Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Arts magnet high school in Dallas Arts District, United States

Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts occupies a long two-story red brick building on Flora Street in the Dallas Arts District, its facade banded with pale stone and pierced by regularly spaced rectangular windows. A projecting entrance with a small gabled stone portico and arched opening sits near the center-left, and a low brick sign wall at the right front corner carries the school's name. A $65-million expansion by Brad Cloepfil of Allied Works Architecture was completed in 2008, preserving the historic main building.

Dallas opened its first high school for African-American pupils in 1892; the school was enlarged and named Dallas Colored High School in 1911, then moved in 1922 into larger quarters designed by Lang and Witchell and renamed Booker T. Washington High School. It was the only Dallas high school open to students of color for many years. In 1976 federal desegregation orders (Tasby v. Estes) turned it into the Arts Magnet, with Paul Baker as founding director.

The school's name honours Booker T. Washington, the African-American education pioneer, and the building was named an official Dallas Landmark in 2006. Its arts magnet programme, begun in 1976 under founding director Paul Baker, became a prototype for magnet schools across the country. A 27-foot Pegasus sculpture designed by Stuart Kraft stands on the campus.

The school has strict admission standards and only accepts students who demonstrate exceptional artistic abilities. Visitors should contact ahead to learn when performances and exhibitions are open to the public.

The school has produced several well-known musicians, including Norah Jones, Erykah Badu, and Roy Hargrove. These artists developed their early artistic skills here before gaining national and international recognition.