Abington Senior High School
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Abington Senior High School is a co-educational, high school (Grades 10 to 12), located in Abington, Pennsylvania, United States. The current enrollment as of 2006 is 1,967. As of 1995, the Principal is Dr. Robert Burt[1].
Until 1983, the building housing the senior high school was used only for 11th and 12th graders, with 9th and 10th graders in a separate building, which is now Abington Junior High School. The book Bee Season by Myla Goldberg features a main character (Aaron) who attends Abington Senior High School.
Abington SHS is a leader in PSSA scores in the state of Pennsylvania and has won many technology oriented awards from Dell and Microsoft. The school has been a Blue Ribbon School for many years. Abington was chosen as one of the 100 best communities by the organization "Americas Promise Alliance". The high school is located approximately five miles north of Philadelphia in a suburban residential area. The student body is quite diverse.
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[edit] Mascot
There is some controversy amongst students over the school's mascot, which is the Galloping Ghost. It is named after University of Illinois college star and professional football player Red Grange, whose nickname was The Galloping Ghost, due to the way he slipped through opposing defense like a ghost. He visited the high school, and at that time the mascot was named in his honor. The Ghost is represented by a tall pointed head which, in combination with the head-to-toe white costume, somewhat resembles a person in Ku Klux Klan regalia. Periodically there are movements within the school to change the appearance of the mascot, usually to a ghost with a more rounded (and less controversial) head, but as of 2006 none have come to fruition. The large mosiac of the Ghost on the floor in Abington Senior High School's main lobby has mystified some visitors who are unaware of the school mascot and who interpret it as a celebration of White supremacy. The irony of the mascot is further accentuated by the fact that rival high school Cheltenham's mascot is a large black panther.
[edit] Demographics
Demographics Abington Senior High Demographics Year Enrollment 1984 2007 Student-Teacher Ratio 19.3 2005 Free & Reduced Lunch 7.8% 2005 White, non-Hispanic 72.75% 2005 Black, non-Hispanic 18.19% 2005 Hispanic 1.82% 2005 Asian/Pacific Islander 6.93% 2005 Native American or Native Alaskan 0.31% 2005
Abington Senior High School is a three year comprehensive high school. The 2005-2006 enrollments are 1967 pupils with 655 in the senior class. The total number of faculty assigned to the high school is 142.
[edit] Grading system
Graduation Requirements: A minimum of 210 points (21 units) in grades 9-12 and meeting the following minimum unit course requirements: English (4), social studies (4), mathematics (3), science (3), arts and humanities (1), additional electives (4.6), physical education and health (1.4).
Advanced Placement. A total of 127 candidates took 243 AP Examinations in May 2005 (78 percent scored 3 or higher). AP courses currently offered at the high school: AP American Studies, AP Biology, AP Calculus, AB BC, AP Physics, AP French V, AP German V, AP Statistics, AP Environmental Science, AP Chemistry, AP Computer Science A AB , AP English IV, AP Studio Art, AP Government and Politics: U.S., AP Music: Theory, AP Macro/Microeconomics.
[edit] School district
The school district has an enrollment of 7,527 pupils who come from a variety of communities and many social levels.
The Abington School District was involved in a famous legal case relating to prayer in school, Abington School District v. Schempp, which was heard in the United States Supreme Court on February 27-28, with the ruling handed down on 17 June 1963. In this case, the court decided 8-1 in favor of the respondent, Edward Schempp, and declared school-sponsored Bible reading in public schools in the United States to be an unconstitutional violation of the separation of Church and State. The chief justice was Earl Warren, and the associate justices were Hugo Black, William O. Douglas, Tom C. Clark, etc. The U.S Const. amends I, XIV law applied.
[edit] Facilities
The school completed construction of a large football stadium in 2006. The stadium is named after Stephen A. Schwarzman, an alumnus of the school.
[edit] Notable alumni
Notable alumni of Abington Senior High School include:
- Dr. Amar Bose, Class of 1947. Leader in the development of electronic and stereophonic technology. Chairman and founder of Bose Corporation.
- Carol R. (Blank) Polis, Class of 1954. First woman professional boxing judge in the United States.
- Ellery Schempp, Class of 1958. The inventor of the MRI machine, as well as the leader of the Schempp vs. Abington court case, which led to the banning of religion in all public high schools.
- Susan Seidelman, Class of 1969. Director of five feature films and one of the top woman film directors in the United States.
- Stephen A. Schwarzman, Class of 1965. Founder and Chairman of the Blackstone Group, the largest private equity firm in the United States.
- Bob Saget, Class of 1975. Comedian and popular television celebrity.
- Shawn Wooden, Class of 1991. Football player. University of Notre Dame, the Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears.
- Jennifer Su, Class of 1985. Actress, singer, and television news reader in Thailand, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
- Dutch Schrap, Class of 1992. Actor, entertainer, and "America's Favorite Santa" TM
- Brittany Hatch, Class of 2003. Contenstant on America's Next Top Model Cycle 8.
- Ellie Daniel, Class of 1968. Gold, silver, and bronze Olympic swimming medalist.
- Amy Sacks, Class of 1972. Become the first woman television sports producer. She was a coordinating producer for ABC's " Wide World of Sports" from 1986 through 1989, earned 13 Emmy awards, two Pinnacle awards and a Christopher award for coverage of the 1983 Special Olympics.
- Florence LaRue, Class of 1960. Vocalist and original member of the internationally acclaimed Fifth Dimension.
- David Christiana, Class of 1978. Illustrator and author of numerous children's books, most recently the Disney Fairies series.
