Gaither High School
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| Gaither High School | |
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"Reach for the stars..."[citation needed]
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| Location | |
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16200 N Dale Mabry Hwy  Tampa, Florida 33618, USA |
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| Information | |
| Principal | Brenda Grasso |
| Enrollment |
2,350 |
| Faculty | includes assistant principals Connie Delaney, Anthony Jones, Lauren Otero, Henry Strapp, and Brad Woods |
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1984 |
| Information | (813) 975-7340 |
| Colors | Silver, White, and Blue |
| Homepage | Gaither High Official Website |
Vivian Gaither High School (commonly abbreviated to simply Gaither or GHS) is located in the Greater Northdale area of Hillsborough County, Florida, USA. It is a senior public high school, serving grades 9-12, operated by the Hillsborough County Public School System. It serves the communities of Northdale, Cheval, Country Place, North Lakes, Lutz, and other parts of northern Hillsborough County. Students from James Buchanan Middle School and Ben Hill Middle School (Gaither's "feeder schools") usually attend Gaither for grades 9-12.[citation needed]
Gaither is named for former Hillsborough High School administrator, Principal Vivian Gaither. He served over 40 years in the Hillsborough County School System.
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[edit] History
Gaither opened at 1984. the school only housed 10th and 11th grades until 1997, it only accommodated 10th, 11th, and 12th grades. Today, Gaither is used for all of 9th-12th grades.
Gaither's closest rival is Sickles High School, which opened in 1997. Other rivals include Chamberlain High School, Freedom High School, and Plant High School.
In 2003, Gaither High School adopted the vision, "Gaither will be among the top 5% of high schools in the state," and mission, "Gaither will provide all students with the opportunity and skills needed to maximize their potential as life–long learners and productive citizens."[citation needed]
During the Fall of 2003, a clustered case of respiratory Stridor hit Gaither's Starettes, the dance and cheerleading squad. Anywhere from 10 to 14 members of the Starettes as well as a few members of the Marching Cowboys contracted the illness during the months of October and November, following July band camp at the school which all were present at. During that same time the school gym floor was refinished and the auditorium painted; it is likely that the Starettes' practice area, where they spent considerable time between the two locations, predisposed them (as opposed to the entirety of the marching band, which usually practiced in the band room) to a mixture of and higher-than-normal volumes of fumes (which many complained of). The most newsworthy facet of this incident was the spotless air-quality test result mandated by County health officials and performed by both the SDHC's Safety Department and independent private environmental consultants Chastain-Skillman; the exact causes of the episode are still a mystery. As such it was featured on an episode of NBC's Today. As of December, 2003 the afflicted students' health had improved or was improving.[citation needed]
In April of 2004, a wall above the auditorium collapsed due to heavy wind and rains, and crews pulled the rest down to prevent any further collapsing. The wall was rebuilt but water purportedly continues to come in through the ceiling.
In 2005, the Gaither Marching Band participated in the Inaugural Parade for George W. Bush.
In 2006, the Gaither Vocal Chorus traveled to New York City and performed at St Patrick's Cathedral.
During the Fall and Spring semesters comprising the 2005-2006 school year, Spirit Week (the once-a-year week wherein students can dress to various school-related "themes") was cut down to three days instead of the usual five. To make up for what the students felt was a school-spirit deprivation (as there was no conceivable or announced reason for the decrease in the number of Spirit days), the student population created their own "themes" for the first two days of the week: Pirate day and Ninja day. On both days, students who dressed up were required by administration to change clothes.
In January 2007, GHS was named the demonstration high school for best practices for inclusive education (BPIE) by the state of Florida for Hillsborough County. During the spring of 2007, Gaither High School participated in a team process which developed an action plan to further improve best practices.
[edit] Demographics
As of September 1, 2006, Gaither High School demographics are as follows:[1]
- 57.74% - White/Caucasian, Non Hispanic (1,357 students)
- 28.34% - Hispanic, of any race (666 students)
- 7.32% - Black/African-American, Non Hispanic (172 students)
- 3.15% - Multiracial/ethnic (74 students)
- 2.85% - Asian/Pacific Islander (67 students)
- 0.60% - American Indian/Alaskan Native (14 students)
However, these numbers may not be exact, because students whose ethnic information is unknown or not listed on school records are automatically sorted into the "White/Caucasian, Non Hispanic" category. The School District of Hillsborough County does not follow the United States Office of Management and Budget policy on racial classification; they put all Hispanic students into one category, regardless of race. This is most likely done to calculate how many students have limited English-speaking ability. However, as can be seen from the following data, the percentage of Hispanic students is not related in any way to the percentage of students who have limited proficiency in the English language.
