The Taft school campus is located on Sheridan Avenue and 172nd Street in the Bronx.

Founded in the 1940s, Taft originally served the largely homogeneous population of the surrounding area.

Notable graduates included director Stanley Kubrick, producer Jerry Weintraub, novelist Judith Rossner, and singers Eydie Gormé, Chuck Negron, Luther Vandross, Alan Merrill and Joanna Russ.

During the Abraham Beame (1974–1977) and Edward Koch (1978–1989) administrations, citywide, crime rates were high and unfavorable publicity accelerated the decline of the school.

The impoverished community, lacking in political clout or a cohesive PTA, was provided 10 truancy officers, rather than improved education strategies.