Northside High School (Warner Robins, Georgia)

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Coordinates: 32°37′40″N, 82°37′47″W

Northside High School
Established	1963
District	Houston County Schools
Grades	9-12
Principal	Dr. Robin Hines
Faculty	120[1]
Students	1,914[1]
Athletics	AAAA
Colors	Blue and White
Mascot	Eagles
Accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Location	926 Green Street Warner Robins, GA 31093 United States
Information	(478) 929-7858
Website	http://www.hcbe.net/schools/nhs/

Northside High School is a high school in Warner Robins, Georgia. Located at 926 Green Street on the northern side of Warner Robins, it was built in 1963 and has approximately 1850 students enrolled.

Contents 1 History 2 Campus 2.1 Tabor Academy 3 Students and faculty 4 Extracurricular activities 4.1 Athletics 4.1.1 Warner Robins High School rivalry 4.1.2 2006 state football championship 5 Notable alumni 6 References 7 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Campus

Many cosmetic changes were implemented starting at the end of the 2001 school year. At the end of the 2004-2005 school year, the school would begin massive renovation projects and attempts to increase the size of the school. Northside was last renovated during 2005 and 2006.

[edit] Tabor Academy

It had previously shared a lot with Tabor Middle School, but the former middle school is now a part of the high school complex. In 2004, Tabor Middle School became Tabor Academy at Northside, a 9th grade only school which introduces the 9th grade student to the high school atmosphere as other high schools in Houston County have done. The success of Tabor Academy lead to other school systems across Georgia adopting the same principle of keeping the 9th grade separate from the other high school students to gently ease them into the high school life.

[edit] Students and faculty

Student demographics^[1]:

• White: 50%
• Black: 45%
• Hispanic: 3%
• Asian or Pacific Islander: 2%
• Multiracial: 1%

43% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. There is a student:teacher ratio of 17:1.^[1]

[edit] Extracurricular activities

Northside is well known for its fine arts department and its competition in state literary events. Since 1963, the NHS drama department has only lost one region One Act competition and has 16 state trophies to show for it as well, to include the 2006-2007 school year. Literary has also seen the same fortune in state championships. The Ray Horne Theatre is home to the drama department.

In keeping with a strong fine art influence, the Blue Wind Band is generally known as "The Pride of Northside High." As the most visible representative of the fine arts department, they feature a football band, jazz ensemble, and 2 bands for concert season. This year the Northside High School Blue Wind Marching Band's halftime show was "Motown 2006" which included "Get Ready", "My Girl", "Ain't Too Proud to Beg", "You Keep Me Hangin' On", "Baby Love", "Stop In the Name of Love", "I Want You Back", "ABC", "I'll Be There" and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". The drum majors were Scott Kibler and Thomas Simons. The current Band Director is Mr. Paul Guilibeau and the Assistant Band Director is Jea-Otis Carter.

[edit] Athletics

Northside sponsors many athletic teams. Girls' and boys' Basketball, baseball, football, cross country, track, wrestling and softball to name a few. The school gym houses basketball and wrestling. Dyson Field, located at the back of the school, is the home site for baseball and softball has its own field as well.

In spite of their success in other venues, nothing takes precedence over the football team in importance. The gridiron record sits at 337-147-6 all time as of December 15th 2006.

Northside's mascot is the eagle. Its official colors are blue and white, though orange is also used just as much on school gear. The "N" on the side of the football helmets is rendered just as the Auburn "AU" symbol. The uniforms mimick Auburn as well, but NHS wears blue pants rather than Auburn's white pants. When the home field is painted, the "N" resembles the University of Nebraska-Lincoln except for the fact that it is white with blue outline, or blue with white outline. The fight song is "Mr. Touchdown, U.S.A.", a Nebraska tune and "On Wisconsin" is played after PATs. These traditions and more include the "Pride of Northside High" the Blue Wind Marching Band, present at all football games. In pregame festivities, the band forms a tunnel on the field. They play "2001: A space Odyssey" to introduce another football game before the football players rush the field for another 48 minutes of football in "Eagle Country". One of the more recognized tunes by the band, other than these, is "The Final Countdown", a song by the Hairband Metal group "Europe" that received worldwide attention in the mid-80's. This tune is traditionally played in the fourth quarter with about 2 minutes left in regulation of any gridiron action: win or loss. It has been known to spark late comebacks, signal triumph, and at the very least commend the team on a job well done. The Alma Mater is played after the game has ended and spectators and the football team can be seen swaying as the band plays. The alma mater is sung to the tune "Far Above Cayuga's Waters".

