Valparaiso High School

Valparaiso High School
"A Tradition of Excellence"
Address
2727 N. Campbell Street Valparaiso, Indiana, 46385 United States
Coordinates	41°29′35″N 87°04′03″W / 41.4931°N 87.0674°W / 41.4931; -87.0674Coordinates: 41°29′35″N 87°04′03″W / 41.4931°N 87.0674°W / 41.4931; -87.0674
Information
Type	Public high school
Established	1871
Principal	Reid Amones
Faculty	139 [1]
Grades	9-12
Number of students	2,070 (2008) [1]
Color(s)	Green & White
Athletics	Football, Cross Country, Soccer, Golf, Basketball, Swimming and Diving, Wrestling, Baseball, Track and Field, Volleyball, Tennis, Gymnastics and Softball [2]
Team name	Vikings
Website	Valparaiso High School

Valparaiso High School is a public high school in Valparaiso, Indiana. The current principal is Reid Amones.^[3]

History

Previous home of Valparaiso High School from 1927–72. It serves as Benjamin Franklin Middle School

Valparaiso High School opened in 1871 as Valparaiso City Public Graded School in a facility that had been built in 1861 by the local Presbyterian members as the Valparaiso Collegiate Institute on the site of the current Central Elementary School. The Institute closed by 1869 and the building was purchased that year by the city of Valparaiso for $10,000. A third story was added to the original building and an addition which doubled the available classroom space. In the first year, there were 400 students and 10 teachers. Three years later in 1874, the first graduation ceremonies were held for Valparaiso High School. As the community continued to grow in population, overcrowding became a common problem. In 1903, the building was condemned and demolished and replaced with a new building on the same site. During the period before the new facility was completed, classes were held at other locations in town, including the Armory. The new building cost around $80,000 and was designed by Charles Lembke, a local architect. The school faced towards the east and to allow for more attic space, was constructed with a Mansard roof, and also featured large chimneys and a tiered fountain. Although some sources report that the school included all grades, it was most likely used only as a high school.^[4][5]

Enrollment continued to rise so that by the 1920s, a construction of a new school was necessary. A new high school opened in 1927 at 605 North Campbell Street, with a gymnasium finished the following year. This building served as the high school until 1972, and continues to be used as Benjamin Franklin Middle School. The current high school building at 2727 North Campbell Street opened in 1972. In 1988 a field house was added to the west of the original building. A major renovation came in 1993, with a $19 million project adding classrooms to the north section of the building, a new and expanded kitchen and student cafeteria, and renovated administrative and guidance areas. In 1997 a roof was added and in 2004 work began on renovating the football stadium.^[4]

On Wednesday, November 24, 2004, at approximately 7:50 a.m., five students were attacked in a classroom by a 15-year-old student who was armed with a machete and a tree saw. None of the students involved suffered major injuries, and all but one were treated and released from the hospital the same day.^[6][7][8]

Academics

In 2004, Valparaiso High School was one of 30 schools chosen nationwide as a model school by an initiative of the Council of Chief State School Officers, the International Center for Leadership in Education and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The initiative recognizes schools that are successful at providing quality education to all students. The high school's history of continuous improvement on benchmarks, service learning initiative commitments, as well as having offered diverse extracurricular programs were all cited in its achievement. The school also promotes leadership, a model of civility, and a connection to the greater Valparaiso community.^[9]

Valparaiso High School has offered the IB Diploma Program since August 1995. Students at VHS usually take IB exams in May. In the last session, students completed the following exams: Biology, Chemistry, Economics, English, French, German, History, Information Technology in Global Society, Mathematics, Music, Physics, Spanish, Theory of Knowledge and Visual Arts.^[10]

Statistics

• 2006-2007 Graduation Rate: 90.6%
• 2007-2008 ISTEP Test Performance^[11]
  • The ISTEP exam is a graduation requirement as well as a standard to assess student's knowledge of basic subjects.

Notable alumni

• Beulah Bondi, Oscar-nominated and Emmy Award-winning actress; perhaps best known for playing the roles of Jimmy Stewart’s mother in both the films It’s a Wonderful Life and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
• Mark N. Brown, astronaut
• Maria Astrologes Combs, pro golfer, LPGA player and tournament winner
• Jim Crowell, Major League Baseball pitcher with the Cincinnati Reds (1997), Philadelphia Phillies (2004), and Florida Marlins (2005)
• Fred Doelling, former NFL player
• Bryce Drew, former NBA player, former player and current head baskerball coach at Valparaiso University
• Chris Funk, guitarist for The Decemberists
• Robbie Hummel, Minnesota Timberwolves basketball player
• Patricia Ireland, former president of the National Organization for Women (NOW) and prominent women's rights activist
• S.S. McClure, publisher
• Jeff Samardzija, former University of Notre Dame football and baseball player, currently a pitcher for the Chicago White Sox

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Valparaiso High School.

• Valparaiso High School