President William McKinley High School

President William McKinley High School was first established in 1865 by Reverend Maurice B. Beckwith and was known as the Fort Street Day School. At that time, it was the only public high school in Hawaii and was to undergo numerous changes. There were name changes (Fort Street Day School, Honolulu High School, and McKinley High School) and there were changes in campus location (corner of Fort and School Streets; Ruth Keelikolani’s home, the site of present-day Central Middle School; a Victoria Street campus; and the King Street location in 1907).Today, President William McKinley High School is at the center of Honolulu’s political, economic, and cultural centers in urban Oahu on the edge of downtown Honolulu.

The school’s attendance area is roughly bounded by Kokea Street to the west, Kalakaua Avenue to the east, the H-1 Freeway to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. Also included are small pockets beyond these streets and thoroughfares in Nuuanu, Liliha and Alewa Heights. These define a geographic area of great diversity: single-family residences and apartment buildings; high-rise buildings of luxury condominiums and business offices; public housing projects; downtown Honolulu and Chinatown. The wide variety of neighborhoods is reflected in the diversity of students who attend McKinley High School.

The school’s geographic location and its long list of alumni (among who are prominent community members) parallel the high degree of community support and business-education partnerships the school enjoys. Students in a number of the school’s programs, especially in vocational areas, work with representatives in business and industry. Relationships with post-secondary institutions provide McKinley High School students with opportunities to attend college classes while still in high school. Two alumni organizations, the McKinley Alumni Association and the McKinley High School Foundation, support school efforts and provide additional links to the community for the school.

Students participate in numerous types of co-curricular activities: student athletes on 57 teams compete in 20 Oahu Interscholastic Association sports; students can pursue a variety of interest areas through chartered clubs; members of the JROTC drill team, the Math team, and the Robotics teams have distinguished themselves in competition. Scholastic areas such as Science, Social Studies, World Languages, and Music also provide avenues for co-curricular activities. Student leaders are active in both formal and informal leadership positions.

President William McKinley High School is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). The school’s School Community Council forms part of its governance structure