[edit] Warner Robins High School rivalry

Northside's rival in almost everything is Warner Robins High School, located on the south side of Warner Robins. (The band department would rival Houston County High School as the WRHS band would shrink in size and talent in the 90s) This matchup traditionally divides the city along Watson Blvd, pitting the north side of the city against the south side of the city in fashion not short of the civil war with one of the main roads, Watson Boulevard (Georgia State Route 247 connector) as the dividing line.^[2] With the addition of Houston County High School in 1993, the rivalry is now with the southeast section of the city zoned for WRHS... but is no less intense.

The series of rivalries dates back to 1964, NHS's first football season, and they have met every year since. Six times, they have met twice in the year, NHS only winning once. During football games between the two, it is not unheard of to have 20,000+ screaming fans in and around the stadium to cheer on the teams. In spite of the size of McConnell-Talbert Stadium, a shared home field for the 3 teams in the city, bleachers and additional facilities have to be brought in to house the spectators. It is even rumored that the game has been featured on ESPN Plus a few times because of the significant matchups in the late 90s. It is not uncommon for these two teams to meet with more than city bragging rights on the line. In the history of NHS vs WRHS, no more than 3 times has the winner not represented a region in football. With its location by Robins Air Force Base, this rivalry is premier not only in the central Georgia region, but to alumni worldwide as well. It is not uncommon for spectators from all over the state of Georgia to attend this game, whether or not they have ties to the 2 schools.

The intense rivalry maintains in spite of the two schools being placed into different state classes. Warner Robins High School moved back up to AAAAA while Northside remains in AAAA for the 2nd year. Schools are assigned from one to five "A's" based on their size. The smallest schools are in class "A" and the largest schools are "AAAAA".

A slot usually reserved for November, the game was moved in 2006 for the first time since the 1975 season. Though WRHS has the upper hand in the series, 32-17, Northside has reeled off its best showing against its all time rival. In 1996, after six straight years of losses (1990-1995) to the Demons in football, and posting a 6-3 record for the year, no one expected an upset for the Eagles in the fall meeting. The matchup occurred on Friday the 15th of November. The Eagles won 33-14, a game that broke the "Seven Year Curse", and have only dropped 3 games to the Demons since that victory. Northside met WRHS as the #1 team in the state for the first time in the 1999 season, resulting in a 16-7 victory for the Eagles. The teams met as the #1 and #2 teams in the state for the first time in series history in 2000, a matchup that pitted future college stars NHS QB Chansi Stuckey (Clemson WR) against WRHS RB Willie Reid (Florida State WR), one that saw the Demons escape with a controversial 23-20 win.

Coach Conrad Nix is the best coach in NHS history. He has led the team to 10-win seasons in 75, 78 and since 1998. He would not coach the team from 1981 to 1993 but returned in time to break the "Seven Year Curse" in 1996.

[edit] 2006 state football championship

This year's semifinal trip to the Georgia Dome in Atlanta is the 4th time in 10 years and in school history. They met and defeated St. Pius X by a score of 20-17 on Friday, December 8, 2006, to advance to the state AAAA championship finals. In 2 prior state championship bids, the Eagles have come up short. The third time was the charm as Northside beat Marist 30-6 for the state 'AAAA' championship on Friday, December 15, 2006.^{[3] [4]}

As of Dec. 25, 2006, the Northside Eagles football team finished the season undefeated and ranked as the #1 high school football team in Georgia for all classes.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Northside High School - Houston County. State of Georgia Governor's Office of Student Achievement.
2. ^ Houston County High School Boundaries 2006-2007.
3. ^ Bunn, Curtis (2006-12-16). HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL STATE FINALS: First title's so sweet. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on 2006-12-28. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
4. ^ Morton, Rob (2006-12-16). HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: NORTHSIDE-WARNER ROBINS 30, MARIST 6: Green ready for big game. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on 2006-12-28. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.

[edit] External links

• Northside High School
• Northside Football
• Northside High School Blue Wind Band