Sweet Home High School (Amherst, New York)
| Sweet Home High School | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
|
Amherst, NY United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1956 |
| Principal | Mrs. Joleen M. Reinholtz |
| Assistant principals |
Mr. Thomas G.Roberts Mr. Joseph T. Zwack Mr. Christopher E. DeMarco |
| Mascot | Panther |
| Colors | Blue and Gold |
| Website | http://sweethomeschools.org/ |
Sweet Home High School (SHHS), sometimes called Sweet Home Senior High, is a New York State public high school located at 1901 Sweet Home Road in Amherst, New York. Sweet Home High School educates students in grades 9 through 12 and is one of seven schools in the Sweet Home Central School District. The district consists of one High School, one Middle School, four Elementary schools (Glendale, Heritage Heights, Maplemere, and Willow Ridge), and one Alternative School (Dexter Terrace). Nearly 4,000 students are enrolled in the District's seven schools.
As of 2005, Sweet Home High school is listed at number 810 by Newsweek in their list of "The 1,000 Top U.S. Schools".[1]
Education
Sweet Home High School offers an exciting variety of courses and activities to help prepare students for post secondary education and/or future careers. The instructional program is designed to encourage students to achieve at the highest level possible, with emphasis on Regents, Honor, and Advanced Placement courses. An Academic Achievement Center provides support to students as they strive for academic excellence. Besides core academic subjects, students may enroll in electives from the following areas: art, business, computer, science, music, technology, and home and careers. Over 50 percent of the students participate in interscholastic sports. There are over 30 extracurricular offerings that provide ample opportunities for students to explore and develop social, vocational, and cultural interests. The Sweet Home Chapter of the National Honor Society endeavors to uphold the four tenets of scholarship, service, leadership, and character as set down by the constitution of the National Honor Society. Members are individuals in the Sweet Home community who actively take on the roles of leaders and volunteers while demonstrating academic excellence on a daily basis. As role models, each member is expected to have a wholesome influence on school environment, take initiative in class and school activities, strive to aid others to obtain same objectives and have the self-confidence to move forward when others hesitate. Members are challenged to make positive choices everyday that will promote the qualities of respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, fairness, caring and citizenship within themselves and those students within the Sweet Home community.
| Period | Start Time | End Time |
|---|---|---|
| Warning Bell 1 | 7:25 | |
| Warning Bell 2 | 7:28 | |
| 1 | 7:30 | 8:10 |
| Announcements | 8:10 | 8:14 |
| 2 | 8:18 | 8:58 |
| 3 | 9:02 | 9:42 |
| 4 | 9:46 | 10:26 |
| 5 (Lunch 1) | 10:30 | 11:10 |
| 6 (Lunch 2) | 11:14 | 11:54 |
| 7 (Lunch 3) | 11:58 | 12:38 |
| 8 | 12:42 | 1:22 |
| 9 | 1:26 | 2:06 |
| Bus Depart Bell | 2:10 | |
Music
Sweet Home has many music programs that includes Jazz Ensemble, Percussion Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, Concert Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra, Concert Chorale, Mixed Chorus and the annual musical.
Athletics
The school offers and competes competitively in a number of sports, including Football, Basketball, Baseball, Ice Hockey, Lacrosse, Cross Country, Field Hockey, Golf, Gymnastics, Soccer, Swimming, Tennis, Volleyball, Chess, Cheerleading, Bowling, Track and Field, Softball, and Wrestling.
One of the most notable accomplishments of a Sweet Home athletics team is a streak of 292 undefeated games by the girls volleyball team. The streak lasted a span of eight seasons from 1978–1987 and set a National Federation of High School record for consecutive wins.[2]
Football is a cherished sport in Sweet Home. In November 2008, the Sweet Home Varsity Football team defeated Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake 35-28 at the Syracuse Carrier Dome to win the state championship. The next year in 2009, the Sweet Home Varsity Football team once again won the state championship in Syracuse, defeating Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake 34-7. The Sweet Home Football team had a 32-game win streak, stretching over three seasons, before they were defeated in the 2010 Far West Championship (State quarter-finals) by Aquinas High School of Section V. This is the largest winning streak in New York State Section VI Football history. In 2011, the Panthers went 7-0 and the Panthers will once again head to the Ralph Wilson Stadium for the New York State Section 6 football playoffs. Over these five seasons (starting in 2007), Sweet Home only lost two games, both to Aquinas in the State quarter-finals. Aquinas will likely move up to Class AA in the 2011 season, leaving with a 3-2 record over Sweet Home.[3] The winner of their game has gone on to win the State Championship every year except 2011.[4]
Notable alumni
- Dan Herbeck - Buffalo News reporter and New York Times best-selling author
- "Baby" Joe Mesi - Professional Heavyweight Boxer
- Keith O'Neil - Former NFL Linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys and Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League
- Laura Pedersen - Bestselling fiction author and (at the time) the youngest columnist at the New York Times.
- Reggie Witherspoon - Former University at Buffalo head basketball coach
References
- ↑ NewsWeek - The Complete List of the 1,000 Top U.S. Schools
- ↑ University at Buffalo - Women's Volleyball Press Release - Go Bulls!
- ↑ Sweet Home hits the end of the line - High Schools - The Buffalo News
- ↑ New York State High School Football State Playoffs Results