| Sandra Day O'Connor High School | |
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| Address | |
| 12221 Leslie Road Helotes, Texas Bexar County, 78023 |
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| Information | |
| School type | Public, High School |
| Founded | 1998 |
| School district | Northside Independent School District |
| Superintendent | Dr. John Folks |
| School number | (210) 397-4800 |
| Principal | Jackie Horras |
| Vice principal | Ken Vogel |
| Grades | 9 - 12 |
| Enrollment | 2,777 |
| Color(s) | Gold Navy Blue |
| Website | nisd.net/oconnor |
Sandra Day O'Connor High School is a high school in the Northside Independent School District of San Antonio, Texas and located in the city of Helotes, Texas.
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Opened in 1998, O'Connor High School followed the tradition of all the Northside ISD high schools in being named after a Supreme Court justice, Sandra Day O'Connor, who served from 1981 to 2006 and was the first female justice on United States Supreme Court. The school colors are navy blue, white and gold and the mascot is the Panther. The principal was Larry Martin until 2010 when Jacqueline Horras became the new and current principal. O'Connor High School serves all of the city of Helotes, Texas and a small part of the city of San Antonio, Texas. Feeder schools come from half of Garcia, Jefferson, Stinson, and Stevenson Middle Schools. The campus comprises over 15 limestone buildings and the walkways are mostly outdoors. In 2009, the school was rated "recognized" by the Texas Education Agency, and continues to hold this rating today.[1]
O'Connor is classified as a UIL 5A high school. Students can participate in a wide variety of school sports. These sports include: Baseball, Basketball, Cheerleading, Cross Country, Football, Goldusters Dance Team, Starduster Pep Squad, Golf, Soccer, Softball, Swimming & Diving, Tennis, Volleyball, and Track. Most school sports house practices and home games at O'Connor High itself, however, the football team, soccer team, and swimming & diving team uses The Dub Farris Athletic Complex off of Loop 1604 and Bamberger Trail for practice and home venues.
O'Connor has one of the largest and most expansive FFA complex in NISD. The O'Connor Agriculture Department is unique program in which students learn agricultural techniques in a hands-on environment. Students from all over NISD are able to transfer into the agriculture program. Its FFA is the largest in the state of Texas.[2]
O'Connor High School has one of Texas' largest marching bands and was led by Mr. Wallace Dierolf from its inception until 2004. It is now headed by Mr. Roland Sandoval. After Dierolf's retirement, the school's newly built multipurpose facility was named after him. Under the direction of George G. Garza, the O'Connor Drumline placed first at the national PASIC indoor marching competition in Columbus, OH in November 2005.[3]
In the 2008 marching season, the Panther band finished fourth place at the Area Marching Contest and moved on to the Texas 5A State Marching Competition for the first time. At the 5A State Marching Contest, The Panther Band placed 26th. Their UIL show was entitled "Things That Go Pop", an entertaining medley written by Key Poulan. The show included variations on the classic "Pop Goes The Weasel" melody, as well as colorful balloons, bubbles, and various popping sounds from the front ensemble. At the conclusion of the show, the band marched off the field to a jazzy arrangement of "Pop Goes the Weasel" - a feature for the trombones arranged by Bill Hill (brother of Matt Hill), a trombone player and senior in the class of '09. At every competition, the show was received well by all spectators, receiving much praise and applause after each performance.
In the 2010 marching season, the Panther Band finished 2nd place in the Area Marching Contest Preliminaries, and then advanced to the Finals round where they again took 4th place at the Contest, moving onto the Texas 5A State Marching Competition for the 2nd time, Contest to take place Nov. 2nd. Their UIL show was entitled "Phobia: What are YOU afraid of?" a show composed of movements that portray some common phobias in today's society, Written by Key Poulan.
O'Connor has a notable theatre program that was pioneered by the Drama Department director Deann Fleming's senior one-act project. It allows fourth-year theatre students to direct their own shows and produce them in various state and national theatre competitions. Another notable success was the 2003 production of "El Juego Sagrado" by Wilberto Canton, a Spanish piece. The show would go on to be showcased at the International Thespian Festival in Lincoln, Nebraska as the first ever student-directed show from a Texas school. In addition, the drama students participate as Korny Klowns in the annual Helotes festival Kornyval, an event that allows the students to express themselves creatively and humorously while providing a service to the Helotes community. The Drama Department is a 5A participant in The University Interscholastic League.
O'Connor received their first Air Force JROTC detachment (TX-20082nd) for the 2008-2009 school year. The first Senior Aerospace Science Instructor is LtCol. James "Smokey" Payne (ret.) and The Aerospace Science Instructor is MSgt. Lisa Moberly (ret.).
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