Lebanon High School (Ohio)

Lebanon High School is a public high school in Lebanon, Ohio. It is the only high school in the Lebanon City School District. Their mascot is the Warrior and the school logo is the profile of an American Indian wearing a full feathered headdress. The primary school colors are maroon and white, although throughout its history secondary colors have included black and maize. The school's principal is Mr. Scott Butler. The high school currently houses approximately 1,650 students and the district's total student population is just over 6,000.

The high school moved into its current building on 1916 Drake Road in 2004. From 1969 until 2004 it was housed in what is now Lebanon Junior High School on 160 Miller Road. Prior to 1969, Lebanon High School called home what is now Berry Intermediate School on Oakwood Street.

The current high school is the first phase of a three-phase building plan. The second and third phases include an auditorium and additional classroom space. The current building has over 2,200 pieces of technology equipment, science labs, a media center room, a writing lab, video distribution center, and band and choral facilities.^[2]

Also included at the high school are two collegiate-sized gyms (including a competition gym), health and fitness centers, softball and baseball facilities, a football stadium, and practice facilities for many competitive teams.

Students

Lebanon High School's student body reflects the demographics of the city of Lebanon -- 95 percent are white, two percent are African-American, one percent are Hispanic, and two percent are multi-racial.

Academic statistics

Lebanon students perform well above the state average on the state mandated Ohio Graduation Test. In the most recent year, LHS students passed at a 95 percent rate in Reading, 91 percent in Social Studies, 85 percent rate in Science, 94 percent in Writing and 93 percent in Math.

The mean ACT score at Lebanon High School is 23, with the mean SAT score 1128. Approximately 150 students every year participate in Advanced Placement classes.

Lebanon High School's graduation rates are much higher than the state average. Traditionally, Lebanon graduates approximately 93 percent of its students, with roughly 85 percent going on to a two-year or four-year college, four percent entering the military and approximately 10 percent going into the workforce.

Clubs

There is an array of clubs offered at Lebanon High School ranging from Anime Club to War Zone. There are opportunities offered to all students at Lebanon. The list of clubs includes:

• Marching Band – The school marching band directed by David Iannelli, the band director for grades 7–12. The Marching Band plays at halftime of every football game in the fall, while also participating in many competitions throughout the fall.
• Lebanon High School Winter Percussion Ensemble – The indoor percussion group performs/competes in the MEPA circuit (Mid East Performance Association) and the WGI (Winter Guard International) regional and world competitions. The ensemble won the MEPA Scholastic A championship in 2012, as well as the MEPA Scholastic Open championships from 2013-2015. In the WGI circuit, the Percussion Ensemble has won 2 WGI World Championship gold medals: Scholastic A in 2012, and Scholastic Open in 2015. The ensemble went undefeated in their 2015 season.
• War Zone – The student pep club.
• Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) – Lebanon has a rich tradition of success in the state and national FBLA programs.
• International Club – The former clubs of both French and Spanish are now represented as one club. They still enjoy friendly competition in the annual French v. Spanish Club Soccer Game and Dodgeball Game.
• Ski Club – Each week during the winter a group of students takes a bus to Perfect North Slopes in Indiana to spend time on the slopes.
• Student Council – There are 10 students from each grade that represent the school with fundraising projects, homecoming, and other things throughout the year.
• Japanese Art and Culture Club – This club is for students that enjoy the art of anime.
• Diversity Club – This club promotes acceptance between people within the school and community.
• Ecology Club – Students engage in community service and activities that concern planet Earth.
• Art Club – Students learn/do a variety of different arts.
• Bridges – Every year, about 10 students from each grade are selected to go on a trip that helps to "bridge the gap" between different social groups ("cliques") through a variety of life-changing activities.
• Future Teachers of America (FTA) – A group devoted to possibly entering the education field as their profession.
• Book Club – Students get together once and month and discuss books.
• Ultimate Frisbee – This is where students get together after school and enjoy playing Frisbee/ultimate Frisbee with each other. The season is during fall and spring.
• Lacrosse – A club sport that started with men's lacrosse. More recently, girls' lacrosse was added.
• AFJROTC – A U.S. Air Force-affiliated JROTC program. The drill team has been Ohio state champion since 2008.
• Guitar Club – Students gather every two weeks to talk about music and techniques.
• Recording Club – Student artists and bands record compositions of various genres.

