Cathy Brown of The Dallas Morning News wrote that Sam Houston High School and Lamar High School were "relatively unaffected" by the opening of Martin, located in southwest Arlington.

AISD trustees chose to honor James W. Martin, superintendent of schools from 1955 to 1976, who oversaw the integration (racial desegregation) of Arlington schools in 1965, which occurred without the violence or hysterics that had occurred frequently nationwide, and notably in nearby Mansfield.

Construction in 1996-1997 expanded the size of the campus considerably to make room for the addition of freshmen in the 1997–1998 school year.

STEM students can also take classes at the University of Texas at Arlington while they are enrolled in high school.

[8] [9] In July 2020, Principal Marlene Roddy announced the discontinuation of the native American mascot at the school, saying the reason was "...to adapt the school to modern standards of cultural sensitivity",[10] which has been a contentious topic in many communities and in professional sports, notably the NFL's Washington (former) Redskins and the Cleveland Indians major league baseball team.

The Warrior would remain in writing, but the modern definition of the term is being embraced and will no longer refer to the Native American iconography, specifically the war bonnet and mascot.

The "Native American tribal chieftain hat" logo had been in use at the school since its opening in 1982, having been illustrated by one of its students.

Similar changes occurred later at nearby South Grand Prairie High School, which coincidentally are known at the Warriors.