| Green Hope High School | |
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Dare To Soar
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| Location | |
| Cary, North Carolina, United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public high school |
| Established | 1927 (as Green Hope School) 1999 (as Green Hope High School) |
| Principal | Dr. James E. Hedrick |
| Grades | 9 - 12 |
| Number of students | 2253 |
| School Color(s) | Maroon and Green |
| Mascot | Falcons |
| Website | greenhopehigh.wcpss.net |
Green Hope High School is a school in Cary, North Carolina, serving grades 9-12. In 2006, approximately 2,044 students attended according to the WCPSS page, and with a 95% graduation rate, about 530 seniors graduated. Green Hope High is one of the most acclaimed schools in North Carolina and is regarded as one of the best public high schools in Wake County due to its numerous awards received. It is considered as one of the most competitive high schools in the state with students taking large numbers of Advanced Placement Courses. It consistently has large amounts of students that attend premier universities like Duke and UNC Chapel Hill as well as Ivy League schools. It was ranked as the 206st best high school according to the 2011 Newsweek Rankings of Top U.S High Schools. [1] GHHS opened its doors in 1999, drawing only freshmen and sophomore students from neighboring overcrowded schools. It added a grade level for the two subsequent years and graduated its first senior class in 2002. It is located next to its sister school, Green Hope Elementary School, which is at an adjacent campus. Both schools are operated by Wake County Public School System. The site also features a tennis facility operated by the Town of Cary.
A recent growth in student population resulted in an off-site "9th Grade Annex" roughly 1/2 mile from the main campus. In the 2006-2007 school year, the 9th Grade Annex was turned into Carpenter Elementary to accommodate the rising number of students in Wake County.
The school mascot is the Green Hope Fighting Falcon; a statue of one graces the school's western lawns.
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Green Hope High School (GHHS) is a primary example of a developing suburban education system. The school has an excellent academic record, as well as a reputation for managing the resources available to it. It has earned highest accolades in its academic achievements. [2] in Wake County, placing it among the highest-performing public schools in North Carolina. The school's culture has evolved greatly since its inception, as teachers and administrators gain more experience and a developing school heritage evolves with the student body. The current serving principal is Dr. James E. Hedrick. He holds a Ph.D. in education. Hedrick is known for his involvement with coordinating student events as well as profound student involvement.
The Athletics Department operates competitive and intramural sports at the high school. Based on the overall performance of its athletic teams, Green Hope was awarded the 2009-10 Wachovia Cup trophy for NCHSAA 4-A schools.[3]
| Listing of sports at Green Hope: | ||
| Men's Sports | Women's Sports | Coed Sports |
|---|---|---|
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Green Hope has one of the largest high school cross country teams in the U.S., which was featured in a 2008 USA TODAY article.[4] Green Hope swept the 2010 NCHSAA 4-A cross country state meet, with the boys winning their first ever championship, and the girls' team defending their 2009 title with a state meet record low score of 34 points. The GHHS Swim Team is also known for their recent performance at the 2010-2011 State Champsionship Meet, placing 2nd in the state's 4A classification.
The Men's Golf team at Green Hope has experienced much success since the school opened in 2001. The Falcons have captured four team State Championship Titles (2003, 2006, 2007, 2009) and five individual titles (Brendon Todd, 3, Michael Cromie, 1, and Kevin O'Connell, 1). Golfers from Green Hope have been widely recruited to play Division 1 NCAA Golf. Graduates have played at various Universities across the country including the University of Georgia (Brendon Todd), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Kevin O'Connell) And current Senior Michael Cromie will be attending the University of Georgia next year.,[5] University of North Carolina at Wilmington (Will Shambley),[6] the University of Arkansas (Drew Eibner),[7] Pepperdine University (Eric Shriver),[7] Appalachian State University (Dan Gossin), East Carolina University (Elliot Jones and Tripp Brizendine),[8] the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (Kyle Sonday and Will Almand) [9] and The University of Virginia (Ben Kohles).[10]
Extracurricular activities, clubs, and other student organizations flourish as a result of student, parental, and faculty involvement.