- 25.57% of students are economically disadvantaged (601 students)
- 4.3% of students have limited proficiency in the English language (101 students)
- 11.87% of students have disabilities (279 students)
[edit] Sister school
Hillsborough County used the layout of Gaither to build Bloomingdale High School in Valrico, Florida. The differences between the two schools are the colors, Bloomingdale's colors are black and red earning it the infamous moniker "Satan Gaither" among Gaither attendees.[citation needed]
[edit] Athletic achievements
[edit] Baseball
2005 was the best year in Gaither's baseball history.[neutrality disputed] In coach Frank Permuy's 21st year coaching at Gaither, he led the Cowboys to a Tony Saladino Tournament win, and a Class 5A State Championship game against Davie Nova. At the time, Davie Nova was the No. 1 ranked team in the country. The Cowboys lost to Davie Nova 3-0, ending their season with a record of 26-6. Although the season ended in low spirits, having come so close to winning it all, it is the farthest level the Cowboys' baseball program has ever reached in the FHSAA State Playoffs.[neutrality disputed] Permuy credited the team with all the success, stating, "This is the best group of seniors we have ever had.[neutrality disputed] The Best. They were the leaders of this team. A team of 27 guys and everybody knows their role. That's a real team." The group of seniors included: Mario Duarte (Florida Atlantic University), Gus Fernandez (University of South Florida/St. Pete College), Caleb Graham (FSU/St. Pete College), Kris Loper, Braulio Pardo (University of South Florida), Ryan Plate, and Chris Thompson (Oglethorpe College).[neutrality disputed][original research?]
In 2006, the Cowboys baseball team returned to the state playoffs, this time in the Class 6A, Region 2 semifinal. The Cowboys came out "flat", as described by most of the players on the team, but still led Dr. Phillips High School of Orlando going into the 7th inning, 4-3. Pitcher Eric Doty, a sophomore at the time, came in to close out the game. After securing one out, Doty walked one and then gave up a walk-off home run. It should be noted, however, that the ball went out to the right field fence; Dr. Phillips's field had an extremely "short porch", i.e., a very short outfield. Its total distance from home plate was 280 feet (by comparison, Gaither High School's right field fence is 365 feet from home plate). The home run is collectively referred to by all Gaither players as "the pop-up that ended our season". Graduating seniors included Jason "O-B" O'Brien (Polk Community), Evan "Evo" Ashley (Barry University), Wes Kelley, Steven Lewis, Danny "Deuce" Dwyer (Polk Community), Greg "C-Man" Coffman (University of South Florida/St. Pete College), and Jason "Hammie" Hamm (St. Leo University). The 2006 record was 19-7.[original research?]
2007 marked the possible end of 3 years of statewide recognition as a contender for the FHSAA State Championship. Overshadowed in the district by Alonso High School, the Cowboys still managed to win 20 games, won 4th place in the Tony Saladino Tournament, and also reached the Regional Quarterfinal game--losing to eventual state champion Sarasota. The 2007 team was marred by a number of off-the-field situations, including two critical, baseball-unrelated injuries to ace pitcher Chris Jones, and felony arrests of two other players. Still, the Cowboys persevered, and in a year when expectations weren't the highest, they excelled. Coach Frank Permuy: "It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to win 20 games in a high school season, and this group of guys did it. It's the first time in ten years that two teams from the district have won 20 games. I have a lot of respect for these guys, because they had to deal with way more things than they should have [referring to the off-the-field incidents]. Looking at where we were before, and how low our expectations had fallen, this turned out to be a very good year." Graduating seniors included Ray "All Day Ray" Frances (Polk Community), Chris "Hollywood" Jones (Drafted in the 15th round by the Cleveland Indians), Brian Menendez, Sean "Whitey" White (University of Tampa), Drew "The Boom" Malley (Ohio State University), Mike Fernandez (University of Tampa), Josh Graham (St. Pete College), and Stephen "Big Steve" Daneman (St. Leo University).[original research?]
(All players with colleges listed after their names denote where they're playing now.)
[edit] Football
The boys varsity football team had a winning record in 2005/2006 but did not make the post-season. The Cowboys finished their 2006/2007 regular season at 6-4 and second in the district, but continued to the post-season, making it to the second round of the playoffs.
