Douglas County High School (Douglasville, Georgia)

Douglas County High School, also known as Douglas County Comprehensive High School, is a public high school in Douglasville, Georgia, United States. It was the first high school to open in the Douglas County School District.

History

The original school was built in the early 1880s on the site of the current National Guard Armory. The original building at the current site was built as a WPA project in the 1930s. A portion of that building was burned down in a fire started by a disgruntled janitor in the early 1990s. That building was rebuilt and reopened in 1992. Douglas County High School is located in the Historic District of Douglasville, Georgia.

For the 2005-06 school year, in comparison to the more recent statistics shown on the right, student enrollment was 1,628 and the teaching staff was 97, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 16.8.^[2] DCHS is the largest of five high schools in the Douglas County School System, largely due to the presence of the International Baccalaureate Program.

Campus

The Douglas County High School campus is made up of several named buildings:

       Academics:

• The Mashburn Building(rooms 100-150) is the original building of the school. It houses the main office, administrative offices, attendance office, cafeteria, theater, media center, and the band and chorus classes.
• The Banks Building is the second building that was on school grounds. The rooms are classified as 200s and consist foreign language, history, English/literature, and the Journalism program.
• The Warren Dorris Building(rooms 300-346) is the third building and is split up into two parts, Upper Warren Dorris and Lower Warren Dorris. The Upper Warren Dorris is the old math hall and was the Freshman Hall between 2007 and 2009. It has been converted back to math classes for the 2009-2010 school year. The Lower Warren Dorris houses the science classes. Both parts are connected by a short hall that houses business classes.
• The Cloer Building(rooms 400-430) is the fourth building. It houses technical education classes, healthcare, and science. The building formerly housed the school's auto shop, but the garage was converted into science classrooms.
• The Steel Building(Jim Steele Freshman Academy-rooms 9100-9300) is a three story building adjacent to the Lower Warren Dorris and school practice field/track. The basement level houses computer labs as well as the school's JROTC rooms and storage. The ground floor has a faculty office, math, literature, science, social studies, and health classrooms, and a large Multi-Purpose Room. The third floor is full of classrooms(math, literature, science, social studies, and health.) It was built during the 2014-2015 school year and houses most of the school's freshman and sophomore International Baccalaureate classrooms.

      Athletics: 

• The Primary Gym is the second freestanding gymnasium at DCHS. It is used year round and is used for all major sports activiteis and Physical Education classes.
• The Secondary Gym was is the first freestanding gymnasium on the Campus. It is not used during the summer months because of its lack of air conditioning. It houses the JROTC shooting range and is used primarily for basketball.
• Coach Jimmy Johnson Stadium is the major outdoor athletics arena. It has the training center, concession stands, and home and visiting sides for spectators. During the football season it is used primarily by the Football Team, Cheerleaders, and of course the Marching Band. During the soccer season, it is used by the soccer team.
• The Tolbert Family Training Center is the football training center in Coach Jimmy Johnson Stadium. It houses the school's weight rooms, and the storage for the football team. There is a small outbuilding that is part of the complex; it is used as an office.
• The Track/Practice Field is used for all athletic activities(football, soccer, cheerleading, marching band, track, etc.) and is used as the track competition field. During the beginning of the 2015-2016 school year, the track was redone and repaved.

      Other:

• The Adam's Building is a freestanding single room that is now used as a teacher work room and storage. It has previously been used as the school's Band Room.

Curriculum

Douglas County High School is home to the district's IB Diploma Programme.^[3] The first class of IB students graduated in 2010. Out of the 52 students that were in the program their senior year, two thirds graduated with the diploma. The IB magnet program has greatly increased Douglas County's academic performance. Students residing in the Douglas County School District can apply to go to Douglas County High as a part of the IB Program in their eighth grade year.

Extracurricular activities

Douglas County High School offers over 40 different clubs and other extracurricular activities to their students. Douglas County High school offers the most extra-curricular clubs in the school district. Some of these activities include:

• Art Club: The Art Club gives students an opportunity to develop their creative abilities while serving their school and community. In it, students make decorations for school activities such as dances and plays. In the community, students decorate store windows for special occasions and make artwork to brighten the halls of Garden Terrace Nursing Home. As a fundraiser, students make and decorate clay Christmas ornaments. Students do not have to be taking art courses to join.^[4]

• Beta Club: Beta is a chapter of the National Beta Club, which recognizes scholarship, leadership, and service. Members must have a 3.0 average and be recommended by three teachers. The chapter at DCHS was founded in 1937.^[4]

• Book Club: The book club offers students the opportunity to read and explore various books and writings in an individual and group setting.^[4]

• Chorus: Students who participate in Chorus are afforded the opportunity to sing and perform in an environment that will promote student success.^[4]

