The
Duke Ellington School of the Arts is a
high schoolHigh school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
located at 35th Street and R Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C., and dedicated to arts education. One of the high schools of the
District of Columbia Public School systemDistrict of Columbia Public Schools is the traditional public school system of Washington, D.C. in the United States.- Composition and enrollment :...
, it is named for the
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
jazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
bandleaderA bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
and
composerA composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Edward Kennedy "Duke" EllingtonEdward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
(1899–1974), himself a native of
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
The building formerly housed
Western High School. The building is listed on the
National Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Graduates of the school earn both an artistic and academic diploma. In addition to completing the traditional public school curriculum, students must audition for and complete studies in one of the following artistic areas:
danceDance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
, literary
mediaIn the arts, a media or medium is a material used by an artist or designer to create a work.-Architecture:In the art and science of architecture, the design and construction of buildings and interiors, infrastructure and other physical structures are created...
, museum studies, instrumental music,
vocal musicVocal music is a genre of music performed by one or more singers, with or without instrumental accompaniment, in which singing provides the main focus of the piece. Music which employs singing but does not feature it prominently is generally considered instrumental music Vocal music is a genre of...
, theater, and
visual artsThe visual arts are art forms that create works which are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, and often modern visual arts and architecture...
.
The school developed from the collaborative efforts of Peggy Cooper Cafritz, a long-time member of the
D.C. School BoardDistrict of Columbia Public Schools is the traditional public school system of Washington, D.C. in the United States.- Composition and enrollment :...
and Mike Malone, a veteran of
BroadwayBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
,
off-BroadwayOff-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
, and
classical dancerBallet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
, who were co-founders of Workshops for Careers in the Arts in 1968. In 1974 this workshop program developed into the Duke Ellington School of the Arts at
Western High SchoolWestern High School may refer to:*Western High School – Anaheim, California*Western High School – Barry, Illinois*Western High School – Davie, Florida...
, an accredited four-year public high school program combining
artsaRts, which stands for analog Real time synthesizer, is an audio framework that is no longer under development. It is best known for previously being used in KDE to simulate an analog synthesizer....
and academics. It is currently operated as a joint partnership between D.C. Public Schools, the Kennedy Center, and
George Washington UniversityThe George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
.
Students and faculty
Ellington currently serves approximately 500 students in grades 9-12. Most students commute in from outside of Ward 2, where the school is situated. The academic faculty is fully credentialed and includes seven Fulbright Scholars, various Ph.D's, and DCPS's only National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) in Young Adulthood English/
Language ArtsTraditionally, the primary divisions in the language arts are Literature and Language, where language in this case refers to both linguistics, and specific languages....
.
Academics
Ranked as one of
D.C. Public Schools'District of Columbia Public Schools is the traditional public school system of Washington, D.C. in the United States.- Composition and enrollment :...
top high schools, Ellington's
curriculumSee also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...
requires students earn 34% more credits than those at other D. C. public high schools. Students must maintain a minimum grade point average in both academics and the arts to be permitted to perform and, ultimately, to stay enrolled at Ellington. The school has a 99% on-time graduation rate.
Arts
Ellington's mission is to emphasize the arts as much as academics. It offers training in eight disciplines: Dance, Literary Media and Communications, Museum Studies, Instrumental or Vocal Music, Theater, Technical Theater, and Visual Arts.
In support of their arts program, the school offers master classes taught by accomplished artists such as
Wynton MarsalisWynton Learson Marsalis is a trumpeter, composer, bandleader, music educator, and Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Marsalis has promoted the appreciation of classical and jazz music often to young audiences...
,
Billy TaylorBilly Taylor was an American jazz pianist, composer, broadcaster and educator. He was the Robert L. Jones Distinguished Professor of Music at East Carolina University in Greenville, and since 1994, he was the artistic director for jazz at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in...
,
Lynn WhitfieldLynn Whitfield is an American actress.Whitfield began her acting career in television and theatre, before progressing to supporting roles in film. She won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special and a NAACP Image Award for her performance as Josephine Baker in the...
