Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. College Preparatory High School is a public 4-year selective enrollment magnet high school located in the Kenwood area on Chicago's south side. The school was named after the late civil rights leader Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968). King is one of the district's ten selective enrollment schools, which means students must apply and be accepted based on academic accomplishment and test scores. U.S. News & World Report recognized King College Prep as a "Silver Medal '' school in 2010 under then–principal Jeff Wright. The school was upgraded to a level one plus status in 2016–2017. In 1964, Forrestville High School opened at 4401 S. Saint Lawrence Avenue (less than a mile west of King's). School authorities and community members requested a new school structure from the Chicago Board of Education to meet Forrestville's growing enrollment of 2,100 by 1968. On June 28, 1971, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. High School opened for 650 summer school pupils. On September 8, 1971, the school welcomed 1,800 students for the 1971–1972 academic year.
On October 17, 1971, Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley, Chicago Public Schools superintendent James F. Redmond, and school principal Charles Almo officially dedicated the $7 million school to civil rights pioneer and preacher Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The school debuted as a neighborhood high school, with students primarily from Kenwood, Grand Boulevard, and Oakland, as well as the former Forrestville High School. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. College Preparatory High School became a selective enrollment school in 2000–2001. Every subject offers Honors and AP Courses. King's college and university partners offer college coursework. Visual and Performing Arts Advanced Coursework (Band, Dance, Drama, Graphic Arts, Vocal Music). King's band and choir performed in Washington, D.C. King's marching band opened for Stone Temple Pilots in 2008. It returned to Washington D.C. in 2012 for the Presidential Inaugural Heritage Music Festival. Both the band and chorus won their categories. The band has won the High School Battle of the Bands at the annual Chicago Football Classic four times. King plays in the Chicago Public League and is an IHSA member (IHSA).