W. Tresper Clarke High School

W. Tresper Clarke High School is a high school in Westbury (technically in Salisbury) New York, United States. It is operated by the East Meadow Union Free School District, also known as the East Meadow School District. The school serves students living in Salisbury, or South Westbury; East Meadow; and Levittown, New York. Named after William Tresper Clarke, a former president of the East Meadow School Board, the school opened in 1957.

History

W. Tresper Clarke High School opened in 1957. The class of 1959 was the first graduating class, while the class of 1961 was the first graduating class to have spent all four years of high school at Clarke.

The media spotlight was on the school in 1967 when Pete Seeger came to W. Tresper Clarke High School on March 8, 1967 to sing to an enthusiastic crowd of 1,100 inside the building, and 300 flag-waving protesters outside. The concert was a year late, but it was a victory against censorship. "Mr. Seeger is a highly controversial figure, and as such, injecting him into our community in East Meadow we thought would stir passions, create discord, [and] disharmony ...," the school board said in December 1965, when it canceled a scheduled Seeger appearance. The main question of controversy, the board said, was that on an earlier trip to the Soviet Union, Seeger had sung songs opposing the Vietnam War.^[1]

Getting Seeger into the high school auditorium took court battles that went all the way to the State Court of Appeals. The state's highest court said that canceling an earlier invitation because of Seeger's controversial views violated both the state and federal Constitutions.^[2]

The Nassau chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union filed an amicus brief to the Court of Appeals, playing a key role in the legal battle.

The high school was again brought into the media spotlight in January 2007 when the school's principal barred a deaf student, John Cave, from bringing a service dog to school. The principal stated that his decision was motivated by concerns over student welfare, such as allergies.^[3][4]

The student's parents responded in early February 2007 by filing a $150-million discrimination lawsuit against the East Meadow School District, claiming that school officials subjected the student to "bias, bigotry and prejudice."^[5]

Extracurricular activities

Clarke won the New York State High School Baseball Championships in 2002 and 2005, and won the New York Statewide High School Mock Trial Tournament in 2003. They have also won numerous Nassau County and Long Island Championships. The school has a strong history and tradition in the sport of baseball throughout New York State. Clarke won the 1985 New York State Girls Varsity Soccer Championship to finish an undefeated season. Clarke's football team also beat the number two seed in the county in the playoffs to become the Big-4 champs in 2009. They were also 1997 Nassau County Champions and Long Island Finalist. The winner of the 2010 Wyndham Championship, Arjun Atwal also attended Clarke for two years

The Clarke chapter of the Tri-M Music Honor Society (chapter #1768) as named the National Chapter of the Year in 2006. In 2007, Clarke Tri-M was named first runners-up for National Chapter of The Year. This accomplishment was repeated in 2012.

Notable alumni

• Eli Rosenbaum (Class of 1972), U.S. Justice Department official, Nazi-hunter ^[6]
• Jay C. Buckey (Class of 1973), physician and astronaut^[7]
• Irene Rosenfeld (Class of 1971), Chairman and CEO of Mondelēz International, Inc. (formerly Kraft Foods)^[8]
• Abbe Lowell (Class of 1970), Chief Minority Counsel in the U.S. House of Representatives during the impeachment of President Bill Clinton
• Daniel Frisa (Class of 1973), single-term (1994-1996) U.S. Congressman (Republican), an opponent of gun-control legislation, lost his seat to Carolyn McCarthy when he ran for re-election in 1996
• Barry W. Blaustein (Class of 1972), television and movie comedy writer^[9]
• Chuck D (c. 1978), rapper, author, producer, and leader of the rap group Public Enemy^[10][11]
• Samir Khan (Class of 2003), Self-proclaimed "Media Jihadist," killed in U.S. drone strike in Yemen^[12]
• Ellen Greene (Class of 1969), actress-singer; star of "Little Shop of Horrors" Off-Broadway and Motion Picture version and the ABC television series "Pushing Daisies."
• Dan Middleman (Class of 1987) 1996 Olympic track athlete, professional runner, and author.

Notes

External links

• Official site
• Photos from the Clarke JV girls basketball team in their win over Garden City on 1-30-07
• Newsday, Melville, N.Y. - Six reach Intel finals

Coordinates: 40°44′51″N 73°33′53″W / 40.74750°N 73.56472°W / 40.74750; -73.56472