The Woodlands High School
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The Woodlands High School is the largest high school in Texas, United States in area (it consists of two campuses), and it once had the second largest number of students (over 4,900) before the opening of The Woodlands College Park High School. The school's mascot is the Highlander.
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[edit] Campuses
The school's two campuses are located in the master-planned community of The Woodlands, an unincorporated community mostly located in Montgomery County, Texas, and they are part of the Conroe Independent School District. A portion of the city of Shenandoah is served by The Woodlands High School. TWHS takes pupils in grades 9 to 12, divided between the two campuses:
- The Woodlands High School: grades 10–12
- The Woodlands High School Ninth Grade Campus (formerly Branch Crossing Junior High School): grade 9
The original high school of The Woodlands, McCullough, was a high school when it was opened in 1976. McCullough High School, named after J.L. McCullough, also housed seventh and eighth graders until Knox Junior High opened in 1978. When The Woodlands High School opened on August 12, 1996, McCullough became a Junior High school until 2000. From 2000 to 2005, McCullough was known as The Woodlands High School: McCullough Campus, housing freshmen and sophomores. Today, since 2005 when The Woodlands College Park High School opened up, McCullough serves as a Junior High school again.
[edit] Demographics
As of the 2006-2007 school year, TWHS had 3,824 students [1].
- 3,249 (85%) were White
- 334 (9%) were Hispanic
- 119 (3%) were Asian
- 108 (3%) were African-American
- 14 (Less than 1%) were Native American
[edit] Administration
- 9th Grade Campus
- Principal: Marguerite Weatherall
- Associate Principal: Chick Pincumbe
- Assistant Principals: Dr. Albert Nardone, Jan Nell
- 10th-12th Grade Campus
- Principal: Gregg Colschen
- Associate Principals: Bonnie Hilburn, Chris Povich
- Assistant Principals: Jeri Gambertoglio, Paul Fleming, Patrick Ubernosky, Barbara Shaw, Dennis Muehsler
[edit] Academics
The Woodlands High School has a distinguished academic record. It has received numerous exemplary ratings from the Texas Education Agency and in 1998 was named a Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education [2]. The Woodlands High School is ranked 577 in Newsweek’s 2005 list of the Best High Schools in the United States [3]. In 2006, The Woodlands High School was awarded the Dodge Lone Star Cup-- an award given by the University Interscholastic League to honor the best overall academic and extracurricular program in the state of Texas [4].
The Woodlands High School has a relatively extensive College Board Advanced Placement program that includes the following courses: Biology, Chemistry, Physics B and C, Environmental Science, Human Geography, World History, U.S. History, U.S. Government, Macroeconomics, European History, Psychology, Statistics, Calculus AB and BC, English Language and Literature, Spanish Language, French Language and Literature, German, Latin Virgil and Literature, Japanese, Studio Art, Art History, Music Theory, and Computer Science A and AB [5].
[edit] Extracurricular Activities
The Woodlands High School prides itself on the strength of its extracurricular programs. The school offers more than 80 different clubs and organizations. In addition, a strong athletic program offers participation in 15 different competitive sports. Students also have the opportunity to participate in band, choir, speech, debate, drama, drill team, orchestra, cheerleading, and UIL academic activities [6].
The Woodlands High School Band was honored by the John Philip Sousa Foundation with the Sudler Flag of Honor in 2003 to recognize its high standards of excellence in its concert activities over several years. Also in 2003, the band was invited to perform at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago, Illinois (aka The Midwest Clinic). In 2006, the band won the Bands of America class AAA National title. The band has been both a UIL state finalist and a Bands of America national finalist on multiple occasions.
In 2004, the school's newspaper, The Caledonian, was awarded the Silver Star for Excellence in Journalism by the University Interscholastic League. Various journalism awards have been given to the paper's staff including former editors Carolyn Kayes, Alison Conklin and Trenton Horne. The Caledonian experienced a period of peak success under the leadership of Barbara Frazier, under whose administration the staff received numerous awards and acolades from the Interscholastic League Press Conference, a division of the University Interscholastic League. Frazier's successor, Laura Landsbaum, took over sponsorship of the staff during the 2004-2005 school year. Under Landsbaum's tutelage, the highest award garnered by The Caledonian was the Lone Star Award,
The Woodlands High School Winter Guard program has achieved much success in both the Texas Color Guard Circuit and the Winter Guard International circuit. Winter guards from The Woodlands High School have won numerous regional and state championships, and in 2004 The Woodlands High School Winter Guard took home the WGI Scholastic Open Class World Championship title. This was the first time a Texas group took home a title [7].
The Woodlands High School Theatre Department has succeeded in advancing to the state level of the UIL One-Act Play contest six times and has won the state title twice, once in 1990 and again in 2000 [8]. The theatre department has also been invited to perform on the main stage of the International Thespian Festival four times [9].
The Woodlands High School choirs perform at UIL and private competitions and festivals, garnering "Sweepstakes" awards as well as "Best of Class" and "Grand Champion" awards from as far away as New York City, and as close to home as San Antonio and Houston. Large numbers of TWHS choir students have sung in all-region choirs, and many have gone on to sing in the Texas All-State choir [10].
Athletic teams at The Woodlands High School have achieved enormous success, including these notable accomplishments: In 2007, the golf program captured its fourth state title [11]. The football program has earned thirteen straight playoff appearances, and in 2003 the team was runner-up in the UIL class 5A state championship [12]. The swimming team has won three state titles and a national title in 2001 [13]. The baseball program has earned five straight district titles and were the 2006 Texas 5A state champions [14]. The boys cross country team has won an unprecedented thirteen state titles [15]. In 1999, TWHS won their first ever Texas 5A state championship in the sport of track & field with athletes David Chesser, Leroy Callier, Brandon Boyd, Russell Benke, Christopher Emme, Kevin Bowen, and Joshua Rhalston ("The Magnificent Seven").
[edit] Feeder patterns
Elementary schools that feed into The Woodlands High School include:[1]
- Buckalew
- Bush
- Galatas
- Glen Loch
- Ride
- Powell (excluding Harper's Landing).
- Coulson Tough
- Deretchin
Combined elementary and intermediate schools include Deretchin and Coulson Tough.
Intermediate schools include Mitchell, and Wilkerson (Glen Loch ES zoning only).
McCullough Junior High School is the sole feeder junior high school into The Woodlands High School.
[edit] Famous alumni
- Jeff Maggert - PGA Player, Former Ryder Cup and President's Player
- Larry Izzo - NFL player, New England Patriots
- Grant Irons - NFL player, Oakland Raiders
- Jack Ingram - Country Singer
- Rusty Pierce - MLS player, Columbus Crew
- Katie Futcher - LPGA player
- Danny Amendola - NFL player, Dallas Cowboys [2]
