4. 1962
5. Cheryl Chow
6. Irwin Caplan
7. Weaver Dial
8. Linda Emery
9. 1968
10. 1950
11. 1990 and 1991 1986 and 1987 (corrected by Treffaney R. Lowe, Esq.)
12. Booth Gardner

To submit corrections or your own trivia about Garfield High School, please email the webmaster.