Sumner High School (St. Louis)


Sumner High School, also known as Charles H. Sumner High School, is a St. Louis public high school that was the first high school for African-American students west of the Mississippi River. Together with Vashon High School, Sumner was one of only two segregated public high schools in St. Louis City for African-American students. Established in 1875 only after extensive lobbying by some of St. Louis' African-American residents, Sumner moved to its current location in 1908.

Population

As of the 2012–13 school year, the school had an enrollment of 576 students and 32 classroom teachers, for a student-teacher ratio of 18:1

History

Sumner High opened in 1875, the first high school opened for African Americans west of the Mississippi. The school is named after the well-known abolitionist senator Charles H. Sumner. The high school was established on Eleventh Street in St. Louis between Poplar and Spruce Street, in response to demands to provide educational opportunities, following a requirement that school boards support black education after the radical Constitution of 1865 in Missouri. The school was moved in the 1880s because parents complained that their children were walking past the city gallows and morgue on their way to school. The current structure, built in 1908, was designed by architect William B. Ittner. Sumner was the only black public high school in St. Louis City until the opening of Vashon High School in 1927. Famous instructors include Edward Bouchet. Other later black high schools in St. Louis County were Douglass High School and Kinloch High School.
In 2009, St. Louis Public School Superintendent Kevin Adams proposed several options with students and parents of how to deal with the problems of the school. He recommended improvements including using Sumner alumni to mentor current students, transferring troublesome students to different schools, and setting achievable goals for the school year.

Athletics

Sumner High's mascot is the Bulldog. Sumner's 1969 basketball team won the Missouri Class L state championship and featured future NBA and ABA players Harry Rogers and Marshall Rogers as well as David Brent who was a 6th round draft pick for the Los Angeles Lakers. Sports that are currently offered are football, volleyball, basketball, baseball, track and field, tennis, and soccer.

Notable alumni