Broughton's Queen of Hearts dance began in 1943, in an effort to raise funds for World War II.

[8] In 1961, Broughton was first integrated when three Black students, Myrtle L. Capehart, Dorothy J. Howard, and Cynthia E. Williams, started attending.

The school runs on a 4x4 modified block schedule (A Day-B Day which allows students to go a whole semester without missing a "core class" or a foreign language).

[citation needed] In 2007 the drama department produced Lorraine Hansberry's 1959 Broadway play A Raisin in the Sun.

In 2017, the Broughton Dance Director, Betsy Graves, was named Wake County Public School System Teacher of the Year.

Students can also participate in service trips to Guatemala (Proyecto Quetzal) and in projects such as a school-sponsored Habitat for Humanity house.

From 2002 to 2004 Broughton underwent a $14 million renovation in which much of the school was gutted and refitted with state-of-the-art technology and new interiors.

One of the highlights of the renovations was the refurbishment of the newly titled Diane Payne Auditorium, named after the retired veteran principal.

[21][19] Broughton broadcasts its morning announcements via a closed-circuit network, headquartered from the WCAP media studio in the library.

WCAP was founded in 1992 as a monthly, pre-recorded news production informing students of events happening around Broughton.