Framingham High School

Framingham High School
Framingham High School Seal
Address
115 A Street Framingham , Massachusetts 01701 USA
Information
Type	public high school
Established	1792/1852
Principal	Michael Welch
Grades	9 – 12
Number of students	2100 (2008)
Campus	Urban/Suburban
Color(s)	Blue & white
Team name	Flyers
Newspaper	The Eagles Eye
Website	http://www.framingham.k12.ma.us/fhs/
Framingham North and South High Schools merged in 1991

Framingham High School, or FHS, is a public high school in the town of Framingham, Massachusetts, United States. Like most high schools, it enrolls 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th graders from the town. The school has a typical enrollment of 2,100 students, over three times the district average (600).

History

The Framingham Academy was established in 1798, replacing the organization known as the Proprietors of the Brick School House which had formed in 1792. The town of Framingham gave the academy $1000, but some time later this was found to be illegal, and the academy was dissolved..

In 1852 the high school was formed, and later became the legal successor to the Academy. Thus the high school can be considered to be founded in either 1792 or 1852.

In 1959 a new building on Flagg St. replaced the original high school on Union Ave. that was built in the 1920s. The original building was eventually converted to house several facilities, including the Danforth Museum and the Callahan Senior Center.

In 1963, due to an increasing school population, the original Framingham High was split in to two schools, Framingham North High School and Framingham South High School. South High was located in the Flagg St. campus in South Framingham (now the Fuller Middle School) and North High was located at the new school building at Winch Park on A St. in Saxonville. Originally, North High shared facilities with Winch Park Middle School ("E" & "F" halls in the current building) until 1974 when the first Cameron Middle School opened on Elm St. The two high schools remained separate until 1991 when they were merged to create a unified school under the name Framingham High School.

The two high schools were distinguished by their colors and mascots: North had the Spartans in yellow and green while South had the original town mascot Flyers in blue and white. When the time for the merger of the schools came, the district held an election to determine the fate of the colors and mascots. The winning combination was to be the Spartans in blue and white, however alumni of the original Framingham High raised a protest that the town should revert to the original mascot and colors which happened to be used by Framingham South. After discussion with the student body, it was agreed that the colors & mascot would be reverted to the original set.

On a visit on October 20, 1994, President Bill Clinton signed the Improving America's Schools Act (IASA) in the school's John F. Kennedy gymnasium.

Academics

In 2004, Framingham High School launched a "homeroom advisor" program, hoping to reduce the high rate of freshman students being forced to repeat their first year, a problem for many schools in the state. The advisers have around 25 students each, and watch the students' grades and attendance, meet with them individually, and may also consult with parents or teachers. It is hoped that the program will catch struggling students early and encourage them to feel more accountable for their studies

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

The school offers and competes competitively in a number of sports, including basketball, field hockey, football, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, swimming, wrestling, and volleyball.

• The Framingham High School hockey team won the 1992 Division 1 Massachusetts state championship at the Boston Garden over heavily favored Burlington High School, 8-4. It was the first state championship for the newly merged high school.

• The girl's swim team has been undefeated and has won the Bay State Conference since 2004.

• The FHS Gymnastics team had an undefeated season in 2006-2007.

• The Framingham Flyers men's football team won the state Super Bowl in the year 2000, defeating Acton-Boxborough Regional High School at Boston University's Nickerson Field.

• The girl's lacrosse team won the state championship in 2006, defeating East Longmeadow High School at Bowditch Field in Framingham and finishing 25-0 for the entire season. They had a repeat performance in 2007, again going undefeated and defeating East Longmeadow High School at ELHS's home field. They enter the 2008 season with a record of 50-0.

• The FHS boys soccer team placed second in the state in the 2007 season.

Drama Company

The school offers a theatre program for all levels of young actors.

• The Framingham High School Drama Company, a four-time state finalist and 2006 winner of the Massachusetts High School Drama Festival, produces several plays each year under the direction of Donna Wresinski. The Drama Company was a representative of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts at the 2006 New England Drama Festival along with Wellesley High School and was honored by the State Legislature at the Massachusetts State House.
• The FHS Drama Company returned to the MHSDG State Finals in 2007, performing "Stories Gone Wilde," a stage adaptation of 5 Oscar Wilde short stories.
• In 2007-2008, the Drama Company performed two fall plays - To Kill a Mockingbird and, for the first time, a student-directed all-freshman play, Cinderella. This year's MHSDG Drama Festival entry is an adaptation of the classic Japanese folk-tale Kaguya Hime.

FHS-TV (Flyer News)

The "Flyer News" television station began broadcasting a live newscast at 7:15 a.m. every day to the high school in 1999, and then to the entire town in 2005. The Flyer News, run by television production teacher Dan Devlen and his students, has won 9 high school Emmy Awards including 5 from student Frank Martino. A Flyer News episode may consist of student-produced segments such as Sez-You, which interviews the student body on various topics; Webcrawler, a technology segment; Word of the Week, asking students to define a different word each week and broadcasting the more entertaining responses; and a daily segment, Homeroom Headlines, giving morning announcements, among other things. Flyer News episodes are rebroadcast to the town every day during the school year, at 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. The station also airs numerous sports games, as well as student-produced movies, music videos, and Public Service Announcements. The FHS-TV webpage was also created in March of 2006. Students are asked for their opinions to help express school spirit and help keep the school aware of what is going on.

Music

Under the Direction of Brian Cervone the FHS's "Wind Ensemble" Concert band has gone to MICCA two years in a row receiving an award of merit in 2005 and a Bronze Medal in 2006. Framingham High School also has a Marching Band called "Pride of the Metrowest", Jazz Band, Flute Ensemble, Saxophone Ensemble, and a Drumline.

• The Drumline performed at a Boston Celtics game in 2005.
• In 2006, the Marching Band performed their field show The Doors.
• In 2007, the marching band performed their Incredibles field show.

Exchange Program

The school has participated in a sister-city exchange program with Lomonosov, Russia, a suburb of St. Petersburg. George Perrone, now-retired Music Director, brought a contingent of musicians to perform at several venues in Lomonosov. In return, Lomonosov residents visited Framingham and Framingham High. This exchange has not taken place since 2001.

Notable alumni

• Dean T. Belknap, president of Grand Island College.
• Blake Bellefeuille, professional ice hockey player.
• Andrea Berloff, screenwriter and author of World Trade Center
• Mat Maneri, avant-garde violinist.
• Lou Merloni, Major League Baseball player
• Cyrus Peirce, graduate of Framingham Academy circa 1806 and first head of what is now Framingham State College
• John Stagikas, AKA "Hurricane" John Walters, American Professional Wrestler having participated in WWE and Ring of Honor.
• Freedom Williams, musical performer, C+C Music Factory vocalist

External links

• School website
• Flyerpride.com, website for athletics department
• FraminghamFlyers.com, website for the Framingham Foundation, a school booster organization
• Photograph of Clinton at Framingham
• Remarks of Sen. Kennedy at Framingham High School
• Article taken from Metro West Daily News