The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep. Jaranda ^{wat's sup} 06:07, 25 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Article gives no evidence of notability Icewolf34 13:48, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• Also, note that the initial proposal was NPROD'd by an anonymous user. Icewolf34 13:48, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Delete as NN; no distinction displayed as one of ~27,468 high schools in the United States. — pd_THOR ^{| =/\=} | 15:38, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Merge and redirect to Decatur City Schools. --cholmes75 ^{(chit chat)} 15:45, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• Keep. I fall heavily on the side of inclusionism, and don't see how keeping this article around until it can be expanded hurts Wikipedia; Wikipedia is not paper; obscure content isn't harmful; all schools are notable, et cetera; all the usual arguments — I won't waste your time with that. This is my alma mater, and though I haven't edited the article, I would hate to see it deleted. But I'm very busy and don't have a lot of time to expand it at present, and as it's been almost a decade since I graduated, I feel I lack the perspective to give it a fresh and current treatment.

As to its notability, AHS does produce a lot of National Merit Scholars (I was one) and does excel in test scores. It offers many advanced classes and programs (it was recently accredited with an International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme). Its sports teams have at times won statewide acclaim. But about the most notable thing about it from my perspective is its excellent band program, which involves an astounding portion of the student body (about a quarter of it in my day), many of whom are also the academic leaders of the school (most of the National Honor Society is in band). The concert bands have the longest string of consecutive superior ratings at state contest in Alabama (at forty years), and the marching band routinely excels in competitions in the highly competitive arenas of Tennessee and Georgia. The bands have performed for governors and presidents. If anyone else thinks this is notable, I would be glad to write it up and add it to the article.

I don't think this article is a lost cause. Austin High School is at least as notable as any other high school that's been allowed an article on Wikipedia (though I realize this is a contentious issue). It's one of only two major public high schools in operation in Decatur, Alabama, and has involved thousands of Decatur residents in its over forty years of operation. I think there's a good bit to say about this school, and its article could be helped a great deal by some love and care by a more recent graduate. If no such person comes along, I will do some research as soon as I'm able and expand it myself. —LonelyPilgrim 16:16, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• Delete - a high school just "being" does not make it notable. Alumni, major events, long history (>=50 years), etc would help. -- MrDolomite | Talk 17:50, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• Keep per Wikipedia:Schools/Arguments#Keep, not to mention this is now an International Baccalaureate school. Silensor 18:52, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep A nomination of a high school may be seen as an example of disrupting Wikipedia to make a point. Golfcam 19:13, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• How is nominating a high school a disruption of Wikipedia? There is no consesus on whether high schools are notable or not, so an AFD nom is not unreasonable. I would suggest you please assume good faith in the future. Wickethewok 19:51, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• Not to mention that the article at time of nomination was less than half its current size, all of four lines long. Icewolf34 20:54, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

It is disruptive in my opinion as well. No verifiable high school article has been deleted for almost two years now. Two years. Get over it and and find a new method of "helping" this encyclopedia. Silensor 19:59, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'd like to remind Golfcam to assume good faith, and I'd especially like to remind Silensor to avoid personal attacks. If Icewolf34 feels the school is non-notable, it is completely within his right to nominate it for deletion (just as it is right for you to argue against deletion). Icewolf is absolutely trying to help Wikipedia, and your condescension is much, much more of a hindrance to WP than his AfD nomination. (Note that I'm voting keep on this article, so my above statements are in defense of the nominator and of WP's core policies, not in defense of an opinion.) -- Kicking222 22:56, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Please quote precisely where Silensor made a "personal attack", I do not see such an attack on anyone, and I would suggest you take your own suggestion and assume good faith when reading Silensor's response. I think it is rather hard to suggest that saying "Get over it" is somehow a "personal attack". If so, I submit that you claiming that Silensor was engaged in "condescension" is in itself a personal attack. Your argument that the nominator is "within his right to nominate" is specious. As I have noted in months long since gone by, notability or the lack thereof is not, and never has been a valid criterion for the deletion of a high school article. Articles_for_deletion#Before_nominating_an_AfD clearly states: Read and understand the Wikipedia deletion policy, which explains valid grounds for deletion. WP:DP nowhere states or indicates that "non-notability" or "importance" is a "valid grounds for deletion" of a high school (or similar) article. If one reads the policy in the light of the fact that not a single, verifiable high school article has been deleted via the AfD/VfD processes in the course of the past 2 years worth of "discussions", I would humbly submit that nominating high school articles for deletion on the grounds that they are "non-notable" comes very, very, very close to a violation of standing policy - if not indeed constituting a violation of said policy. Might I suggest that if you are going to speak out "in defense of core policies" that a more precise reading of them be made before wildly suggesting that any and all nominations are somehow "rightful".--Nicodemus75 02:09, 24 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• Keep per silensor.  ALKIVAR™ 19:32, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• KeepI really do not understand why this article should be deleted. Austin High School and Decatur High School, are considered to of the best High Schools in the state of Alabama. To say that Austin is not notable is crazy.

