Tyler Legacy High School


Tyler Legacy High School, previously known as Robert E. Lee High School, is one of two Tyler Independent School District high school campuses in the city of Tyler, Texas, the other being Tyler High School. Tyler Legacy High School has served the East Texas community since opening in 2020 and classified as a 6A school by the UIL. In 2013, the school was rated "Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency.

History

In the 1960s, when Lee's mascot was the Rebel, the school was famous for its working cannon and oversized Confederate flag. A group of seniors called the Rebel Guard tended the replica cannon at games, firing it when the Rebel football team scored a touchdown. The cannon, retired in 1986, is now the property of Brook Hill School in Bullard, Texas.
The football team entered Rose Stadium by running under the flag, reputed to be the second largest Confederate flag in the world. By 1972, the flag was retired and its whereabouts are unknown. The flag was retired shortly after four African-American players refused to run under the flag and ran around it instead, causing some local controversy.

Name change

High School was given its name upon opening in 1958 as an all-white school. After unsuccessful efforts to rename the school at the time of its racial integration in 1970 and various times after, there was a debate in the Tyler community in 2017–2018 on whether the school's name should change. In 2018, the district's board decided not to vote on a possible renaming, so the school kept its name. In June 2020, Trude Lamb, a Ghanaian-born student and top athlete in running, made national news when she refused to wear the jersey for her school Robert E. Lee High School unless the name is changed. On July 16, 2020 the school board voted unanimously to initiate changing the name of both Robert E. Lee High School and John Tyler High School.

Demographics

As of the 2023-24 school year, the student body consisted of:
Tyler Legacy High School offers a variety of pre-AP, AP-level courses, Tyler Junior College Dual-Credit courses, as well as career technology education programs and fine arts electives. The school implemented an international baccalaureate program in the fall of 2008. The IB program has been canceled.

Athletics

As of 2024, Tyler Legacy High School is classified as a 6A school in District 10 along with many East Dallas schools such as Rockwall and Forney. Tyler Legacy Red Raiders compete in a variety of sports including baseball, basketball, golf, soccer, softball, volleyball, tennis, powerlifting, track, swimming, cross country and is most well known for the Tyler football team.

State titles