Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is a public high school in Parkland, Florida, United States. Established in 1990 as part of the Broward County Public Schools district and named after the writer Marjory Stoneman Douglas, it was the only public high school in Parkland, serving almost the entire city as well as a small section of neighboring Coral Springs.

On February 14, 2018, the school was the scene of a deadly mass shooting perpetrated by a 19-year-old former student of the school, in which 17 people were murdered and 17 others injured. On June 14, 2024, the building where the shooting took place was demolished.

History

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School was named after the Everglades environmentalist Marjory Stoneman Douglas. The school is located just under two miles from the Everglades National Park, on part of the historical Everglades for which Marjory Stoneman Douglas advocated. The school opened in 1990, the year of her centennial, with students in grades 9 through 11, most of whom transferred from nearby schools Coral Springs High School and J. P. Taravella High School. The first senior class graduated in 1992.

Mass shooting

Main article: Parkland high school shooting

On February 14, 2018, a mass shooting at the campus perpetrated by a 19-year-old former student of the school armed with a semi-automatic AR-15 style rifle left 17 dead and 17 more wounded in less than six minutes. The gunman was apprehended an hour later. At the time, it was the deadliest high school shooting in U.S. history, surpassing the Columbine High School massacre on April 20, 1999, in which 13 people were killed. In 2016, a Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School school resource Broward County Sheriff's Office deputy had an investigator for the Florida Department of Children and Families speak to the defendant, but the defendant's therapist said that he was "not currently a threat to himself or others" and did not need to be committed. A mental health counselor said the defendant did not meet the criteria under Florida law that allows the police to commit a mentally ill person against their will. Stoneman Douglas High School conducted a "threat assessment" on the defendant after the counselor's report, and the Florida Department of Children and Families ultimately concluded that the defendant was not a threat because he was living with his mother, attending school, and seeing a counselor.

Authorities charged the gunman with first-degree murder, and the case went to trial in September 2021 along with the case of an attack by the defendant against a jail officer. On October 20, 2021, the gunman pleaded guilty to all charges, including murder and attempted murder. On November 2, 2022, the gunman was sentenced to 34 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, one life sentence for each of the victims murdered and wounded by the gunman.

Students from Stoneman Douglas were instrumental in helping organize nationwide student protests following the shooting, and in spurring the revision of Florida law, on March 4, 2018, to raise the legal rifle-owner age from 18 to 21, with a three-day wait.

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First day of the demolition

The building where the shooting occurred was permanently closed, and it served as evidence at the subsequent murder trial. Demolition of the structure began on June 14, 2024. The project was completed on July 5. Future plans for the site have not been finalized.

Athletics

The Marjory Stoneman Douglas Athletics Department operates programs in football, volleyball, lacrosse, softball, tennis, track, water polo, bowling, basketball, cheerleading, soccer, wrestling, swimming, cross country, and golf.

The cheerleading squad at the school received international attention in 2012 when its coach was fired in response to complaints from parents. Parents complained about being charged thousands of dollars for their children to participate in the program, and alleged that the coach mishandled the team's finances and encouraged bullying.

Academics

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2014 National Honor Society induction at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School

Newsweek's 2009 national ranking of high schools rated Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School as No. 208 in the U.S., and No. 38 in Florida, which was the highest ranking of any school in Broward County.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School had a Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) school grade of "A" for the 2011–12 academic school year.

Extracurricular activities

There are numerous clubs at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School including DECA, speech and debate, Key Club, and cultural clubs including ISA (Indian Student Associations), Black Student Union Club, French Club, and Spanish club.

Drama Club

Several students in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Drama Club wrote "Shine", a song memorializing the victims of the school shooting in 2018 and others who have experienced gun violence. It has been performed at various venues, including a nationally-broadcast CNN town hall, and at the March for Our Lives rally in Washington, D.C. on March 24, 2018. It has also been performed by other musical groups, such as the Badiene Magaziner Vocal Studio at the March for Our Lives rally in New York City on the same day. The drama club performed at the 2018 Tony Awards.

Newspaper

The Eagle Eye was the student-run news publication of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. They made international press for their reporting of the 2018 shooting and its aftermath. Two issues of the student newspaper were submitted for the Pulitzer Prize for their work covering student obituaries.

Demographics

As of the 2017–18 school year, the total student enrolment was 3,330. The ethnic makeup of the school was 57% White, 22% Hispanic, 11% Black, 7% Asian and 3% multiracial. 27% of the students were eligible for free or reduced cost lunch.

Notable alumni

• Dave Aizer, television host, writer and producer
• Roman Anthony, MLB Player
• Nick Bilton, journalist and author
• Vail Bloom, actress
• Karamo Brown, television host, reality television personality, author, and activist
• Alfonso Calderon, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Mike Caruso, MLB player
• Jaclyn Corin, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Michael Cunniff, football player (XFL), award winning PR and videographer
• Matt Deitsch, writer, film director, political advisor, freelance photographer
• Ryan Deitsch, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Sam Deitsch, author and gun control activist
• Kevin Eakin, football player
• Aalayah Eastmond, activist
• Matt Fox, MLB player
• X González, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Shayne Gostisbehere, NHL player
• Ian Grushka, musician and songwriter (New Found Glory)
• David Hogg, vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Lauren Hogg, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Kyle Kashuv, conservative activist
• Cameron Kasky, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Steve Klein, musician (New Found Glory)
• Jesús Luzardo, MLB Player
• Coby Mayo, baseball player
• Jared Moskowitz, U.S. Congressman from Florida's 23rd congressional district
• Jordan Pundik, musician and songwriter (New Found Glory)
• Anthony Rizzo, MLB player
• George Roumain, Olympic volleyball and professional beach volleyball player
• Jackie Sandler, actress
• Cassie Scerbo, actress, singer and dancer
• Nicholas Thompson, professional golfer
• Alex Wind, anti gun violence activist, March for Our Lives co-founder
• Mark Zupan, wheelchair rugby player

External links

• Official website (browardschools1.com/stonemandouglas) at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
• Official website (broward.k12.fl.us/douglashigh/) at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
• Student newspaper