, and
Lionel HamptonLionel Leo Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. Like Red Norvo, he was one of the first jazz vibraphone players. Hampton ranks among the great names in jazz history, having worked with a who's who of jazz musicians, from Benny Goodman and Buddy...
.
The school is recognized for, among other things, its award-winning Duke Ellington Show Choir. Established in 1986, the Choir performs all types of music including
BroadwayBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, Gospel,
OperaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
,
JazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, and R&B. The creator, Samuel L. E. Bonds, studied with
Todd DuncanRobert Todd Duncan was an American baritone opera singer and actor.-Biography:Todd Duncan was born in Danville, Kentucky in 1903. He obtained his musical training at Butler University in Indianapolis with a B.A. in music followed by an M.A...
. Students in the Choir are required to continue performing academically, maintaining a minimum grade point average of 2.8. As well as performing as part of an ensemble, they are also allowed to focus on solo work. It performs a holiday show of
Amahl and the Night VisitorsAmahl and the Night Visitors is an opera in one act by Gian Carlo Menotti with an original English libretto by the composer. It was commissioned by NBC and first performed by the NBC Opera Theatre on December 24, 1951, in New York City at NBC studio 8H in Rockefeller Center, where it was broadcast...
yearly.
The Show Choir has traveled to Europe, Asia, and throughout the United States and territories. It has performed at the
White HouseThe White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
for Presidents
Bill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and
George W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
and in both Mayor
Adrian FentyAdrian Malik Fenty was the sixth, and at age 36, the youngest, mayor of the District of Columbia. He served one term—from 2007 to 2011—losing his bid for reelection at the primary level to Democrat Vincent C. Gray...
and President
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's inauguration. The Show Choir has shared the stage with
Clay AikenClayton Holmes "Clay" Aiken is an American singer, songwriter, actor, producer and author who began his rise to fame on the second season of the television program American Idol in 2003. RCA Records offered him a recording contract, and his multi-platinum debut album Measure of a Man was released...
,
Patti LaBellePatricia Louise Holte-Edwards , better known under the stage name, Patti LaBelle, is a Grammy Award winning American singer, author and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry...
,
Jasmine GuyJasmine Guy is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is best known for her starring role as Whitley Gilbert in the television sitcom A Different World.-Biography:...
,
Patti Austin-Life and career:Austin was born in Harlem, New York. She made her debut at the Apollo Theater at age four and had a contract with RCA Records when she was only five. Quincy Jones and Dinah Washington have proclaimed themselves as her godparents....
,
Beyonce KnowlesBeyoncé Giselle Knowles , often known simply as Beyoncé, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child...
,
Boyz II MenBoyz II Men is an American R&B vocal group best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are the most successful R&B group of all time, having sold more than albums worldwide. In the 1990s, Boyz II Men found fame on Motown Records as a quartet, but original member Michael McCary...
, and
Denyce GravesDenyce Graves is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer.-Early life:Graves was born on March 7, 1964, to Charles Graves and Dorothy Graves-Kenner. She is the middle of three children and was raised by her mother on Galveston Street, S.W., in the Bellevue section of Washington...
. The Choir has performed at
Carnegie HallCarnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
, the Kennedy Center and sang The Star Spangled Banner for the opening of the
Washington NationalsThe Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...
first baseball game.
College acceptance
Over 95% of Ellington graduates are accepted into universities and conservatories each year. Ellington alum have studied at Washington Adventist University,
Howard UniversityHoward University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
,
Yale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
,
New York UniversityNew York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
,
Harvard UniversityHarvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
,
Manhattan School of MusicThe Manhattan School of Music is a major music conservatory located on the Upper West Side of New York City. The school offers degrees on the bachelors, masters, and doctoral levels in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition...
, The Juilliard School, Parsons School of Design,
Pratt InstitutePratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
,
Berklee College of MusicBerklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
,
The Oberlin ConservatoryOberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
and among other institutions.
Application process
In order to be admitted into Ellington, students must complete an admissions application, audition before a panel, provide academic and attendance records, two letters of recommendations and complete an interview.