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Athletics

Lebanon High School currently offers 11 men's sports and 11 women's sports.^[2] The athletic program is a member of the Greater Western Ohio Conference (GWOC), which consists of teams in the Greater Dayton area. The Warriors are in the South Division along with Springboro, Miamisburg, Fairborn, West Carrollton and Xenia.^[4] From 1997 to 2003, Lebanon participated in the Fort Ancient Valley Conference.^[5]

Athletic Facilities

• The football stadium and track, now called Atrium Field at VanDeGrift Stadium, is located at the site of the old high school which is now Lebanon Junior High School. It has been the home of the Warriors for over 35 years and seats 2,600. The complex was renovated in 2008 with artificial turf replacing the traditional grass field. This renovation was made possible through a donation from the Atrium Hospital and the efforts of the Onward Lebanon Project. In the next phase, they plan on adding more bleachers and renovating the concessions, the entrance and the bathrooms.
• The baseball stadium, Warrior Field, is also located at the site of the old high school, Lebanon Junior High School on Miller Road. The fieldhouse directly behind home plate holds concessions, equipment, restrooms, and press box facilities. The fieldhouse was dedicated and named Jerry & Judy Michael Pressbox in April of 2009.
• The softball field is also located at the Lebanon Junior High School on Miller Road. A press box and concessions building along with restrooms were added in 2013. The facilities were painted by select students from the Lebanon High School art classes
• Both the men's and women's basketball teams play at the high school building in an arena that seats nearly 2,200. The floor was designed and painted by art teachers Rob Hodges, Tom Russell and the late Gary Simendinger.
• The wrestling team has its own practice facility at the high school and dual matches are held in the wrestling room. However, tournaments are held in the auxiliary gym.
• Both the boys and girls tennis teams practice and play on the tennis courts at the high school. There are five tennis courts that serve the boys in the spring and the girls in the fall.
• Shaker Run Golf Course is the home of the boys varsity golf teams. Shaker Run is located on Greentree Road on the outskirts of Lebanon. Harmon Golf Club in downtown Lebanon is home to both the men's junior varsity team and the women's team.
• The boys soccer program began in 1981 as a club sport under former head coach and former Spanish teacher, Jorge Castaneda. It was recognized as a school sport after the 1982 season and officially began as a varsity sport in 1983. The Lebanon Soccer Program, both men's and women's, play at the Atrium Field at VanDeGrift Stadium.
• The varsity bowling team started in the 2008–2009 season. They are coached by Coach Ronald Volmering, who formerly taught history at Lebanon Junior High School. The home bowling center is Strike Zone Lanes in Middletown.

Rivals

• Lebanon's biggest rivalry is with the Springboro Panthers in the GWOC South Division.
• The Warriors also have rivalries dating back to the 1970s with the Mason Comets, Franklin Wildcats, and Kings Knights. However, due to Lebanon moving from the Mid-Miami League to the Fort Ancient Valley Conference, back to the Mid-Miami League and now to the Greater Western Ohio Conference, these schools are not played in each sport every year.

Ohio High School State championships

Team Division II

• Football – 1998^[6][7]

Individual Division I

• Girls Cross Country – 2012, Jacquelyn Crow
• Boys Track – 2010, 4x100 Relay: Chase Cochran, Luke Norris, Trey Bonny & Steven Gabbard^[4]

Individual Division II

• Wrestling – John Noble, 1990 (112) & 1992 (119); Shawn Enright, 1992 (125); Jon Holman, 1988 (152)^[6]

Team Non-OHSAA

• Boys Volleyball – 1995 & 1996 (club sport)

Notable alumni

• Woody Harrelson, actor ('79). Roles include Woody Boyd on Cheers and Will and Grace in 2001. Harrelson had starring roles in feature films including White Men Can't Jump, Natural Born Killers, Indecent Proposal, Kingpin, and The Hunger Games.
• Casey Shaw, former basketball player ('93). Played four years at the University of Toledo before being drafted by Philadelphia 76ers with 37th overall pick in 1998. Played one season in the NBA and 13 years professionally overall, mostly in Europe.
• Bruce Ivins, microbiologist and alleged bioterrorist ('64).
• Marty Roe, lead singer of country music group Diamond Rio ('79). Diamond Rio won the Academy of Country Music award for Top Vocal Group in 1991 and 1992 and the Country Music Association Vocal Group of the Year in 1992, 1993, 1994, and 1997. They also received 13 Grammy Award nominations. They have had 3 Platinum albums, 5 Gold albums, and 19 singles in the top 10 of the US Country Singles chart, including 5 No. 1 singles, according to the RIAA.
• Jim Rhoden, former basketball player ('77). Two-time All-Ohio. Continued career at University of Dayton.
• Steve Lewis, former basketball player ('81). Held the boys' basketball scoring record at Lebanon for 22 years. Two-time All-Ohio.
• Joshua Spring, former baseball player ('91). Selected in Round 10 of the 1991 MLB draft by the Houston Astros, also played professional baseball with the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Holds or ties 14 Lebanon High School records, including: back to back 100-plus strikeout seasons, four no-hitters, career ERA, career wins, and season wins.
• Jordan Hicks, former football and basketball player ('00). All-Ohio defensive end. Was on NFL roster for training camps and played preseason games with Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders.
• Lindsey Hicks, former basketball player ('00). Lebanon's all-time leader in career points scored (1,766). Continued career at Purdue University, where she was a member of three Big Ten championship teams and one Final Four team.
• Reese Hicks, former football player ('98). Two-time NAIA All-American at Georgetown College. Signed with/spent parts of three years on practice squad roster of Houston Texans, San Diego Chargers, Cincinnati Bengals, and Denver Broncos.

See also

• Lebanon School District
• Lebanon, Ohio

References

External links

• District Website