Before Henry Ford introduced the Model T, a modest "high school" for blacks - with Arthur Harold Parker as its first principal - opened with 18 students in Birmingham. Parker had been born to former slaves. The year was 1900. When Parker retired on the eve of WWII it was the largest high school for blacks in the world, known for producing unusually large numbers of unusually competent graduates. In 2011, Parker High School moved into a new facility designed with the 21st century in mind, thus renewing the legacy of Dr. Arthur Harold Parker, the progenitor of a dream made real. Their alumni may be found in the highest levels of industry. They call themselves “The Thundering Herd".
