Winter Springs High School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Winter Springs High School, is a high school in Winter Springs, Florida. It was founded in 1996 as the seventh full-time high school in Seminole County.
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| Principal | Dr. Michael R. Blasewitz |
| School type | Public |
| Religious affiliation | none |
| Founded | 1997 |
| Location | Winter Springs, Florida |
| Enrollment | 2410 |
| Faculty | 158 |
| Campus surroundings | Suburban |
| Sports teams | Bears & Lady Bears |
| Club&Event Names | WSHS Cheerleaders and also "Bear" Affiliated
ex: Hunny Bears, Jitter Bears, Broadway Bears, etc. |
| Mascot | Grizzly Bear |
| School color(s) | Purple & gold |
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[edit] History
Winter Springs High School first opened in 1997 as the latest high school of Seminole County. Plans had gotten under way three years earlier as a result of overcrowding at Oviedo, Lake Howell and Lyman High Schools. The small community of Winter Springs successfully lobbied to have the school built in their town as a way of creating a "town identity and center, and not just be an outgrowth of the surrounding cities". [1]
A.W. Epps was the school's first principal. When the school opened in 1997, it housed only 9th and 10th grade students, with the first class graduating in 2000. Dr. Elise Gruber became principal in 2000, and was succeeded by Dr. Michael R. Blasewitz in 2004.
[edit] Sports
Winter Springs High School sponsors many interscholastic sports teams including football, cross country, volleyball, golf, track and field, lacrosse, wrestling, swimming, water polo, bowling, baseball, basketball, soccer, weightlifting, softball and tennis. The Winter Springs teams compete at the A.W. Epps Sports Complex, named after the high school's first principal.
[edit] Football
The head football coach as of the Spring of 2007 is Mike Kintz. Kintz, hired at 29, is the youngest head coach of all football teams in Seminole County. The Bears finished the 2007 season with an overall record of 7-3, 4th in district 6A-2 with a 1-3 record, and a 4-3 conference record. It was the first time in team history that the Bears finished the season 6-0 against all non-district opponents. The Bears have now started their spring practice for the 2008 football season.
[edit] School rankings
The Florida Department of Education gave the school an "A" rating in the 2003-2004 school year. It also had an A rating in 2000-2001 and 2001-2002. In addition, the school is a Florida 5-star school and is also accredited by the Florida Department of Education.
This school is ranked #326 on Newsweek's 2008 list of the Best High Schools in America.[2].
[edit] Theater
The theater department of Winter Springs High School is one of the more successful programs in Seminole County.[citation needed] The program has been under the direction of George Frank Colangelo since 2003. He holds a BFA in acting from SUNY Purchase, and a Masters of Arts in Theatre from the University of Colorado at Boulder. In addition, Mr. C (as he is known) is a member of Actors Equity and the Screen Actor's Guild, and has been a professional actor, director and writer for well over 30 years.
Major Productions include You Can't Take It With You, Grease, Les Misérables, Godspell, Romeo and Juliet, Lucky Stiff, the female version of the Odd Couple, which was double cast, and most recently the musical All Shook up. Mr. C demands professional behavior and performances from his students, and for the most part, they deliver.
Winter Springs High School Drama is active in the International Thespian Society. In 2006, the original one-act Love Isn't Black and White written by Keith Traver and Taylor Jeffers placed 3rd at the District Festival and then moved on to State Festival, where it received a superior rating as well.[citation needed] The students who created Love Isn't Black and White formed Last Minute Panic Productions and took the play to The Orlando Fringe Festival in 2007, where it earned the Patron's Pick award in its venue.[citation needed] Opinions Vary.
In addition to the drama department's success, the Winter Springs High School Band Earned the highly coveted Otto Kraushaar Award for the first time in 4 years under the masterful direction of J Adam McIntyre in April of 2008.
[edit] National Prominence
In 2004, Winter Springs High School gained national attention for its excellent Safe-School Ambassador program and was featured in a segment on MSNBC. In 2005, Winter Springs High School gained national attention yet again when several Winter Springs students, riding in a limousine to prom, stopped the drunk driver and called police. This story gained national headlines, and the students were featured on several national talk shows. In addition, the major news companies, including NBC, CBS, and ABC, all aired coverage of the event. CBS News Story
In 2005 the school was recognized as having the second largest number of National Merit semifinalists (19) in the state of Florida. The story was featured on the front page of the Orlando Sentinel.
In 2007, Kenneth Colonel, a graduate of the class of 2007, was named the National Champion at the National Forensic League National Speech and Debate Tournament in the Student Congress House of Representatives.[1]
[edit] Culinary
In 2007, seniors Matt Ponziano, Scott Ward, and Junior Taylor Tharp all received 5th place in the 7th Prostart Competition (Students were coached by Chef Jay Judy) their were over 50 schools throughout the state competing. This is the first time Winter Springs High School has ever placed in this competition.
[edit] External links
- ^ "Winter Springs grad wins war of words." Orlando Sentinel. 24 July 2007.