  Austin's band program is outstanding. Not as outstanding as Decatur High School's, but second in the state, only behind Decatur High. I attend Decatur High School, and I believe that it should be kept. Our current band director, who has never gotten anything less than a superior rating at State attended Austin High. As LonelyPilgrim has said, Austin competes well with bands from Tennessee and Georgia. I am in Decatur's marching band and I have seen Austin in action. The Tennessee school practice marching band year round, and Austin beat one of them out in the Grissom Band Competition in 2005.

  Also, one of the best sax players in the state just graduated from Austin. Both Decatur City High Schools ARE considered notable by any standards, and should both be considered great. AlaGuy 19:55, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• Comment. Look, although I don't feel that being an IB school or having a good band program really merits inclusion in Wikipedia, that information certainly pushes the article in that direction. Why don't you add these things to the page, with citations, instead of just bringing them up in the AfD? The nomination was due to "no evidence of notability," not an argument that high school absolutely isn't notable. And yes, the IB information was added after the initial nomination. And no, that doesn't change my mind, although it's a step in the right direction. Icewolf34 21:02, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • While I strongly disagree with your assertion that this article does not demonstrate notability, know that notability is not a requirement for inclusion. Wikipedia:Notability is not an accepted policy, not even a guideline, it is an essay. We do not delete articles about high schools for the same reason we do not delete articles about a small town, population 8. Since AFD is not intended to be an avenue for cleanup, please consider adding schools which you do not find interesting or "notable" to the Wikipedia:WikiProject Schools page rather than clogging up this place with another dead end nomination. Silensor 21:23, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep. Sounds notable to me. TruthbringerToronto (Talk | contribs) 21:31, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Delete Whoopy doo just another school. So school bands are notable now? Catchpole 22:01, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep. Offering the International Baccalaureate program is notable. Yamaguchi先生 22:16, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep I don't believe that all schools are inherently notable, but the vast majority of high schools are. In particular, this school's article currently asserts, in my opinion, more than sufficient notability. -- Kicking222 22:56, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep Clear precedent and consensus has been established over the past 2 years to keep high schools/secondary schools on wikipedia.--Nicodemus75 02:08, 22 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep per precedent visible at Wikipedia:Watch/schoolwatch/Schools for deletion archive. --Rob 06:39, 22 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep — Nice article, although a little history would help. Thanks. — RJH (talk) 17:57, 22 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Delete Delete - NN. No personal attacks, ever. Hipocrite - «Talk» 21:33, 22 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • Comment. I'm not sure that this article is a 'personal attack'. Since this is a "discussion" about reaching consensus on whether or not to delete this article, I can only assume your otherwise non-sequitor statement about "No personal attacks, ever" must in some obscure fashion refer to the article itself. I suppose it is always good to be reminded of policy, but I think that this is hardly the place to do so.--Nicodemus75 00:29, 23 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep. Good start to this high school article. --JJay 16:46, 23 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Delete - per nom. Capit 17:04, 23 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep. As above, it is disruptive to Wikipedia and trouble-starting to ever think about deleting a high school. Capit 17:15, 23 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep ^^ -- Librarianofages 02:34, 24 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Keep. Several notable claims are documented within the article, I see no need to erase this. RFerreira 21:14, 24 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.