The school, opened 1960, is located on a 67-acre (270,000 m2) campus and takes its name from John Dickinson, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.[9][10] It was originally in the Henry C. Conrad School District and was moved first to the New Castle County Consolidated School District in 1978, then to the Red Clay Consolidated School District in 1981.[11][12][13] In January 1995, an arson fire destroyed substantial parts of the building, so much so that did not reopen fully until September; students had to attend nearby McKean High School in staggered schedules until portions of Dickinson were opened again in March.[14][15]
In 2013, Dickinson students broke the Guinness World Record for highest Lego tower ever built at 112 feet.[16] Their record was beat the following year by a 114-foot tower in Budapest.[17]
Dickinson offers IB, AP, honors, college-preparatory, and dual-enrollment classes.[18][19] As part of Delaware's initiative to inject more intensive career readiness into its high schools, Dickinson offers the following Pathways: automotive technology, AVID, computer science, digital communication arts, drafting and design, engineering of structures, engineering of robotics, graphic design, Jobs for Delaware Graduates, processes of design and engineering, Business and Entrepreneurship, and renovation and construction.[18] Students have the opportunity to earn certifications and licenses such as the Delaware Certificate of Multiliteracy, EPA Certificate, IB Diploma, National Lead Safety for Renovation and Painting Certificate, and/or National OSHA Certificate.[18]
For the 2018–2019 academic year, the graduation rate was 78%.[20]
Dickinson's auditorium is home to a Kimball pipe organ said to be the fourth largest theatre organ in the world.[23][24] The organ was moved from the Boyd Theater in Philadelphia in 1969 and has more than 5,000 pipes, purportedly more than the organ at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.[25]
In addition to hosting concerts by virtuoso guest organists and instrumental ensembles, Dickinson's organ was featured on an album by organist Jelani Eddington in 2014.[26]
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations.(November 2022)
^"Home". John Dickinson High School. Retrieved 2021-06-21. 1801 Milltown Road, Wilmington, DE 19808 - The school is not in the Wilmington city limits, as seen in a comparison with the zoning map as of February 2021.
^"Brandywine Village". National Park Service. Retrieved 2021-07-03. - Addresses of private residences and apartments: 1807 Market Street (from p. 16/24), 1803 & 1805 Market apartments (18/24).
^"About us". Red Clay Consolidated School District. n.d. Retrieved 2021-07-10.
