Phoenix Union High School

PHOENIX UNION HIGH SCHOOL, "The school of prophecy" by designation of the National Education Association, is the largest high school west of the Misssisippi. Five thousand and nine students were enrolled in the school year 1938-39 with a faculty of 160 well trained teachers to give instruction in 19 carefully organized courses. These courses run from Art and Agriculture through College Preparation and specific Vocational Training offering an opportunity to every boy and girl to study in the particular line of work in which he or she is most interested. When the students are without a definite objective, the Department of Research and Guidance will counsel and advise them in an attempt to find an interest. Phoenix High School was established in 1895 as a part of the city school system and given a room in the Central School building where it remained two years, when the Churchill residence on Fifth and Van Buren streets was purchased for $15,000 and converted into a school building. The rapid rise and growth of the school was evident in that early period for after two years the building was remodeled and an addition placed on the north end at a cost of another $15,000. The high school remained a part of the city system from 1895 to 1904. In 1904 it was realized the community would grow to great bounds and the school was organized as the Phoenix Union High School. More land was acquired on which was erected in 1912 the Administration, Auditorium, Science, and heating building, followed in 1918 by the Liberal Arts and Industrial Arts building. In 1922 the Gymnasium was added, and the four-story Eighth building was erected in 1928 at

The graduating class of PUHS in 1939 numbered 866. Above, the class is shown at commencement in the High School Stadium. Adjoin-ing above, Sixth street in Phoenix is stopped for auto traffic during school hours and thousands of students use this street for a campus walk. Palms, years old, are used to beautify the campus. (Photos by Crockett.) a cost of $235,000. The auditorium was rebuilt to accommodate double its former size in the same year.

In the winter of 1928 an $80,000 bond issue was approved by the voters to build a stadium to seat 10,500 spectators for athletic events and school functions. With its present equipment of flood lights, public address system, and modern facilities it is one of the popular spots of the Salt River Valley for athletic events, pageants and graduation exercises. The big league baseball teams stop here in the spring to play exhibition games and the Junior Chamber of Commerce uses it for its annual Christmas Tree party. The remarkable part of this stadium is that it has been paid for from receipts and rentals. At the present time there is a modern gymnasium under construction which will accommodate 3,500 for games or 5,000 for community functions. It is being built with the aid of a W. P. A. grant and will also be paid for from athletic receipts.

The Colored School on a separate campus at Fifth and Grant streets was erected in 1926 and has maintained the rapid growth of all the other departments of P. U. H. S. The Phoenix Junior College, established in 1920, has enjoyed a rapid growth, and in 1928 a separate plant was built on Seventh street. The Arizona Vocational school, organized in 1935, has been maintained in rented quarters during its existence. These units with the Evening school and the Correspondence school make up a composite unit enrolling at the peak 13,000 students in a single year.

In its forty-five years of existence the school has grown from one room to a plant covering over eight city blocks with buildings valued at two and a quarter million dollars.

The grounds are attractively landscaped. Many of the fine old palms have reached a mature dignity which lends a special charm to the campus, and spacious lawns are maintained throughout the year. Located on U. S. highways 60-70-80-89, it wins the admiration of many visitors who always ask "What college is this?"

In the buildings and equipment have in no manner kept pace with the increased enrollment. In the same pe-riod the graduation figure has risen from two students In 1896 to 866 in 1939. In the first year there was an enrollment of ninety students while last year there were 5,409 students in the high school. This represents approximately one-third of the high school students in the state of Arizona.

In recent years Phoenix Union High School has contributed much to research and the technique of teaching. Notable among these have been the study made in the results of learning in large and small classes. Regular tests were conducted with parallel groups and the accomplishments of the larger classes were found to equal those of the smaller with resultant economies which have been essential in the last few years. Fusion courses of History and English have been worked out so that Civics, History and Government are studied with a regular tie-up of English, giving the student a full kit of tools and materials to be used together.

Classes in Human Relationships as worked out in Phoenix Union High School have brought national attention. In these groups the students are helped to understand themselves and their relationships to others with whom they come in contact; as their family, friends, school associates, and employers. Preparation for marriage finds a place in this course in the discussion of such topics as courtship, choice of a mate and making marriage a success. The laboratory work for this course includes the handling and observation of pre-school children who are brought into the High School as a play school group.

The Phoenician, the year book of the school, has won the All-American National Honor Rating each year from 1927 through 1939 except 1928-29 when it won second place. The Coyote Journal, the weekly paper, has won many high ratings such as All-American Honor rating, 1927 through 1939 and individual writers have placed at the top of many contests.

The outstanding original poems and prose are collected each year and published by the Senior Creative Writing Classes. This book is called Nuggets and the ninth volume was published this spring.

Through the Carnegie Foundation work began last year on Remedial Reading in class size (Turn to Page 32) The R. O. T. C. at PUHS has the distinction of having won the Federal Inspection three years in succession. Winning this inspection is the highest honor which can come to a unit in the Eighth Corps area. Above, companies "A", "C" and "D" are doing Butts Manual. Above, right, is how the school looked in 1899 when an addition was made to the north side of the Churchill Mansion to provide additional class rooms and an assembly hall. (Photos by Crockett.)