Huron High School (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
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| Ann Arbor Huron High School | |
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| Established | August 1969 |
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| School type | Public secondary |
| Locale | Ann Arbor Public Schools |
| Grades | 9-12 |
| Location | Ann Arbor, MI, US |
| Colors | Forest Green and Old Gold |
| Mascot | River Rats |
| Website | http://www.a2huron.org |
Huron High School is a public school in Ann Arbor, in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located at 2727 Fuller Road in eastern Ann Arbor near the banks of the Huron River, it serves grades 9 through 12.
The school's principal is Dr. Arthur Williams.
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[edit] Administration
For the 2006/2007 school year, Huron had six administrators:
Dr. Arthur Williams- Principal; Marcus Edmondson- Assistant Principal, Class of 2007; Dr. Virginia Bell- Assistant Principal, Class of 2008; Jennifer Hein- Assistant Principal, Class of 2009; Margaret Jewett- Assistant Principal, Class of 2010; Dottie Davis- Assistant Principal, Interim Athletic Director;
[edit] History
Huron opened in the fall of 1969, when the high-school baby boom population was at its highest peak. The student body at the city's only public high school, Ann Arbor High, had recently outgrown its quarters on the city's west side. The school board constructed a second high school, renaming the first to Pioneer High School, with the new school named Huron High School. In 1968, before Huron's building was completed, students from the old and new schools shared the Pioneer building in a split schedule, with Pioneer students attending classes in the morning and Huron students in the afternoon. Reaction against Pioneer's "factory-like" building was a large factor in Huron's organic curvilinear form. Huron was also known for it's trademark Arch, under which cars could drive. In summer 2005, the school board decided to close the Arch to auto traffic due to safety concerns, despite opposition from the student body.
The two schools possessed distinct cultures and a rivalry soon sprang up. "River Rats," originally an epithet hurled at students of the new school by Pioneer students, quickly became a term of pride for Huron students. When offered a ballot for school mascot with two choices ("Huron Hawks" and "Huron Hammerheads," both names provided by the school board), Huron students conducted a write-in campaign for "Huron River Rats," which, after twice receiving a majority vote, was finally approved by the board.
In the 1990s Huron High School became overcrowded. By the turn of the millennium there were close to 2500 students in a building built for 1500. In order to fix the problem, the district began construction of the new Skyline High School, which is scheduled to be completed in 2008.[citation needed]
The major film, Jumper, had a scene filmed at Huron High School and the neighboring Gallup Park in February 2007. One hundred and sixty students were chosen from Huron to be extras for the movie. The screenplay of Jumper was written by Huron High School graduate David S. Goyer and is scheduled for a February 2008 release.
[edit] Clubs and Organizations
[edit] Huron Players
The Huron Players are the official theatre group of Huron High School. They put on four shows every year: two full-length plays, one shortened play for performance at state competitions, and "Finale", an assortment of student-directed one-act plays. The group is sponsored by Bj Wallingford, who also directs many of the plays. Students may join the Huron Players at any time at no cost. They participate in various "crews" to create the final product of a show. The current crews are: Makeup, Props, Costumes, Lighting, Sound, House (ushers), Technical (set-building), as well as the positions of Assistant Stage Manager and Stage Manager who assist the director in rehearsals with the actors and actresses. The group is entirely composed of students, with the exception of the director. At each final performance, the entire show is put on and managed by only students. Student's participation in various "crews" and as actors earns them points, which, when exceeding a certain amount, earns that student a varsity letter.
In Spring 2004 the Huron Players performed the play "W;t", by Margaret Edson, at the Michigan Interscholastic Forensic Association annual competition and earned first place in the state of Michigan. It is the first known time the Huron Players have earned such an honor. The Huron Players went on to perform "W;t" at the Michigan Youth Arts Festival at Western Michigan University in May 2004.
The television screenwriter and producer Javier Grillo-Marxuach is a former Huron Player.
It is tradition for the outgoing seniors in the group to sign their names with paint on a wall or the ceiling in the scene shop.
[edit] Publications
- The Emery: the official school newspaper
- The Symposium: a student-published alternative newspaper. Authors of The Symposium do not identify themselves in the publication, and have been criticized by the school's official newspaper following accusations of libel.
- The Other Voice: an older alternative newspaper which was published during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
- Full Circle: the school's award-winning annually-published literary magazine. The publication contains student-submitted poetry, prose, artwork and photography.
- Enthymion: the school yearbook
[edit] Notable alumni
- David Goyer (1984): screenwriter, director and producer
- Zeke Jones (1985): wrestler
- Javier Grillo-Marxuach (1989): screenwriter, producer
- Annette Salmeen (1992): 1996 Summer Olympics gold medalist (800m freestyle relay), Rhodes Scholar
- Jill Carroll (1995): journalist; 2006 kidnapping victim in Iraq
- Rick DiPietro (1999): NHL goaltender
- John Michael Liles (1999): NHL Defenseman - Colorado Avalanche
- Carl Tabb (2002): University of Michigan football player, played for Huron while attending Community High School
- James "Lights Out" Toney (??year??): Boxer
