Oyster-Adams Bilingual School is an elementary school and middle school in the Woodley Park and Adams Morgan neighborhoods of Washington, D.C. It is part of the District of Columbia Public Schools system.
| Oyster-Adams Bilingual School | |
|---|---|
 Adams Campus | |
| Location | |
| Information | |
| Former names | James F. Oyster School John Quincy Adams School |
| Type | Elementary School Middle School |
| Status | Open |
| School board | District of Columbia State Board of Education |
| School district | District of Columbia Public Schools |
| NCES District ID | 1100030[1] |
| NCES School ID | 110003000160[2] |
| Principal | Carolina Brito |
| Grades | PK-8 |
| Enrollment | 781[3] |
| Language | Bilingual (English-Spanish) |
| Mascot | Tigres |
| Affiliation | International Spanish Academy (ISA) |
| Website | oysteradamsbilingual.org |
History
editOyster-Adams Bilingual School was created through the merger of the James F. Oyster School and the John Quincy Adams School in 2007.[4]
James F. Oyster School
editThe James F. Oyster School opened on September 20, 1926, at the intersection of 29th St NW and Calvert St NW in the Woodley Park neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The school was built over a period of ten months by contractor George E. Wyne at a cost of $250,000. The school was named after Captain James F. Oyster, a member of the D.C. Board of Education. The school opened with 208 students in grades Kindergarten through 5th grade.[5]
In the 1950s the school took part in an experimental language instruction program offering instruction in French, Spanish and German.[6]
The Oyster School's English-Spanish bilingual program started in 1971 and became a showplace of the bilingual movement, attracting visitors from around the world.[7]
First Lady Rosalynn Carter persuaded national industry leaders to support the Oyster School.[8]
In 2001, the original 1926 building was replaced with a new building, utilizing a novel public-private partnership. This approach involved a land exchange and a bond repaid by revenue from a new apartment complex, the Henry Adams House Apartments, with the project spearheaded by the 21st Century School Fund and developed by LCOR Inc.[9] LCOR and partner Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. will make $804,000 annual payments in lieu of property taxes to the city for 35 years. Those payments will cover the $11 million revenue bond used to plan, design, construct and furnish the new building.[10]
John Quincy Adams School
editThe Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington, D.C., is named after the two schools that were originally there - the John Quincy Adams School and the Morgan School.[11]
The Adams School had a nuclear fallout shelter in its basement. In 2017 a Washington Post reporter and a Smithsonian curator discovered it had been untouched for 55 years and reported on what they found.[12]
Notable Events
edit- December 1941 - Kalorama Defense Area rallies were held at the Adams School. Eight-hundred people attended, including Chief Justice of the United States Harlan F. Stone and First Lady Edith Wilson.[13]
- May 1942 - The Adams School was a distribution point for Sugar Ration Books for thousands of residents that lived in the area.[14]
- 1960s - The Adams School was the location of the Americanization School of the District of Columbia where people studied to become American citizens. In 1965 alone, 1400 students from 93 nations studied there to become American citizens.[15]
- May 1980 - First Lady Rosalynn Carter and the first U.S. Secretary of Education Shirley Hufstedler visited classrooms and spoke to an assembly of the school's 325 students about the importance of bilingual education. The visit was part of celebrating the opening of the new U.S. Department of Education.[16]
- November 1996 - The local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution raised funds and brought 27 students from the Oyster School to Plymouth, Massachusetts, in an effort to make a mark on their community.[17]
- January 2009 - Colombian singer Shakira visited Oyster-Adams and read to students. She also announced a sister-school relationship with a Colombian elementary school, Escuela Gabriel García Márquez, located outside of Bogota.[18]
- March 2011 - First Lady Michelle Obama and First Lady of Mexico Margarita Zavala visited the school and read to students.[19]
Awards
edit- 2020 Awardee, National Blue Ribbon Schools Program[20]
Affiliations
editOyster-Adams is affiliated with the International Spanish Academy (ISA) Program, an educational outreach initiative of the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training of Spain that provides support, consultancy and recognition from the Ministry.[21]
References
edit- ^ "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for District of Columbia Public Schools". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Search for Public Schools - Oyster-Adams Bilingual School (110003000160)". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "School Profile: Oyster-Adams Bilingual School". District of Columbia Public Schools. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Las Raíces Bilingües (the Bilingual Roots) de Oyster-Adams". The Story of Our Schools. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "The James F. Oyster School". The Washington Star. September 10, 1926.
- ^ "3d Graders Found Apt In Foreign Languages". The Washington Post. February 14, 1958.
- ^ "Two Teachers In Every Class Works Well at Oyster School: Teaching Children in Two Languages Proves Successful". The Washington Post. November 23, 1980.
- ^ "Rosalynn Carter's Washington". The Washington Post. December 12, 1980.
- ^ Jack Lyne (June 25, 2001). "Public-Private Creativity Funds New D.C. School without Tax Dollars". Site Selection. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ Susan Straight (March 9, 2002). "High-Rise, Elementary Provide Lesson in Partnership". The Washington Post.
- ^ "D.C.'s Adams Morgan neighborhood is long on history and charm". Washington Post. 2023-07-06. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-10-03.
- ^ Monica Hesse (October 18, 2017). "This nuclear fallout shelter was untouched for 55 years. It might come in handy now.: What we found when we ventured into a time capsule from our last era of doomsday anxiety". The Washington Post.
- ^ "Celebrities Attend Kalorama Meeting". The Washington Post. December 16, 1941.
- ^ "Lack of Volunteers Delays D.C. Registration for Sugar: 149,680 Get Sugar Ration Books". The Washington Post. May 5, 1942.
- ^ "Where the Meaning of America Is Learned: Aliens Study to Be Citizens At Americanization School". The Washington Post. Jan 31, 1965.
- ^ "Mrs. Carter, Education Chief Visit Bilingual Oyster School". The Washington Post. May 8, 1980.
- ^ Doug Struck (Nov 11, 1996). "DAR Takes D.C. Schoolchildren Back in Time: Trip to Plymouth Is Part of Organization's Effort to Make Its Mark on Community". The Washington Post.
- ^ "Colombian Singer Shakira Reads To Oyster-Adams Bilingual Elementary School Students". PoPville. January 19, 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Michelle Obama and Margarita Zavala reading to schoolchildren". UPI. March 4, 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Oyster-Adams Bilingual School - Washington, DC". National Blue Ribbon Schools Program. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Programas en EE.UU. International Spanish Academy Program". Ministerio de Educación, Formación Profesional y Deportes - Gobierno de España. Retrieved 3 October 2024.