DeBakey High School for Health Professions

Michael E. DeBakey High School for Health Professions is a medical secondary school located in Houston, Texas, United States.

It has been named the number one public high school in Houston by the Houston Chronicle and the Houston Press. DeBakey, which serves grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Houston Independent School District, and is located east of the Texas Medical Center, being the only HISD magnet high school for health professions. The school was named after Michael E. DeBakey, a famous heart surgeon. DeBakey does not automatically take in students from the surrounding neighborhood; thus, the surrounding neighborhood is zoned to Yates High School.

Renovation
DeBakey is currently being renovated after canceling plans to relocate inside the Texas Medical Center; plans for the school to be relocated within the Texas Medical Center were made, but soon canceled because the Houston Independent School District decided to renovate instead. Renovations started August 2006 and are expected to go through 2007. 

Summer school for 2007 was originally supposed to be at Yates High School, but after fierce student and parent opposition, it will be at Lamar High School. If renovation is not completed by the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year, DeBakey will temporarily be housed at Lamar High School.

School uniforms
Students in the school have been required to wear school uniforms since the 1997-1998 school year.

Student Body
As of 2005-2006 school year, the school was made up of 63% female and 37% male students. Of these, 36% were African American, 32% were Asian of mostly Southeast Asian background, 26% were Hispanic, <1% were Native American, and 6% were White. Nearly 100% of DeBakey students passed the TAKS. 

The school offers more than twenty-five clubs for its diverse population. Notable clubs include BSU (Black Student Union) and VISA (Vietnamese International Student Association) for the school's two largest ethnic populations. Other important clubs include the school's various honor societies, including chapters of the BETA club, the National Honor Society, and the National Spanish Honor Society. Given the health professions focus of the school, it is unsurprising that the most prominent club is HOSA (Health Occupation Students of America), which usually competes with fellow sister school Hightower High School and is currently attended by one-third of the student body.

Transportation
Houston ISD provides school bus transportation to students who live more than two miles from DeBakey or students with major transportation obstacles. Many students choose to ride the bus, as many live more than eight to twenty miles away from the school campus. The average time to reach the school by riding school bus is one hour, so other students choose to carpool or drive themselves to school.

METRO routes that serve DeBakey High School include 60 (South MacGregor/Hardy) and 68 (Brays Bayou Crosstown).

Before DeBakey
DeBakey has no actual feeder patterns since it is a magnet school. DeBakey takes children from many Houston ISD middle schools with a significant number of students from Pershing, Johnston, Sharpstown, Hamilton, Lanier, and Fleming Middle Schools.

Some students who are enrolled in private schools in the 8th grade choose to go to DeBakey for high school.

Notable alumni

 * Judith R. Campbell, a professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine