The school's name commemorates Benjamin Banneker, an African-American scientist, surveyor, almanac author and farmer.

[4] The former Banneker building will then become the site of Shaw Middle School following renovations.

Any student interested in applying must follow an entrance procedure, involving a multiple choice test, a written essay, an interview, recommendation(s), and a report of the applicant's standardized test scores and grades from previous years.

[citation needed] The robotics club has participated in the Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams competition, twice winning a grant for their inventions: "Cell-Mate" (a cell-phone locker, 2006)[10] and "DeadStop" (a door-hinge locker to prevent classroom access to terrorists, 2013).

[14] In the 2018 OPSPARC competition for students to invent a new use for NASA technology, Mikayla Sharrieff, India Skinner and Bria Snell, three black Banneker juniors, won second place with equipment to remove lead from school water fountains.