In just 10 years, the soccer program has earned a reputation as a soccer powerhouse. The team has reached the State Playoffs nine times - advancing to two State Finals, four semifinals, and three times to the 3rd round.[11] Graduating seniors have proceeded to top programs throughout the country. Alumni have been strong performers at the all-state and all-conference levels.[12]
Green Hope High School is also known for it's historically bad football team. They have not had a winning season in over 5 years and consistently have one or two seasons. Students at Green Hope, generally support the team, However, there has not been much to support as of late. Consistently losing to rivals, Apex and Panther Creek, the Green Hope Falcons have had trouble gaining a reputation among the Tri-Nine Conference.
GHHS has a very strong theater department, they put on yearly musicals. They are one of few schools that have a technical theater class. At the triangle's Capital Awards (awards for the state's HS musical productions) Green Hope won 5+ awards, including best Musical, in 2010.
These organizations include cultural, religious, academic, and intramural sports organizations.
Of particular note, due to high levels of student/faculty involvement are:
Other clubs include various honor societies, community outreach programs, extracurricular foreign-language and culture clubs (French, Spanish, Latin), a school paper of news, and athletic boosters.
The school serves affluent Western Wake, including Cary and Apex. It also features a program to provide bus service from south Raleigh in order to meet county socio-economic status quotas. The future of this program is uncertain as the Wake County Board of Education is debating whether or not to break up this program.
As of 2006, redistricting and explosive population growth may cause dramatic demographic changes. Suburban neighborhoods, featuring multi-million dollar mansions, sit adjacent to old tobacco farms and rural land tracts.
60% of the student body is enrolled in honors or AP courses, compared with only a 4% state-wide average.
In 2005, 31% of students performed at or above grade-level. The school ranks as a North Carolina Honor School of Excellence and meets capacity requirements as a High Growth School. [13] [14] The school is a traditional (non-magnet) school by official designation (and funding considerations).
The school prides itself on technology integration - 100% of classrooms have internet access, and teachers and students use an online course-reporting and grading system like other new Wake County Public High Schools.
The school is named for the older, historic Green Hope School, built in 1927. [15] It provided Grades 1 through 12 during its lifetime as a consolidated school. This continued until 1952,[15] when it was re-dubbed Green Hope Elementary School, providing primary-education while the higher grades were reallocated to nearby Cary or Apex High schools. Green Hope Elementary proudly became the first accredited rural school in Wake County. By 1963, it served 172000 students. However, at the time, the school was a whites-only establishment.
On August 15, 1963 at 1 AM, the school caught fire. [16]
Three fire departments responded: Apex, Morrisville, and Yrac.[16] (Yrac Department was created in 1958 as a temporary reorganization of Cary Rural Fire District; in 1998 it was merged with Cary F.D. Yrac is Cary spelled backward, for reasons unknown at the time of this writing).
Despite this response, the school was completely destroyed. Damage was estimated at greater than $400,000,[16] and the school was not reconstructed. The cause of fire was officially described as suspicious circumstances. However, arson was suspected as a cause, and firefighters reported a car speeding away from the blaze. Possible motives include opposition to the racial integration of the local districts. This process continued, however, expedited by the creation of Wake County Public School System in 1976. [17] This set the goal of unifying the diverse racial and economic demographic of the growing community, and ensuring that the affluent suburbs and the poorer urban areas of Raleigh received equal and integrated education. However, the site of Green Hope School remained unoccupied until 1999.
The present location of the school is across the road from the old building site.
| Green Hope Elementary School | |
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| Location | |
| Cary, North Carolina, United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public Elementary school |
| Established | 2008 |
| Principal | Mel Leach |
| Grades | K - 5 |
| Number of students | Multiple |
| Mascot | Falcon |
| Website | greenhopees.wcpss.net |
The elementary school began operation in 2000, one year later than the high school. [18] It too has earned recognition for academic performance, meeting qualifications as a School of Excellence for five consecutive years since it began operation.
The school operates its own library and media center.
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