Washburn High School was built in 1925 to meet the demands of the growing South Minneapolis neighborhood. Construction for the new three-story building began in 1924 after the Minneapolis Board of Education purchased unused land in Washburn Park. Land next to the school was occupied by the Washburn Memorial Orphan Asylum, now torn down and replaced with Justice Page Middle School (formerly Ramsey Middle School). Washburn is in southern Minneapolis's Tangletown neighborhood, at 201 West 49th Street.[5]
Washburn opened on September 8, 1925, to 1,031 students. When it opened, it served grades 7–10 and added one year each year for the next two years. It served middle school and high school students until 1929.[6] It became very popular, and by 1931, 2,370 students attended the school built for 1,500.[7] The school has been expanded several times to meet the high enrollment.[6][8]
The school is conventionally named after Cadwallader C. Washburn. When the school was presented to the school board it was called William D. Washburn High School, in reference to Cadwallader's brother, but naming the school after William is thought to be an error.[6] The school has been heavily influenced by Minneapolis's milling empire. Its newspaper, The Grist, involves milling terminology;[5] the school's colors, blue and orange, were those of Gold Medal Flour, a company partly run by the Washburn family and a predecessor to General Mills;[9] and the athletic teams' nickname is the Millers.
Campus
Washburn is on a 4½-city block parcel bordered by West 49th and 50th streets on the north and south and Nicollet Ave. S. and Pleasant Ave. S on the east and west.[10] Justice Page Middle School shares this parcel of land, with Washburn taking 2/3 of the space. In between the schools is A. E. MacQuarrie Field, which hosts football, soccer, lacrosse, and track and field competitions. In addition, the area between the school and field is a green space known as The Mall. Youth soccer teams, specifically the Fuller Soccer program from a neighboring park, use The Mall for games on weekends.
A tunnel under MacQuarrie Field connects the east side of Washburn and the west side of Page. It transports heating and air conditioning between the schools. During the winter, snow melts directly above the tunnel due to the steam pipes within showing the tunnel's location. Decades ago, students used the tunnel during the winter when overcrowding forced Washburn to hold classes in Ramsey.
Demographics
The demographic breakdown of the 1,960 students enrolled in 2021-22 was:
Male – 53%
Female – 47%
Native American/Alaskan – 0.9%
Asian/Pacific islanders – 3.5%
Black – 20.5%
Hispanic – 14.7%
White – 58.1%
Multiracial – 2.3%
31% of the students were eligible for free or reduced cost lunch. This is a Title I school.[2]
Staff
Emily Lilja Palmer, formerly of Sanford Middle School, was named the principal on July 2, 2018.[11]
During the 2020–21 school year, Washburn employed 139 staff members, of whom 81 were teachers. The student to teacher ratio was 20:1, with an October 1 student count of 1,689.[12]
Washburn offers bilingual support for students and families in Spanish and Somali, and English as a Second Language (ESL) support is also available.
World languages and fine arts
Washburn offers four world languages: Arabic, American Sign Language (ASL), French, and Spanish. The school also offers Jazz Band, Wind Ensemble Concert Band, Orchestra, Beginning Choir,Intermediate Choir,Advanced Choir “Miller Voices”, Guitar, Piano and Music Production courses.
The Visual Arts courses offered are Painting, Drawing, Ceramics and SL and HL IB Art. Social Justice has been a core philosophy with Washburn students, and is seen in the Black Box Theater Program.
Extracurricular activities
In line with Washburn's three pillars of academics, arts and athletics, there are many opportunities in these areas in and beyond the classroom.
Washburn offers Blackbox theater classes, which give performances of student-created works and after-school productions that are open to all students. Washburn productions typically include a musical in the fall, a larger Spotlight production in the winter,[18] and a play or musical in the spring. Washburn also participates in the MSHSL One-Act Play competition.[citation needed]
Fresh start
In March 2008, the Minneapolis Board of Education announced that Washburn would be one of two high schools in the Minneapolis Public Schools Fresh Start program. Along with Edison High School, Washburn hired new teachers and staff and examined its curriculum.[19][20] These changes were part of a nine-point plan by the Minneapolis school board to alleviate budget problems and prepare 80% of graduates for college.[19][20] Principal Carol Markham-Cousins returned to lead the school, with the rest of the teaching staff required to apply for rehire or as new to the building.
On May 14, 2008, Markham-Cousins sent letters to students and family members explaining the reasons for the Fresh Start. She cited graduation rates and college preparation as two reasons.[21] The same day, students staged a walk-out in protest of the program.[22] Student drew with chalk on the sidewalk in front of the school in support of the teachers.[22]
Additional changes that came to Washburn in 2008-09 included an increase in the number of art classes and the introduction of the International Baccalaureate program.[19][20]
Arlene Dahl — Class of 1943, film and television actress, former MGM contract star who achieved notability during the 1950s; mother of actor Lorenzo Lamas