• Drama Club/Georgia Thespian Society: "Since ancient times, the stage has been a place for communal storytelling, a place where groups of people come to seek truth, to celebrate and mourn, to bring history and literature to life." Learning to see through that window and understand what is in that mirror should be a fundamental part of every student's preparation to participate in our society. The purpose of this organization is the promotion of cultural knowledge of the arts and to broaden each student's acting interest. The membership of the organization is made up of 9th through 12th grade students of worthy character, good mentality, and academic eligibility. Many activities of the Drama Club include field trips, homecoming activities, thespian conventions, serving as ushers in Atlanta theaters, and participation in all DCHS activities throughout the school year. The Georgia Thespian Society is a chapter of the International Thespian Society.^[4]

• The Fellowship of Christian Athletes: The FCA presents athletes and coaches and all whom they influence the challenge and adventure of receiving Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, serving Him in their relationships and in the fellowship of the church.^[4]

• French National Honors Society:The aim is to stimulate interest in the study of French to promote higher standards of scholarship, to create enthusiasm for understanding of francophone cultures and civilization, and to promote and perpetuate international friendship.^[4]

• Key Club: The Key Club is a service organization for high school students, which operates under school regulations and draws its membership from the student body. Key Club differs from other organizations in many ways. Key Club is unique because it is sponsored by a local Kiwanis club, composed of the leading business and professional people of the community. Key Club’s objective is the development of initiative, leadership ability, and good citizenship practices. Key Club is different because it functions not only on the local level, but also on a district and international level. This highly developed structure provides programs, literature, and the opportunity to relate the teenagers from countries all around the world. Key Club is the largest service organization of its kind.^[4]

• National Honor Society: NHS is the highest high school honor society in the United States. Open to juniors and seniors, membership requirements are strict and are based on four categories: scholarship, character, leadership, and service. National Honor Society provides service to the school such as sponsoring a tutorial program and assisting with orientation programs.^[4]

• Spanish Honor Society: This organization is dedicated to the exploration of the Spanish language and culture. Students go on retreats, attend "tertulias" (meetings) and conferences, and participate in all comprehension of the language. Members participate in many cultural events and holidays as well. Graduation stoles are awarded to those members who have remained active in the club.^[4]

• Student Government: The Student Government Association (SGA) works to forge a partnership between students and the faculty. SGA works closely with the school administration in planning the student activities program. The SGA officers are part of the Principal's Student Advisory Committee. The Student Government Association is representative of each class as well as all clubs. Election of members is held at the beginning of the school year and officer elections take place in the spring.^[4]

• Tiger Talk Online Newspaper: Tiger Talk is the only high school journalism program in the county. Beginning with the 2011-2012 school year, the publication converted to a fully online, digital version. With a staff of over 65, the program has recently been revamped and modernized under the direction of Dr. Linder. www.dctigertalk.com

• Mock Trial: Mock Trial is a program where students act as attorneys in witness in a fictional case that is created every fall. The Douglas County Mock Trial team has placed 2nd in their region in the four years between 2006-2010. In 2010, they were awarded the Southern Region Wildcard and competed at the State Competition.

• Model United Nations: Students can go to conferences and represent a certain nation. Douglas County is home to the only Model UN club in the county.

• Agricultural Club: Students plant vegetables and sell what they grow.

• Guitar Club: Students can learn to play guitar, or share their abilities.

• Bowling Club: Students go bowling after school.

• Robotics Club: Students build robots and learn about technology.

Athletics

Douglas County High School teams, known as the Tigers, compete in the Georgia High School Association AAAAAA classification. The school fields teams in baseball, basketball, cheerleading, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, volleyball, and wrestling.

Notable alumni

• Taylor Phillips, professional baseball player (Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Braves (Won a World Series with the Braves in 1957), Philadelphia Phillies, and Chicago White Sox (1956-1963)
• Daniel Davison, drummer for Christian metalcore band Norma Jean
• Rob Green (seen in some records as Dusty Green), pProfessional session and fingerstyle guitarist, producer, composer and actor with several pseudonyms. (Tracsquad Records, Kingsnake Records, Asylum Records, TVT Records, NuAeon Records, and more.)
• Chaz Wagner, Invented his own language
• Glenn Richardson, Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives
• Kasha Terry, Atlanta Dream (WNBA) player
• Mike Tolbert, Carolina Panthers player
• Mario West, professional basketball player
• Ron Young, former POW and contestant in The Amazing Race 7
• Ricky Dobbs, Naval Academy Quarterback/ Record holder for touchdowns by Quarterback
• Terry Harper, professional baseball player (Braves/Pirates/Tigers 1980-1987)
• Brett Campbell, professional baseball player (Washington Nationals 2006)
• Patrick Harper, Chief Information Officer, OpenText Corporation -www.opentext.com
• Jerlisa Taylor - semi-pro basketball player
• Ajené Robinson, Morehouse College football player

References

External links

• Douglas County High School
• Tiger Talk Newspaper