James S. Rickards High School
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| James S. Rickards High School | |
|---|---|
| Image:Rickardslogo5.JPG | |
| Motto | New heights and rising! |
| Established | 1960 |
| Type | Public coeducational secondary |
| Principal | Dr. Pink Hightower |
| Students | 1118 |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | Tallahassee, Florida, USA |
| Colors | Blue and gold |
| Mascot | Raiders |
| Website | http://www.rickards.leon.k12.fl.us/ |
James S. Rickards High School is a public high school in Tallahassee, Florida. For the 2004-2005 school year, the Florida Department of Education gave the school a C rating after its students scored poorly on standardized tests in reading and math. However, it was ranked 115th in Newsweek's list of 1,000 top high schools, due to the high number of AP and IB exams taken by some of its students. Currently, 1,118 pupils are enrolled, and the school has completed construction of a new office wing.
Rickards has hosted an International Baccalaureate program since 1994, creating a culturally diverse mix of students and a varied ethnic focus. The school has many programs that demonstrate cultural diversity and equality, one of which focuses on traditional dance and clothes.
The school's mascot, originally the Rickards Redskins, was changed to the Rickards Raiders in 2000 because of controversy over the term redskin and its racial connotations. The school colors are blue and gold.
Rickards is notable for its award-winning Mu Alpha Theta and National Junior Classical League teams, as well as its marching band, which is heavily influenced by Florida A&M University's Marching 100 under the direction of Mr. Quincy Griffin.
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[edit] Vision
[edit] Mission statement
The mission of James S. Rickards High School is to produce graduates with skills and competencies to succeed on local, state, national, and international levels and who are responsible, self-supporting, and productive members of our society.
[edit] Administration
Principal: Pink Hightower
Assistant Principal: Ricky Ardley
Assistant Principal: Patrick Wright
Assistant Principal: Vivian Cooley
I.B. Coordinator: Sue Newman
Dean of Students: Ken Fearson
[edit] Band
James S. Rickards High currently has an average marching band, known for their unique high-stepping style, or "90 degree marching". It currently has over 100 members including auxiliary and flags. Under the direction of Mr. Quincy Griffin, former FAMU 100 member, the band has reached new heights. They are widely known through out the south and in the band's home town of Tallahassee due to their dancline's dancing which is considered by many as new and "HIP" while some consider it a little bit to revealing (one girl in dancline had problems with her uniform because she was moving so rapidly causing it to get lower and lower). So popular the band has been invited to the annual Orange Bowl in Miami in 2008. The theme for the upcoming marching season of 2007 is "We Are Taking Over", due to the wide popularity of the band. Selection of music varies, from popular tunes on the radio, to classic marching band tunes like "Flight Of The Bumblebee" (in 50 Beats per Minute), and to stand tunes like "Tribute To Bob Marley" or "Backstabbers". Their drum line is known for their fake remixes of other drums cadences, with the only difference being Rickards plays the cadences really really slow. James S. Rickards High also has a Superior symphonic band.
[edit] Athletics
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[edit] Achievements in Mathematics
The James S. Rickards Math Team is ranked among the top in the nation in Mu Alpha Theta.
Recent Results
2007 Florida State Convention: 2nd Place
2007 National Convention: 6th Place
2006 Florida State Convention: 3rd Place
2006 National Convention: 3rd Place
2005 Florida State Convention: 3rd Place
2005 National Convention: 4th Place
The members of the Rickards Math Team have also participated in other national mathematics competitions such as the American Mathematics Competition (AMC - State and Regional Champions 2003-2007, 2nd Place Nationwide 2007), the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME), the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO), the Princeton University Math Competition, the Harvard-MIT Math Tournament (HMMT), and the American Regions Math League (ARML). Two distinguished members have also served as the captains for the state ARML and Harvard-MIT Math Tournament teams, and later founded the Florida Student Association of Mathematics, a state-wide organization focused on promoting the study of mathematics and mathematical competitions in K-12 education.
In 2005, 4 students from Rickards advanced to the USAMO[1], and one (Keenan Pepper) received an Honorable Mention with a score of 28 on the USAMO[2]. He was allowed to take the TST (Team Selection Test) when he attended the Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program, as did Rickards alumnus Shaanan Shetty in 2002.
[edit] Other Clubs
Rickards has a multitude of clubs and after school activities, though the Math club is the largest. Some other clubs include:
- Junior Classical League
- Brain Bowl
-1st Place Varsity 2007 UFBowl -2nd Place JV 2007 UFBowl
- Physics Club
- Junior Engineering Technical Society
- National Honors Society
- Key Club
- Student Government Association
- Future Business Leaders of America
- Model U.N.
- Florida's Future Educators of America
- Spanish Club
- French Club
- Chess Club
- Gospel Choir
- ROTC
- 20th Century: before and after school programs
- Black History Brain Bowl
- Reading Raiders Book Club
[edit] Notable Alumni
- Rapper & Singer T-Pain
- International Boxing Association Heavyweight Champion Travis Walker
- Professional Football Player Corey Fuller
- Professional Football Player William Gay (cornerback) - Pittsburgh Steelers
- Rapper, activist, and author stic.man of Dead Prez
- Rapper, Freestyle King Hell Rell
[edit] External links
- James Rickards High School website
- Rickards High School Self-Evaluation and Statistics (SACS Report)
- Rickards High School Mu Alpha Theta
- Rickards High School National Honor Society
- Florida Student Association of Mathematics
- Mr. Hill's Article on Rickards "creation of a culture of expectation in mathematics" endorsed by Richard Rusczyk and Mathew Crawford
- Article of Rickards students planning for college
