Mitchell High School (North Carolina)

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Mitchell High School is a small high school in western North Carolina located in Mitchell County, North Carolina. Their mascot is the Mountaineers and the school colors are purple and silver.

Mitchell High School opened in 1978 as the result of consolidation of all high schools in Mitchell County. It was built in the small unincorporated community of Ledger between the only two municipalities of Mitchell County, Spruce Pine, North Carolina and Bakersville, North Carolina. For some students in the more remote areas of the county such as Pigeon Roost and Poplar, a school bus ride of over an hour is not unheard of.

The population growth of Mitchell County has not been significant since 1978¹ and therefore it is not surprising that the enrollment of Mitchell High school has also not increased. In 1978, enrollment was near 900². In 1988 enrollment was down to between 700 and 750². As of 2006, enrollment is approximately 686³. Expect around 700 to be the enrollment for the next several years. With the class of 2007, because of exceding dropouts, the gradation rate for the class is said to be between 80 and 100, if lucky.

Jack Brooks is the current principal of Mitchell High.⁴ He was a mathematics teacher and wrestling coach during the late 1980's at the school.

Mitchell High School is accredited by both the North Carolina State Department of Public Instruction and Southern Association of Schools.⁴

1 History
2 Athletics
3 Athletic Achievements
4 Contact Information
5 Sources

[edit] History

The schools that consolidated in in 1978 were Harris High School in Spruce Pine and Bowman High School in Bakersville. These schools became middle schools after consolidation. For the past several years, in addition to any other class reunions, there has been a single reunion of all Mitchell County School alumni held in mid September. The event is called the Mitchell County School Days Reunion.

[edit] Athletics

Mitchell High is a member of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association. They are in the Western Highlands 2A conference, which is actually made up of 7 schools with 3 of the schools classified as 1A. There are only 2 high schools in all 2A conferences in North Carolina that have smaller enrollments than Mitchell High. There are over 10 1A schools that have higher enrollments than Mitchell High. All three 1A schools in the Western Highlands Conference (Avery, Hendersonville, and Polk) have higher enrollments than 2A Mitchell High.³ Neighboring counties, Avery, Yancey (Mountain Heritage), and McDowell are some of the common rivals of the Mountaineers.