James M. Coughlin High School

James M. Coughlin High School was an urban school located in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. It served grades 9-12 in the Wilkes-Barre Area School District.

James M. Coughlin High School
Address
80 North Washington Street

Wilkes-Barre
,
Pennsylvania
18702

United States
Coordinates41°14′47″N 75°52′43″W
Information
Established1890
FounderClarence Coughlin
StatusClosed
ClosedJune 10, 2021
School districtWilkes-Barre Area School District
Staff57.27 (FTE)[1]
Enrollment891 (2018-19)[1]
Student to teacher ratio15.56[1]
Color(s)     
MascotCrusader
Team nameCoughlin Crusaders
NewspaperThe Journal (1893–2021)
YearbookThe Breidlin (1926–2021)
The Yearbook (1924-1925)
Websitewww.wbasd.k12.pa.us/coughlinhighschool_home.aspx

History

Established in 1890 as Wilkes-Barre High School, the current school structure was scheduled to be built on the original school's site in 1905, but due to a flood—which flooded the entire basement and first floor—building had to be restarted. The building was opened unofficially on September 11, 1911, and formally dedicated in October 1912. The second part of the building, the Annex, was built in 1955 and formally dedicated on November 2, 1955. The main building has four floors, a basement, and an attic, and the Annex has three with a partial basement. It is the oldest public school in Pennsylvania being built in 1909, the older of the two buildings that makes up Coughlin is over 100 years old. The second building is about 60 years old.

With the construction of a second high school in Wilkes-Barre in 1925, the building was dedicated as James M. Coughlin High School in memory of Superintendent James Martin Coughlin, who served in that capacity from 1890 to 1918.[2]

The main building was closed on December 23, 2015, after 104 years of continuous use. This came as a result of a lengthy series of meetings by the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board, where it was decided that Coughlin and another Wilkes-Barre Area High School (Elmer L. Meyers Junior/Senior High School) would close and combine after the Coughlin site is closed, and rebuilt. The Annex building would continue to house 11th and 12th grade students until the new school is built, and 9th and 10th grade students placed in a recently renovated former Mackin Elementary School building, and the 11th and 12th graders will be placed in the old Times Leader building next to Coughlin.

Construction was expected to be completed by early 2018, when both former high schools would converge in the new school.[3] However, the Board was unable to move forward with the plan to use the Coughlin site.[4][5][6][7][8][9] On March 5, 2018, the Board voted to purchase land in Plains, Pennsylvania for the merged high school.[10] The plans faced vocal opposition,[11][12][13][14][15][16] but Wilkes-Barre Area High School opened as a new consolidated high school for the 2021–2022 school year. The Coughlin property was sold for $1.65 million in January 2021.[17][18][19][20]

Notable alumni

References
  1. "James M Coughlin JSHS". National Center for Education Statistics. Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  2. "History of James M. Coughlin High School". Coughlin High School, Class of 1988. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved June 16, 2013.
  3. "The end of Coughlin High School is set to begin with the new year - Times Leader - timesleader.com". Times Leader. 26 December 2015. Archived from the original on 2016-01-05. Retrieved 2015-12-27.
  4. "Residents get their say on possible WB Area high school site Monday - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 26 January 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  5. "W-B Area settles on Plains Twp. high school site, limits tax increase - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 9 January 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-01-09. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  6. "Superintendent: Coughlin High School draws interest from buyers - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 31 August 2017. Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  7. "Kistler elementary expansion on hold because of high school costs - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 7 February 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-02-07. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  8. "Geisinger offers land donation for W-B Area high school - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 27 April 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-04-28. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  9. "Back to the future for W-B Area school site - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 5 May 2017. Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  10. "W-B Area: OK to $4.25 million Plains land buy; security in focus - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 6 March 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-03-06. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  11. "Your view: No basis for consolidation plan - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 17 February 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-02-18. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  12. "Our View: Segregation charge wrong, but issues for WBA remain - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 17 February 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  13. "Amid more segregation debate, W-B Area moves toward high school choice - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 13 February 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-02-13. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  14. "Your view: Don't let WBA board walk away from Meyers - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 4 August 2017. Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  15. "WBA School Board open-floor approach brings extensive comment, criticism - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 28 April 2017. Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  16. "Heavy hitters lining up against Wilkes-Barre Area high school consolidation - Times Leader". www.timesleader.com. 12 August 2015. Archived from the original on 2016-02-12. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  17. WRITER, MICHAEL P. BUFFER STAFF (11 January 2021). "Wilkes-Barre Area approves Coughlin sale for $1.65M". Wilkes-Barre Citizens' Voice. Archived from the original on 2021-01-30. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
  18. "Coughlin High School property sold, expected to bring retail and residential space". PAhomepage.com. 2021-01-12. Archived from the original on 2021-01-26. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
  19. Guydish, Mark (2021-01-12). "WB Area sells Coughlin site, moves further on new stadium". Times Leader. Archived from the original on 2021-08-31. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
  20. Lynott, Jerry (2021-08-05). "Students could return to former Coughlin high school in Wilkes-Barre". Times Leader. Archived from the original on 2021-08-05. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
  21. "Hollywood actor's career began at Little Theatre". Citizen Voice. 27 February 2013. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  22. "Obituary". Featheringill Mortuary. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  23. "Obit. for Edward J. White". Citizens' Voice. The Citizen's Voice. 10 December 1988. p. 3. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
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