Darien High School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To meet Wikipedia's quality standards, this article may require cleanup.
More verifiable information on this school is needed. Guidelines and editing help are available.
See rationale on this article's talk page. This school based article is related to WikiProject Schools.
| Darien | |
| Established | 1927 |
|---|---|
| School type | Public |
| Principal | Dr. Jerome Auclair |
| Location | Darien, Connecticut, United States of America |
| Students | 1,149 (October 1, 2006) |
| Mascot | Blue Wave |
| Colors | Blue and White |
| Website | http://www.darienps.org/dhs/ |
Darien High School is a public high school located in Darien, Connecticut, open to students in grades 9 through 12.
Dr. Jerome Auclair, the school principal, was named "Connecticut High School Principal of the Year" for 2004 by the Connecticut Association of Schools.[1] DHS electronics teacher Lee Strecker was awarded an American Star of Teaching Award in 2006. [1]
Contents |
[edit] Academic achievement
In the 2004-2005 school year, Darien had the highest SAT math score in the state, the second highest CAPT score in the state and the highest Advanced Placement scores in the schools history, with a 100-percent pass rate on AP math exams and more than 85 percent of students getting the top score of "5". About one out of every three students in the high school takes an AP math course.[2]
Of the 200 graduating seniors in June 2005, 24 won national recognition in the National Merit Scholarship program, with 20 as "commended scholars" and four as National Merit Scholars.[3]
For the purpose of comparison with the achievement levels of similar schools, the state Department of Education classifies schools and communities in "District Reference Groups", defined as "districts whose students' families are similar in eduation, income, occupation and need, and that have roughly similar enrollment".[4] Darien is one of eight school districts in District Reference Group A (others are Easton, New Canaan, Redding, Ridgefield, Weston, Westport, and Wilton).[5]
[edit] Academic statistics
Class of 2005 average SAT scores:
- Verbal 585
- Math 612
Class of 2004 average SAT scores:
- Verbal 575
- Math 612
A total of 86.6 percent of graduating seniors go on to four-year colleges, and 6.7 percent go on to two-year colleges.
The May 2005 Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT) results (administered to students in the 10th grade): Of the 238 students who took the test, 62.2 percent scored at or above the state goal in all four content areas.[6]
[edit] The Building
The original high school building opened in 1927. A new high school building was built in 1960, and the former high school structure became Mather Junior High School. Upon the closing of Mather Junior High, the building became Darien's Town Hall.
The second high school building, on a 40-acre site at 80 High School Lane, opened in 1960 and was torn down in 2005. The current high school was constructed from 2003 to 2005, opening in the fall of 2005. The project cost roughly US$76 million. Among the major innovations were the introduction of a campus-wide wireless network and fiber-optic networking to all classrooms. Construction costs of the new building significantly exceeded the original budget, mostly due to the cost of asbestos removal from the old building. The high school's artificial turf field is one of the largest in the state and its cost of $1 million was raised in only 6 weeks by parents of the town.
[edit] Athletics
More than 72 percent of the student body participated in at least one of the school's 59 teams in the 2004-2005 school year.[2]
DHS is part of the FCIAC, the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference. The school's main sports rival is New Canaan High School. Darien has one of the best high school lacrosse teams in the country, winning eight of the last 10 FCIAC titles and the 2005 and 2006 Boys Division I state championship. The school also has a highly successful girl's volleyball team, which maintains a 100+ game winning streak in addition to numerous FCIAC and state championships. The Boys Track Team has also had much success, winning back to back State Class Championships for the Indoor 2005 and 2006 seasons, as well as winning the State Class Championship and placing second in State Opens in the Outdoor 2006 Season. The school mascot is the Blue Wave, and its colors are blue and white.
These freshman (F), junior varsity (JV) and varsity (V) sports are offered at the school:[1]
|
FALL Cheerleading (V) |
WINTER Basketball — boys and girls (F, JV, V) |
SPRING Baseball (F, JV, V) |
[edit] Extracurricular activities
These nonsports extracurricular activities are offered at the school (subject to change based on student interest):
|
|
|
|
[edit] Student body
| Ethnicity[7] | School 2004-2005 |
State Avg. 2004-2005 |
| White, non-Hispanic | 95% | 67% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 3% | 3% |
| Hispanic | 1% | 15% |
| Black | <1% | 14% |
Reflecting its location in a wealthy community, only 1 percent of students at the school are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, compared with 26 percent across the state in the 2004-2005 school year.[7]
[edit] Alumni
- Actress, Chloe Sevigny attended the high school.
- Actor, Garett Maggart attended the high school.
- Musician, Moby attended the high school.
- Novelist Joanna Scott graduated from the school (Class of 1978), was in Post 53 and wrote for the school literary magazine.
- Congressman, Christopher Shays (R), CT 4th District, attended the high school.
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c Darien Answerbook, 2006, published by the Darien Times weekly newspaper, page 26
- ^ a b Revitalization: Town of Darien Annual Report, 2004-2005, page 5
- ^ Revitalization: Town of Darien Annual Report, 2004-2005, page 4
- ^ [1] state "Strategic School Profile 2005-2006" for Wilton High School, accessed March 25, 2007
- ^ [2]Web page titled "Find a Community: By Educational Reference Group (DRG)" at the "Discovery 2007 / An initiative of the William Caspar Graustein Fund" Web site, accessed March 25, 2007
- ^ a b Darien Answerbook 2006, page 28
- ^ a b [3]Darien High School teacher/student statistics page, Great Schools Web site, accessed March 6, 2007
[edit] External links
- Darien High School Official Website
- state "Strategic School Profile 2005-2006" for Darien High School
- Darien High School Web page at the Great Schools website
| Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference | |
|---|---|
| Bassick • Brien McMahon • Central • Danbury • Darien • Fairfield Ludlowe • Fairfield Warde • Greenwich • Harding • New Canaan • Norwalk • Ridgefield • St. Joseph • Stamford • Staples • Trinity Catholic • Trumbull • Westhill • Wilton |
