James S. Rickards High School

James S. Rickards High School is a public high school in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a part of Leon County Schools. The school's mascot, originally the Rickards Redskins, was changed to the Rickards Raiders in 2000 because of controversy over the racial connotations of the term "redskin". The school colors are blue and gold.

James S. Rickards High School
Address
3013 Jim Lee Road Tallahassee , Florida 32301 United States
Coordinates	30°24′26″N 84°15′46″W / 30.40724°N 84.26269°W / 30.40724; -84.26269
Information
Type	Public coeducational high school
Motto	New heights and rising!
Established	1960
School district	Leon County Schools
Principal	Douglas Cook
Staff	62.10 (FTE)^[1]
Grades	9–12
Enrollment	1,495 (2018-19)^[1]
Student to teacher ratio	24.97^[1]
Color(s)
Team name	Raiders
Website	School website

Programs

The student body is 75 percent Black.^[2] Rickards has hosted an International Baccalaureate program since 1994, creating a culturally diverse mix of students and a varied ethnic focus.^{[citation needed]} The school has many programs that demonstrate cultural diversity and equality, one of which focuses on traditional dance and clothes.^{[citation needed]} This program is coordinated by Dr. Joe Williams.

Alumni Village, the designated Florida State University housing unit for FSU students with children, was zoned to Rickards High School prior to its closure.^[3][4][5]

Campus

In 2018, Leon County Schools began a $35 million renovation of Rickards' campus, including new athletic fields and academic buildings.^[6]

School performance

In 2009, Rickards earned a "D" as its school performance grade, making it the second-lowest ranking high school in the district.^[7] This was lower than in 2008 and 2007, when the school had earned "C"s. In 2010, Rickards earned an "A" as its school performance grade for the first time. The celebration was accompanied by a pep rally.^[8][9]

Extracurricular Activities

Pangaea

^[10] Every year, James S. Rickards High School puts on a multicultural show called Pangaea. In recent years, the show has become more and more successful. Pangaea is a completely student-run event that showcases the various talents and cultures of the school through song, dance, and fashion from around the world. The show is preceded by an international dinner, put on by the Model United Nations team.

Achievements in mathematics

The members of the Rickards Math Team have participated in national mathematics competitions such as the American Mathematics Competition, the American Invitational Mathematics Examination, the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad, the Princeton University Math Competition, the Harvard-MIT Math Tournament, and the American Regions Math League. Three members of Rickards' Math Team have served as the captains of the state math teams that competed at ARML, HMMT, and PUMaC. The Math Team has also produced multiple USAMO qualifiers and attendees to the Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program. None of them have yet to make it to the Carnegie Mellon program. They were the runners-up at the 2010 National Mu Alpha Theta Convention in Washington, D.C.^[11][12]

Band

James S. Rickards High has a marching band known for their high-stepping style, or "90 degree marching", with over 100 members including auxiliary. They performed at the Orange Bowl in Miami in 2007 and received thirteen trophies and three plaques, winning all first place awards in the AA division. Due to those awards, they performed during the pre-game events at the Orange Bowl. The band appeared as a cameo in the 2008 HBO movie Recount.^[13]

Athletics

• Boys' sports
  • Basketball
  • Baseball
  • Cross country
  • Football (Varsity and Junior Varsity)
  • Golf
  • Soccer
  • Swimming and diving
  • Track and field
  • Tennis
  • Weightlifting
  • Wrestling
• Girls' sports
  • Basketball
  • Cheerleading
  • Cross country
  • Dance team
  • Flag football
  • Golf
  • Soccer
  • Softball
  • Swimming and diving
  • Tennis
  • Track and field
  • Volleyball
  • Weightlifting

Notable alumni

• Gene Atkins - professional football player^[14]
• Stephen Denmark - professional football player^[15]
• Corey Fuller - professional football player and coach^[16]
• William Gay - professional football player with the Pittsburgh Steelers^[17]
• Burgess Owens (Class of 1969) - former championship winning professional football and current Republican representative of Utah's 4th congressional district who is the leader of a non-profit dedicated to helping troubled and incarcerated youth
• Elton Patterson - professional football player^[18]
• Kent Richardson - professional football player^{[citation needed]}
• Kolby Smith - professional football player; running back with the Kansas City Chiefs^[19]
• Mallex Smith - professional baseball player with the Tampa Bay Rays^[20]
• stic.man - rapper, activist, and author; member of dead prez^[21]
• T-Pain - rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer^[22]
• Travis Walker - International Boxing Association heavyweight champion^[23][24]
• Wally Williams - professional football player^[25]

Notable staff

• Rudy Hubbard - football coach at the school; former college football player and coach^[26]

References

1. "JAMES RICKARDS HIGH SCHOOL". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
2. https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/florida/districts/leon-county-schools/james-rickards-high-school-5192
3. "Alumni Village Community Standards and Expectations Handbook March 30, 2012, at the Wayback Machine." Florida State University. Retrieved on August 15, 2011. "Tallahassee and Alumni Village are served by the Leon County Public School System"
4. "Location Map March 30, 2012, at the Wayback Machine." (for Alumni Village) Florida State University. Retrieved on August 15, 2011.
5. "Leon County High School Zoning July 11, 2014, at the Wayback Machine." Leon County Schools. Retrieved on August 15, 2011.
6. White, Ashley. "Details revealed for Rickards High School renovations". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
7. (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2010-12-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
8. "RICKARDS-PARENTS Archives -- December 2010 (#3)". listserv.leon.k12.fl.us.
9. . Archived from the original on August 15, 2012. Retrieved 2016-02-02.
10. Thompson, Amanda. "Rickards celebrates diversity with Pangaea". Retrieved 5 July 2018.
11. . Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2010-12-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
12. . rickardsmao.org. Archived from the original on March 15, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
13. (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2010-12-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
14. "Gene Atkins". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
15. "Stephen Denmark". Chicago Bears. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
16. "Corey Fuller". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
17. . uoflsports.com. Archived from the original on July 22, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
18. "Elton Patterson". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
19. . kcchiefs.com. Archived from the original on March 15, 2010. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
20. "Mallex Smith".
21. . Archived from the original on 2011-07-25. Retrieved 2011-02-06.
22. Forrester, Pam. "Tallahassee Pain". Tallahassee Magazine. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
23. "Travis Walker The Freight Train Makes a Stop in West Sacramento - Pound4Pound.com - P4P Number 1". pound4pound.com. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
24. . Archived from the original on 2010-12-01. Retrieved 2010-12-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
25. "Wally Williams". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
26. "Icon Rudy Hubbard Steps Away from Coaching Sidelines". wctv.tv. January 16, 2012.

External links

•  Florida portal
•  Schools portal

• Official website
• James S. Rickards High School at the Wayback Machine (archive index)