In a conversation with Mr. Golenko during my visit and he referred to the old place at 11111 Beamer as the "real" Dobie, which delighted me.
More precisely, I guess we should say the "original" Dobie High School, since their new building is very real and, now, well over a decade old. It opened for business in 2003, and the original, after spending 35 years as the top dog, eventually turned into the "new" Beverly Hills Intermediate.
The building was the first in PISD history to be completely air conditioned. It was also built as a tornado shelter, which explains the utter lack of windows around the school.
It's first year, it welcomed 980 students.
It's last year as Dobie HS, it was housing almost 2700 students.
(As of 2014, enrollment at the new Dobie is closing in on 3900 students.)
The builders of the 1968 campus probably could never have imagined such growth.
Herewith, a round up of photos of the outside of the original building from the yearbooks, starting with the construction photo from 1968:
Also from 1968, pre-sod
The first book has several photos from the Masonic dedication of the cornerstone of the building on its first pages. (I plan to get up close and see if I can get a "now" photo on my next trip.)
The front courtyard featured a circular center with paths leading in from several angles.
Interestingly, I think this is what the cover of the original yearbook is about. The same symbol is used throughout the book at different sections, but no explanation is ever given to its meaning. Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but it's got a very Masonic vibe to it. And in a building of rectangles, the center courtyard is a nice counter balance.
Looking at it from the closest year from opening on Historic Aerials (1969) you can see where all the neighborhoods are yet to be built.
1975: The Additional Wing Added
The fire the last day of school in the gymnasium
Aerial, 1977, looking south, Beamer on the right
a decade later, looking north, with apartments now in place
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