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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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Polytechnic High School (Los Angeles)
John H. Francis Polytechnic High School is a secondary school located in the Sun Valley neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It serves grades 9 through 12 and is a part of the Los Angeles Unified School District. Despite its name, Polytechnic is a comprehensive high school.

History

Polytechnic High School opened in 1897 as a "commercial branch" of the only high school at that time in the city, Los Angeles High School. As such, Polytechnic would be the third oldest high school in the city, after Abraham Lincoln High School in Lincoln Heights, (founded in 1878), and the fourth oldest in the LAUSD, after San Fernando High School., which was founded in 1896. The school's original campus was located in downtown Los Angeles on South Beaudry Avenue, the present location of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board of Education headquarters.

Old, neoclassical campus of Metropolitan Polytechnic High near LA's historic core, 1905

In 1905, Metropolitan Polytechnic moved to the south side of Washington Boulevard at the corner of Flower Street in downtown Los Angeles, across Washington from old St. Vincent's College. Poly was the first school to offer studies in multiple class subjects, which is now modeled by many high schools, as “periods.” In 1935, its name was changed to “John H. Francis Polytechnic” to honor the founding principal.

In February 1957, Polytechnic moved to its present site in the San Fernando Valley and opened its doors to new students for the then fast growing suburb. Since Poly's relocation, the former site has been the campus of Los Angeles Trade–Technical College. The school mascot is a parrot named Joe Parrot, and he now has a female companion named Josie.

It was in the Los Angeles City High School District until 1961, when it merged into LAUSD.

In 2006, the establishment of Arleta High School and Panorama High School relieved much of the overcrowding at Polytechnic. The 2009 opening of Sun Valley High School additionally relieved overcrowding.

Poly's basketball gym is named for NBA Hall-of-Famer Gail Goodrich, a Poly alumnus. The Parrots have had a longtime rivalry with both Van Nuys High School and North Hollywood High School.

Notable alumni

Notable faculty

  • Arthur E. Briggs: Los Angeles City Council member, 1939–1941, taught law at night
  • Ralph Jesson: football coach at Polytechnic (1924–1928)

Notable administrators

  • James B. Taylor, in 1962 became first Black principal of a predominantly White high school in Los Angeles while at Poly

References

  1. ^ "Search for Public Schools - John H. Francis Polytechnic (062271003020)". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  2. ^ School history
  3. ^ “RUSH WORK ON NEW BUILDINGS WALLS OF THE POLYTECHNIC SCHOOL COMPLETED,” Los Angeles Herald
  4. ^ “Exterior view of the Polytechnic High School on Washington Street, Los Angeles, ca.1898-1905,” USC Digital Library.
  5. ^ "Los Angeles City School District". Los Angeles Unified School District. Archived from the original on 1998-02-07. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  6. ^ Arleta High School
  7. ^ Panorama High School
  8. ^ "Proposed Changes to Sun Valley High School Area Schools," Los Angeles Unified School District. Retrieved on March 17, 2010.
  9. ^ "Los Angeles Radio People, T-Z Compiled by Don Barrett".
  10. ^ Anderson, Carl David (1999). Weiss, Richard Jerome (ed.). Early Years as a Curious Child. World Scientific. p. 3. ISBN 9789810236809. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  11. ^ Tom Bradley Bio
  12. ^ Scanlon, Jennifer (2009). Toff, Nancy (ed.). Bad Girls Go Everywhere: The Life of Helen Gurley Brown. Oxford University Press. p. 14. ISBN 978-0-19-534205-5.
  13. ^ "William S. Davila Obituary (2014) San Gabriel Valley Tribune". Legacy.com.
  14. ^ Peri, Don (2008). Working with Walt: Interviews with Disney Artists. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-934110-67-6.
  15. ^ "San Diego State University Official Athletic Site". Archived from the original on 2007-11-10.
  16. ^ "Players". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  17. ^ Gail Goodrich bio
  18. ^ "John H. Francis Polytechnic High School, Sun Valley, Class of 1982".
  19. ^ Libby Clark, "Collection on View in USC's Louis Hall: Fay M. Jackson, Hollywood's First African American Publicist/Film Specialist" Los Angeles Sentinel (March 8, 2000): C9. via ProQuest
  20. ^ "Bioguide Search".
  21. ^ F.M. Carney; N. Ravitch; L.M. Van Deusen; R.V. Hine (1986). Krogh, David (ed.). "John W. Olmsted, History: Riverside". University of California: In Memoriam: 225–227. Archived from the original on 2015-10-18.
  22. ^ "Greg Palast" (PDF). Current Biography. June 2011. pp. 73–80. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-10-28. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  23. ^ "The Ultimate Heist". Time. 1978-11-20. p. 48
  24. ^ "From reformatory to Hall of Fame". Daily Times-Advocate. Escondido, California. AP. December 7, 1983. p. C5. Retrieved July 29, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "Al Sparlis (1983)". footballfoundation.org. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
  26. ^ Jessie Carnie Smith, ed., Notable Black American Women Volume 2 (VNR AG 1996): 612. ISBN 9780810391772
  27. ^ Turner Publishing Company, The Military Order of World Wars, 1997, page 60
  28. ^ "Sloppy Thurston". Baseball-Reference.Com. Retrieved October 6, 2012.
  29. ^ "Farewell". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. 1 May 1967. p. 8. Retrieved 21 April 2024 – via newspapers.com. Taylor, first Negro principal of a predominantly white school in Los Angeles system, begins assignment today as principal of new Alain LeRoy Locke High School in Watts.
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