Methuen High School
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| Supervising Principal | Arthur Nicholson III |
| Vice Principal | Jane Obshatkin |
| Assistant Principal | Donald Gibson |
| Assistant Principal | Karen Hallbauer |
| Dean of Students | Michael Downs |
| School type | Public |
| Religious affiliation | None |
| Founded | circa 1975 |
| Location | Methuen, Massachusetts |
| Enrollment | 2,000+[1] |
| Faculty | 128 |
| Campus surroundings | Suburban |
| Sports teams | Rangers |
| School color(s) | Blue & white |
Methuen High School is a public secondary school located in the city of Methuen, Massachusetts. Methuen High serves grades nine through twelve for about 1,900 students. It is one of five public schools in Methuen and it is the only high school in the district. The first class to graduate from Methuen High was the class of 1976.
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Environment
The school was originally designed with the open classroom theory. Since then, dividers have been put up and some classrooms are lined with walls. For many first-year students, this open environment causes a great deal of distraction. Most students are able to cope and become used to this particular situation, and now find it hard to learn in a classroom with four walls and no sound interruptions.[citation needed]
The walls that do stand in Methuen High School can also cause a fair amount of distraction among its residents. The walls are generally painted bright orange with a variety of student created murals and sillohuetes representing students.
The school itself is divided into several "houses". The South wing, or South House, holds mathematics, science, business and computer classes. The North House holds classrooms for English and Foreign Languages, including Spanish, Italian, French, and American Sign Language. The field house holds theater, JROTC, and physical education classes.
Athletics
Methuen High is a longtime member of the Merrimack Valley Athletic Conference, recognized by many as among the premier conferences in New England. The school offers 25 sports at the Varsity, Junior Varsity, and Freshmen levels.
Clubs
The school holds a wide array of clubs and extra-cirricular activities including, but not limited to:
- National Honor Society
- Student Government
- Gay/Straight Alliance
- Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps
- Lyceum Literacy Club
- National Art Honor Society
Daily Schedule
A typical day is broken up into three, hour-long morning classes that begin at 7:30a.m. At 10:42a.m, a two-hour "long block" begins that divides students up into half hour lunches based on which House they are at that time. Following long block there is one final hour-long period.
Rates
In a 2001 report, there was said to be about 1,783 students enrolled. Of those students, 80% were white, 15% Hispanic, 4% Asian, and 1% Black. 13% of students qualify for reduced-price or free lunch. In 2002 the enrollment of students increased to 1,868. In 2000, the rate of in-school suspension was 29.2 the out-of school suspension rate was 15.9, while the state's rates were 4.9 and 6.1