[edit] Ice hockey
In 2007, the Combined Gaither/Sickles Ice Hockey Team won the SAHOF Combined State Hockey Tournament at the St. Pete Times Forum. The Gaither/Sickles team defeated Hernando's Springstead High School 2-0. Evan Spriggs opened the scoring for the Gaither/Sickles team, connecting for a goal at 3:31 in the third period, assisted by Greg Gotting. To seal the victory, Jason Almcrantz added an open net goal assisted by William Moenart at 11:30 in the third period. Tournament players included Jason Almcrantz, Austin Bubley, Matthew Dolly, Christopher Gacsy, Tyler Garst, Greg Gotting, Nils Hamel, Denny Humphreys, Brad McBride, William Moenart, Patrick O'Neil, Gregory Pyle, Daniel Reinhold, Brian Samson, Evan Spriggs, and Jake Zimmerman. The team was coached by Dan Bubley, Bill Moenart and Chuck Pyle.
[edit] Soccer
Although predicted to come in last place in their district, the Cowboys 2000 soccer team had won Gaither's only men's state championship at the school. They were also ranked 5th in the nation that year. Which the next year, they nearly repeated state championships only to lose in the state finals by shootout. The Cowboys 2006 soccer team has had the best season of the school's history. Gaither went undefeated in the regular season with 21 wins and 2 ties, something no other Gaither soccer team has done before. The 2006 soccer team only lost one senior due to graduation last year and they are coming back to win it all. The team is very solid featuring players like Eddie Ababio, who could likely be considered the best player in the county. He leads the team with 19 goals and also has 9 assists under his belt. Ababio is accompanied by midfielder Trent Anderson who leads the team in assist with 17.
[edit] Swimming
Led by captains Brett Davis and Frank Rivera, the 2006 Gaither boys swim team had a good season with a final record of 7-3. The team had several members go to regionals and had four members on the All-Conference team: Brett Davis, Christian Bernuil, Matt Mallory, and Joe Frasier. The four boys on the All-Conference team had one of the top times for their 200m Freestyle Relay at the FHSAA regional finals, despite the fact that two members were disqualified for diving early.
[edit] Track
The last great track and field accomplishment was Dara Altman's consecutive Pole vault State Titles in 2001 and 2002, followed closely by hurdler Joel Eastlick's District Champion title in 2001. The girl's and boy's teams have also won the 2006 District Championship, the boys winning the Regional Championship as well. Also in 2006, sprinters Timothy Allen, Torrey Esolami, Joseph Gordon, Carlton Mitchell, and combination discus and shot put thrower Reggie Wilson were included in the Nationwide School Sports magazine, perhaps as the largest athletic publicity Gaither has ever seen (between these five athletes five school records were set in 2006 alone). Also of note is athlete Phillip Boles, a current leading track and field senior at Gaither, who placed third in state competitions as a sophomore (2004-2005 school year).
[edit] Volleyball
The 2004 girls volleyball squad was a senior dominated team who were coming back to make another run at the State Championship. The team was led by senior Kaley Brown who filled the new "libero" position and had about 200 digs throughout the whole season. Audrey Campbell, another senior, standing at 6-foot-1 is the tallest player on the team and a dominating force at the net. Campbell had about 75 kills and 55 solo blocks leading into the playoffs. Katie Whitescarver is the best hitter the team has. The 5-8 senior leads her team in the kills category with 125. Jessica Harris is another front row senior who has used her aggressive playing style to smack down 74 kills for her team. Of course, all of these kills would not have been possible if it weren't for quality setting. Casey Smith, the daughter of coach Cindy Smith, fills that position. Casey aided the team with 426 assists during the season and she also led the team in service aces. The final senior on the team is Donelle Goff who is a defensive specialist. Kaley, Audrey, Casey, and Donelle also play soccer for the Cowboys.
[edit] Famous alumni
- Kevin Cash, Tampa Bay Devil Rays catcher
- Melinda Hohmann, XM Radio host
- Kenny Majid, Choreographer America's Best Dance Crew
- Carlton Mitchell, USF Wide Receiver
- Tina Novak, singer
- Alesha Oreskovich, model/ Playboy bunny
- Lydell Ross, former Ohio State Buckeyes running back
- J.R. Russell, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver
- James Smith, guitarist of band Underoath
- Brittany Snow, actress
- Jenn Sterger, photo model
- Chad Zerbe, San Francisco Giants relief pitcher
[edit] Administration
Gaither High has had three principals in its history.
- Ron Allen 1984 - 1993
- Ken Adum 1993 - 2003
- Brenda Grasso 2003 - present
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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