Conestoga High School
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| Conestoga High School |
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| Established | 1955 |
| Type | Public |
| Principal | Timothy Donovan |
| Students | approx. 1,900 |
| Grades | 9-12 |
| Location | 200 Irish Road Berwyn, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Colors | Garnet and Gray |
| Mascot | The Pioneer |
| Yearbook | The Pioneer |
| Newspaper | The Spoke |
| Website | www.tesd.k12.pa.us/stoga/ |
Conestoga High School, located in Devon-Berwyn, a community in Tredyffrin Township, Pennsylvania, is the only high school in the Tredyffrin/Easttown School District.
Conestoga (also known as "Stoga" or less popularly as "The Big C") is located 15 miles northwest of Philadelphia in a series of affluent suburbs known as the Main Line. Most of the students who enroll at Conestoga their Freshman year are from the two Tredyffrin/Easttown School District middle schools, Tredyffrin/Easttown Middle School and Valley Forge Middle School. Stoga currently has about 1,960 students, almost evenly divided among grades nine through twelve. Frequently ranked one of the best schools in Pennsylvania, Conestoga offers more Advanced Placement (AP) classes and boasts more National Merit Semifinalists than any other school in the state, public or private. Last year, students took 1,148 AP tests in total, of which 93% were passed with a 3 or higher. The average SAT score for the Class of 2005 was 1180. [1]
Because of its performance on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments, Conestoga received extra funding from the state.
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Administration
Timothy Donovan, the current principal, is aided by four assistant principals: Nancy Adams, Kevin Fagan, Richard Gusick, and Amy Meisenger. Donovan and Gusick both taught in Conestoga's Social Studies department before becoming administrators, while Adams previously taught in the Math department. Donovan was also the coach of the varsity football team before becoming principal. He was named Coach of the Year in several publications[citation needed] after his team posted a 10-2 record and won the Central League for the first time in 17 years in 1996.
As of the 2005/2006 school year, the staff heads are as follows:
| Department | Teacher |
|---|---|
| Academic Support | Kate McGranaghan |
| Business Technology | Robin Holloway |
| English | Trevor Drake |
| Mathematics | Paul Poiesz |
| Science | Dr. Scott Best |
| Social Studies | Harry Gicking |
| Student Services | Michelle Whelan |
| Visual/Performing Arts | Geri Burns |
| Wellness/Fitness/FCS | Mary Kaye Rhude-Faust |
| World Languages | Scott Holland |
College matriculation
95% of Conestoga graduates go on to college; 93% of them to four-year colleges. The graduating Class of 2006 sent one or more students to Loyola College in Maryland, American University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell University, Brown University, Georgetown University,Brigham Young University, Syracuse University, Rutgers University, Elon University, Dartmouth College, Duke University, New York University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Chicago, University of Notre Dame du Lac, Stanford University, Princeton University, Carnegie Mellon University, Villanova University, and Drexel University. The most popular college choice for Conestoga students, however, is Pennsylvania State University. 56% of Conestoga students leave Pennsylvania for college and more than 60% attend private institutions after graduation.[2]
Departments
Conestoga has eight academic departments: Business/Technology, English, World Languages, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Visual and Performing Arts, and Wellness/Fitness/Family & Consumer Science. To graduate, students must earn 24 credits. 1 credit is equivalent to a year-long class which meets every day for 43 minutes, which is the length of the eight periods at Conestoga (though 8th period is actually 44 minutes, so that Conestoga's school day can be precisely 7 hours long, from 7:20 a.m. to 2:20 p.m.). Students must earn 4 credits in English, 2 in Languages, 3 in Math, 3.5 in Social Studies, and 3 in Science.
Distinctions and honors
Newsweek magazine has consistently rated Conestoga highly in its annual ranking of public high schools. Conestoga has been ranked 170th (1st in Pennsylvania) in 2006 [3], 195th in 2005 [4], and 197th in 2003 [5].
US Department of Education has acknowledged Conestoga as a Recognized School of Excellence. [6]
In the October, 2006 issue of Philadelphia Magazine, Tredyffrin and Easttown townships were voted one of the best places to live in the Philadelphia area because of Conestoga, voted the area's best high school. [7]
SAT
Conestoga has been known for its outstanding achievement in its performance on the SATs. In 2006, Conestoga Seniors did very well compared to the national average [8] :
| Test Type | National Average | Conestoga |
|---|---|---|
| Reading | 503 | 583 |
| Math | 518 | 596 |
| Writing | 497 | 578 |
National Merit/College Board Recognition
The Conestoga Class of 2007 includes 19 National Merit Semifinalists, 33 National Merit Commended Students, 2 National Achievement Scholars, and 2 National Hispanic Recognition award recipients [9] .
Advanced Placement Program
In May 2006, 604 Conestoga students, or 32% of the student body, completed 1100 College Board Advanced Placement (AP) examinations. A score of 3 or higher was earned on 95% of the tests. AP courses offered at Conestoga are listed under Curriculum. This school year, the College Board will recognize 260 of these students as a Scholar, Scholar with Honor, Scholar with Distinction, State Scholar, or National Scholar[10].
Pennsylvania System of School Assessment
Conestoga students consistently perform well on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA), which is administered in Reading, Mathematics and Writing to every eleventh grader in public schools throughout the state. The average scaled scores for Conestoga students were among the very highest in the state in 2006[11].
| Test Type | State | Conestoga |
|---|---|---|
| Reading | 1370 | 1610 |
| Math | 1340 | 1600 |
| Writing | 1520 | 1730 |
Student Council
The Conestoga Student Council has six components: four class councils serving each grade, an executive council presiding over those four class councils, and pseudo-assembly of elected homeroom representatives. The student council organizes class trips, dances (including Proms and Homecoming), and fundraising activities. The faculty sponsor of the student council is Mr. Seth Shore, a calculus teacher.
Trivia
- The school's colors are garnet and gray and its mascot is the Pioneer and/or Conestoga Wagon.
- Richard Nixon's last public appearance was at a Conestoga High School performance of Into the Woods. His granddaughter Jennie Eisenhower, great-granddaughter of Dwight D. Eisenhower, starred in the play as Little Red Riding Hood.[12]
- As a senior prank in the late '90s, the Pioneer was stolen from the school lobby and taken on a road trip across the eastern seaboard. The perpetrators sent the administration pictures as postcards from the Pioneer. Upon return to the lobby, the Pioneer was chained to the wall.
- Tredyffrin/Easttown Middle School, located less than 1 mile away from Conestoga, has the same school colors, Garnet and Grey, although its school mascot is a bulldog.
Notable former students
- Craig Lucas - CHS '69. Tony-award nominated American playwright, has written a number of plays, including Reckless which Conestoga performed in 2006.[13]
- Grant Shaud - CHS' 79 actor best known for his role as Miles Silverberg on the hit CBS show Murphy Brown
- David Bush - CHS '98. Starting Pitcher for the Millwaukee Brewers.[14]
- Marquis Weeks - CHS '00. Running Back for the Seatle Seahawks, has gone back and forth from their practice squad to active roster, played in college for the University of Virginia.
- Jon D'Alba - CHS '01. Member of the 2006-2007 US National Rowing Team in the Lightweight 8+.[15]
Controversy
- In June 2005, school administrators discovered that a music teacher, Christopher Genovese, was having an illicit affair with one of his students. Genovese is no longer working for the school and has completed a prison sentence for corrupting a minor. [16]