Relocation controversy
In January 2010, the Washington Post reported that the D.C. government was studying a plan to relocate the school to a new site near
Union StationWashington Union Station is a train station and leisure destination visited by 32 million people each year in the center of Washington, D.C. The train station is served by Amtrak, MARC and Virginia Railway Express commuter rail services as well as by Washington Metro subway trains and local buses...
.
Jack EvansJack Evans is a Democratic politician from Washington, D.C. He currently represents Ward 2 on the Council of the District of Columbia and serves as its chairperson pro tempore....
, the D.C. Council member for the school's host ward, advocates the plan as a way to move the school to a more "central" location relative to its student body, as well to allow the current Ellington site to revert to a standard neighborhood school. Opposition from students, parents, alumni, and others has been strong, including online petitions and a
FacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
group with over
1,700 members. Shortly after the Washington Post report, D.C. Schools Chancellor
Michelle RheeMichelle A. Rhee is a public figure involved in the American education system. She was chancellor of the Washington, D.C. public schools from 2007 to 2010...
announced that the school will not be moved in the near future.
Notable alumni
- Dave Chappelle
David Khari Webber "Dave" Chappelle is an American comedian, screenwriter, television/film producer, actor, and artist. Chappelle began his film career in the film Robin Hood: Men in Tights in 1993 and continued to star in minor roles in the films The Nutty Professor, Con Air, and Blue Streak. His...
, comedian
- Chappelle has been known to support the school in multiple ways, including a benefit performance held at the Kennedy Center in 2006.
- Michaela Angela Davis
Michaela Angela Davis is a writer on urban style, race, gender and hip-hop culture in the United States.-Writing career:She was the associate fashion, culture and the executive fashion and beauty editor for Essence magazine. She was the founding fashion director for Vibe magazine, and she was the...
, Essence (magazine)Essence is a monthly magazine for African-American women between the ages of 18 and 49. The magazine covers fashion, lifestyle and beauty with an intimate girlfriend-to-girlfriend tone.-History:...
Executive Fashion & Beauty Editor, writer, author, commentator, and speaker
- Johnny Gill
Johnny Gill is an American R&B singer-songwriter. He is the sixth and final member of the R&B supergroup New Edition, and was also a member of another supergroup called LSG; with Gerald Levert and Keith Sweat. His signature song "My, My, My" has been included on numerous romantic...
, R&B singer and member of New EditionNew Edition is an R&B group formed in Boston in 1978. The group reached its height of popularity during the 1980s. They were the progenitors of the boy band movement of the 1980s and 1990s and led the way for groups like New Kids on the Block, Boyz II Men, Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync...
(b. 1963)
- Denyce Graves
Denyce Graves is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer.-Early life:Graves was born on March 7, 1964, to Charles Graves and Dorothy Graves-Kenner. She is the middle of three children and was raised by her mother on Galveston Street, S.W., in the Bellevue section of Washington...
, operaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer
- Meshell Ndegeocello, singer (b. 1968)
- Wallace Roney
Wallace Roney is an American hard bop and post-bop trumpeter.Roney took lessons from Clark Terry and Dizzy Gillespie and studied with Miles Davis from 1985 until the latter's death in 1991...
, jazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
trumpeter
- Lamman Rucker
Lamman Rucker is an American actor. He currently appeared on the TBS sitcom Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns.-Early life:...
, actor
- Matthew Dickens
Matthew Dickens’ is an American theater, film, television performer with credits as an Actor/Singer/Dancer, Writer/Producer/Director and Choreographer.-Early life:...
, actor/singer/dancer and writer/producer/director
- Tony Terry
Tony Terry is an American soul/new jack swing singer from Washington, D.C., who had several R&B hits in the late 1980s and early 1990s.-Singing:...
, R&B singer
- Mary Timony
Mary B. Timony is an American independent singer-songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, and violist. She was a member of the bands Helium and Autoclave, and currently plays in Wild Flag.-Biography:...
, indie rockIndie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
musician (b. 1970)
- Ruth Chew
Ruth Chew was an American children's author and illustrator of over 30 children's books, most of which were juvenile fantasy. The books were early-reader chapter books and usually centered around magic...
, author
External links