The original school at this site was the Bancroft Way School. It was later renamed the Longfellow School. In 1905 the structure was moved to the present Longfellow site. In 1905 or 1906 a new school was constructed at the current site. The original architect was Stone and Smith. The first principal was J.A. Imre. The school opened with approximately 155 students. The original site was smaller, about 60% of the current site. Additional property was purchased in the late 1940’s and throughout the 1950’s.
In 1910 it was one of the two intermediate schools serving middle school aged children.
In 1952 the old school was demolished and a new school built. The architects selected for this work were Dragon, Schmidts and Hardman.
By 1970 there were 532 students enrolled. Temporary structures were added and subtracted over the years.
In the early 1980’s, while the C Building at Berkeley high School was being retrofitted, a portion of the school was used by Berkeley High School students. When the C Building was completed, the school reverted to exclusively elementary school use.
In 1994 the school was vacated because it was seismically unsafe. The District hired Baker/Vilar Architects to design the retrofit. In 1996 the renovated school reopened.
In November 2011, Washington was one of four district schools named to receive a three-year, nearly $3-million magnet school grant from the U.S. Department of Education. Washington received roughly $600,000 during the 2002-03 and two following school years. The LeConte, Thousand Oaks and City of Franklin Microsociety schools divvied up the remaining funds.
Subscribe to Latest District News
Subscribe to A+ News
Translate »
Proofs of Berkeley Residency
Must submit two proofs listed below.
All Proofs must be current originals (issued within the last 2 months) imprinted with the name and current Berkeley residential address of the parent/legal guardian. A student can have only one residency for purposes of establishing residency and must be living in Berkeley when submitting forms.
Only personal accounts will be accepted. No care of, DBA or Business accounts.
Voter registration for the most recent or upcoming election
Checking/Savings bank statement
Credit card statement
Action letter from Social Services or Government Agency (canot be property)
Entire utility bill,contract or receipt (PG&E, Landline phone, EBMUD, Internet or Cable)
Paycheck stub or letter from employer on official company letterhead confirming employment and address on file
Valid automobile registration
Valid automobile insurance
Rental contract/lease with payment receipt
Current Renters or Homeowners insurance policy
Current property taxes
Property deed dated within the year
Immunization
If your child is new to Berkeley Unified School District or starting preschool, transitional kindergarten, kindergarten, or 7th grade, you will need to provide your child’s school with documentation that your child has been fully immunized. California state law (Senate Bill 277) no longer allows parents/guardians of students to submit a personal belief exemption form for any currently required immunizations.
Children who have not provided BUSD with documentation verifying they have received all required immunizations prior to the first day of school will not be allowed to attend school until all immunization records have been provided.