| Salem High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Salem, New Hampshire, United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public high school |
| Established | 1966 |
| Principal | Maura Palmer |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Enrolment | approx. 1,600 |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Mascot | The Blue Devil |
| Website | http://www.sau57.org/shs/ |
Salem High School is an accredited high school located in Salem, New Hampshire, United States that enrolls students who live in Salem, and used to school students from neighboring Windham. Windham opened their own high school in 2009. There are as of 2011[update] approximately 1,600 students. The school is equipped with a library, which contains over 20,000 books, as well as a vocational center. The school offers many unique and different classes, ranging from astronomy to television production.
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The original high school for the town of Salem was Woodbury High School. In the 1960s it was converted to a middle school, and the current building was built. The school has recently suffered from overcrowding, leading administrators to place portable classrooms on the campus. This also led the town of Windham to construct its own high school; the class of 2011 will be the last graduating class from Salem High to include students from Windham. All class of 2012 students from Windham were required to transfer to Windham High School, starting at the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year.
The school has various traditions that include the video yearbook in which many of the students are showcased in one way or another. The Video Yearbook has guest-starred Jon Stewart, Jay Leno, Bob Barker, Jerry Springer, Regis Philbin, Tim Conway, and many others.
Senior Safe Night started when students decided to camp out at the high school and chaperones were eventually called for when students were believed to be involved in illicit behavior in their tents. It has grown from a student-led initiative to one run by members of the communities—many of whom are parents of children in the high school—who want to make sure the seniors can have one last night to hang out before graduation in an environment in which there are no drugs or alcohol. There are usually door prizes and a massive yearbook signing towards the beginning of the night when teachers are there to wish the students fun on their night in.
The student-teacher ratio is 17.2.[1] In 2004 it sent 83.2% of the graduating class to a 2 year college, four year college, or the military.
A student group publishes Blue Ink, the student newspaper.
About 1/10 of the students in the school are in the Salem Blue Devil Marching Band and Color Guard. In 2008 they came in 3rd place in the regional finals and were named the best color guard in New England. The Salem High School Blue Devil Marching Band has brought many accolades to the school and has marched in various national parades including the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Fiesta Bowl Parade, Rose Bowl Parade, and the Citrus Bowl Parade. In 1981, the band marched down Pennsylvania Avenue as part of President Reagan's inauguration celebration. There is also a winterguard, "Salem Blue". Salem Blue came in 2nd place in WGI World Championships in 2006 and 2009, and has made finals a number of years. Salem High school is also very well known for its extremely competitive percussion ensemble who took the silver medal in Dayton, Ohio, in April 2010.
There are over 45 clubs that students can join. The clubs are:
Salem High School is home to the Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFJROTC, or JROTC) unit number NH-20001. It is commonly called one of Salem's best student-based organizations, due to its frequent community service and citizenship program. The Air Force Junior ROTC does not focus on military recruiting and instead focuses on developing leadership and citizenship skills in students.
The Salem High Student Council is very dedicated to working for the students in the school and with other schools. The SHS Student Council Adviser, Michael Courtois, is the Co-Executive Director of the New Hampshire Association of Student Councils. In recent memory, students Anisha Kalyani and Joseph Sweeney have served as President of the State Association.
Salem High School was listed by Sports Illustrated in 2008 as having the best athletics program in the state of New Hampshire.[2]
The varsity football team were state champions in 2009, defeating Nashua North. The men's varsity basketball team won the Class L state championship in 2007 and 2008. The field hockey team won the state championship game six times between 2002 and 2008.
The boys volleyball team has a national record 100-match win streak and have won five straight state championships (2004–2008).
Just recently the cheerleading team has won in New Englands the second year in a row, and on the same day the boys' basketball team won in the basketball championships.
The school's major rivals are the Astros from Pinkerton Academy in Derry, New Hampshire.