Clear Lake High School (Houston)
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Clear Lake High School is a public secondary school located in Houston, Texas.
The school, which serves grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Clear Creek Independent School District. The school serves portions of Houston (including most of Clear Lake City) and Pasadena and the cities of Seabrook, El Lago, and Taylor Lake Village. Its colors are red, white, and blue. Its mascot and symbol is the Falcon.
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[edit] History
Clear Lake High School opened in 1972 to alleviate over-crowding at what was then the district's only high school, Clear Creek High School. The first class graduated in 1973. The current campus emcompasses a ninth grade center, field house, and athletic fields, all adjacent to the University of Houston-Clear Lake campus.
[edit] 1984 suicides
In the 1980s, the high school was perhaps best known for the six suicides that occurred in September and October of 1984. The New York Times reported that there were rumors of a suicide pact that included up to thirty students, but that this story turned out to be "a lark." Psychologists were sent to the school to deal with any residual stress that resulted from these events, though Clear Lake High School today has a higher then average suicide rate among students compared to other high schools in the country. Surprisingly, The Times reports, the suicides of the 1980s were quickly forgotten.[1] [2]
[edit] Smaller learning communities
Beginning with the school year of 2005-2006, students between the grades of 10 and 12 were grouped into "smaller learning communities," career-focused masses of students that normally have the same teachers and stay in one section of the school. While the plan was heralded by district administrators and even received a grant from the Department of Education, it was generally unpopular with students, who were concerned about being able to meet with friends during classes and possible differences in subject matter. However, most of the higher-level classes were unaffected by the change, because there weren't enough classes to fully separate all five groups.
The plan was continued into the 2006-2007 school year, along with two additional communities for the ninth graders: the Explorers and the Voyagers. Collectively, the freshman class is known as the New Horizons Community. The other five communities are Engineering, Health Sciences, Business, Communications, and Fine Arts.
[edit] Administration and teachers
The current principal of Clear Lake High School is Dr. Christopher A. Moran. He was named to the position prior to the 2006-2007 school year. He has a doctorate in Educational Administration and has promised to raise the Texas Education Agency's rating at Clear Lake High School.
[edit] Jesse A. Dorrington Teacher of the Year awards
Three awards are awarded each year:
- 1990: Melinda Mills, Mike Shofner, Ron Vinson
- 1992: James Hicks
- 1993: Verlin Coleman
- 1994: Carol Sanders
- 1995: Mike Shofner
- 1999: Julie Yencharis
- 2000: Linda Goerland
- 2004: Julie Yencharis
- 2005: Micheal Turnage
- 2006: Ernest Brown
[edit] Athletics
1976 CLHS men's and women's swim team capture state crowns, the first Texas high school ever to win both in the same year.
1977 CLHS men's swim team repeats as men's state champion. Also Boys Cross country wins 1st place at state.
1989 CLHS Boys Basketball won the State Championship under coach Bill Krueger.
2000 CLHS Boys Water Polo won the State Championship.
2001 the CLHS Cheerleaders were 5th in the nation at NCA Nationals in Dallas.
2003 CLHS Boys Water Polo won the State Championship.
2004 the CLHS Varsity Football team finished 13-2, reaching the State Semi-Finals after defeating the returning Class 5A champions Katy High School for the Region III championship title.
2004 the CLHS Varsity women's Water Polo team placed first in state.
2006 Clear Lake High School finished building a new fieldhouse for the basketball teams and pep rallies. The new fieldhouse is dedicated to former coach Bill Krueger who achieved the 3rd winningest high school record in the nation. http://www.ccisd.net/frontPage/kfh.html.
2007 the CLHS Winterguard placed 1st at the state competition under director Wendy Stone, and asst, director Jena Waggett.
Sports at CLHS include football, volleyball, baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, cross country, track and field, ice hockey, golf, water polo, swimming, color/winterguard, band, and a brand new wrestling team.
