Background
Crenshaw's biggest rival is Susan Miller Dorsey High School. Several areas, including the unincorporated Los Angeles County community of View Park-Windsor Hills, are zoned to Crenshaw; some sections of View Park-Windsor Hills are jointly zoned to Crenshaw and Westchester High School. On August 15, 2005, Crenshaw High School lost its accreditation due to someone lying on the paperwork. The accreditation was restored on February 1, 2006.
The school is renowned for its outstanding boys basketball program, coached for over thirty years by Willie West Jr., who retired in 2007 and was succeeded by Ed Waters. The Crenshaw Cougars have won numerous L.A. City and California State basketball titles. Crenshaw also won the International High School Basketball Tournament in Arhus, Sweden in 1985. Crenshaw was featured in the 1991 movie Boyz n the Hood, the 2000 movie Love & Basketball, from 1996 to 2001 on the UPN series Moesha, and in the 2006 film Akeelah and the Bee. It is also featured in the 2006 film Bring It On: All or Nothing. In 2001, the book "And Still We Rise," written by Miles Corwin, chronicled the lives of twelve seniors in the Crenshaw High Gifted & Talented Magnet program in their quest to obtain an education—amidst formidable obstacles. The book received the PEN USA West for Creative Nonfiction Award and much critical praise. In 2004 Kirk Douglas and the Amateur Athletic Foundation (AAF) donated stadium lights to Crenshaw High School. The Crenshaw High School Varsity Football team won its first "Championship Division" Los Angeles City championship in 2005 defeating Woodland Hills Taft High School, However, a "AAA" Championship was won in 1992, defeating Chatsworth High School. Both Championship titles were under the leadership of Coach Robert Garrett.
The first principal of Crenshaw High School was Mr. Robert Case who opened the school January 1968. Former Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Sidney V. Thompson was the school's second principal. Ms. Jewell Boutte was principal in 1988 when she was awarded the prestigious Milken Educator Award for innovations she brought to the school.
Ms. Carrie Allen, formerly an administrator for the Pasadena Unified School District in Pasadena, California became principal in 2009. Ms. Allen was replaced in the summer of 2011 by Dr. Sylvia Rousseau. Dr. Rousseau was formerly the principal at Santa Monica High School and the Superintendent of a Local District in LAUSD. She has also served on the faculty at USC's Rossier School of Education.
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