[edit] Academics and extra-curricular activities
Organizations at CLHS include PANDA, Debate, Quiz Bowl, PALS, LOVERS, Student Council, Winter Dance Committee, BBQ Club, Soundwaves, Flairs, the Falcon Marching and Concert Bands, and AJROTC.
1985 the Clear Lake Band was awarded the Sudler Flag of Honor. This is an international award given to band who have achieved excellence on the concert stage. It is administered by the John Phillip Sousa foundation and is the highest honor that a concert band can receive.
1991 With victories in speech, debate, and journalism, Clear Lake High School became the first school ever to win the state championship at the University Interscholastic League's State Academic tournament.
2002 Clear Lake High School's go club won the national rookie award for performance in national tournaments as well as won its first national championship, the first team outside of powerhouses California and New York to do so. The team, consisting of captain Justin Chiang, Jordan Hoang, Albert Chen, Jieni Li, and Christopher Vu, were also invited to the international RSC Champions League for the top teams from various nations.
2003 CLHS go club wins the national tournament again, becoming the first school to hold back-to-back victories. Jordan Hoang, Justin Chiang, Hoi Chan, and David Vu also went on to win the international RSC Champions League held in Houston, Texas, becoming the first American team to win the award. Christopher Vu also won the overall national championship at the 2003 United States Handicap tournament, making him the first rookie to win a national title.
2004 Chipp Schwab from the CLHS debate team took 2nd place at the TOC (Tournament of Champions), in Kentucky. The CLHS Quiz Bowl team finishes in the top ten nationally in five separate grand national tournaments, making them the most successful quiz bowl team in school history based on overall tournament appearances. The CLHS Go club won its third consecutive national championship, becoming the high school Go team with the most national titles in history. They also defended their international title at their RSC Champions League.
2005 Clear Lake ranked 742nd best high school in the nation according to time magazine
the CLHS Scholar's Bowl team took 1st in the nation at the NHS Scholar's Bowl in Washington D.C. In addition, CLHS implemented Smaller Learning Communities, a controversial reorganization of the school into different career fields. The CLHS go club won its fourth consecutive national championship. With the chess and shogi clubs wins in their respective national championships, Clear Lake High School became the first school to win multiple national titles for strategy board games.
2006 the CLHS Orchestra performed at Carnegie Hall and took 3rd place in the TMEA Full Honor Orchestra Competition. The Senior Musical "Seussical" also had 11 nominations in 10 categories at the Tommy Tune Awards including Best Musical. According to Newsweek Magazine, Clear Lake High School is ranked 531st in the nation's top 1200 public high schools on the basis of number of AP/IB tests taken by seniors divided by the senior graduating class.
2007 the CLHS Orchestra, conducted by Bryan Buffaloe and Kevin Black, finishes in 2nd place in the state for string orchestra performance and 3rd place in the state for full orchestra performance, its best finish ever for multiple events in the Texas Music Educators Association.
[edit] Traditions
Students at Clear Lake used to call the school "The Lake" the term has now been changed to just "Lake" but remnants of the old tradition can still be seen.
Traditions include the Senior Musical, Powder Puff football, Senior BBQ, Daisy Day, Battle of the Bands, and Beat Creek Week. Cinderfella was recently cancelled due to the new principal in 2006-2007.
The school's unofficial hand sign is one using his right hand to make a letter "C" with the thumb facing to the left, and using his left hand to make a letter "L" with the thumb facing the left. The "L" needs to be touching the lower part of the "C" thereby making the letters "CL".
[edit] Notable alumni
- Steve McKinney - NFL Offensive Lineman (Houston Texans)
- Mike "Quick" Swick - The Ultimate Fighter Contestant, UFC Middleweight Fighter
- Joe Roach - former Houston city councilman
[edit] References
- ^ Associated Press (1984-10-14). Houston Suburb Institutes Anti-Suicide Plan. New York Times. Retrieved on 2006-12-07.
- ^ Haitch, Richard (1985-01-20). Follow-up on the News; Suicide Outbreak. New York Times. Retrieved on 2006-12-07.
