Pittsburg High School (Kansas)
Pittsburg High School is a fully accredited public high school located in Pittsburg, Kansas, United States, serving students in grades 9-12. The school is part of Pittsburg USD 250 public school district, is one of the schools in Pittsburg and is the largest high school in southeast Kansas. The school colors are purple and white and the school mascot is the Dragon.
Pittsburg High School | |
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Address | |
1978 East 4th Street [1] , 66762 United States | |
Coordinates | 37.409280°N 94.672469°W |
Information | |
School type | Public, High School |
Established | 1887 |
School board | Board Website |
School district | Pittsburg USD 250[2] |
Superintendent | Richard Proffitt [3] |
CEEB code | 172407 [4] |
Principal | Kelynn K. Heardt |
Athletic Director | Jeff Staley [5] |
Teaching staff | 58.00 (FTE)[6] |
Grades | 9 to 12 |
Gender | coed |
Enrollment | 917 (2018-19)[6] |
Student to teacher ratio | 15.81[6] |
Campus type | Rural |
Color(s) | Purple White |
Athletics | Class 5A [7] District 4 [8] |
Athletics conference | Southeast Kansas League [5] |
Mascot | Purple Dragons |
Rival | Fort Scott High School |
Newspaper | The Booster Redux |
Website | phs.usd250.org |
History
Pittsburg High School was established in 1887, making it one of the oldest high schools in the state of Kansas. Pittsburg High is a member of the Kansas State High School Activities Association and offers a variety of sports programs. Athletic teams compete in the 5A division and are known as the "Dragons".
On March 6, 2017, the school district hired Amy Robertson as Pittsburg High School's principal. In preparing a feature introducing Robertson to the school community, the staff of the student newspaper were unable to find evidence that Robertson's university, Corllins University, was accredited. The student newspaper published an article questioning Robertson's credentials on March 31, 2017; on April 4, 2017, Robertson resigned.[9][10]
Extracurricular activities
Student newspaper
The Booster Redux made national news in April 2017 after student editors published an investigative story on the qualifications of a newly hired principal.[11] The principal resigned shortly thereafter.[9][12][13]
Scholars Bowl
Pittsburg High School has won two state scholars bowl championships, in 2006 and 2007.
Chess
Pittsburg High School has also produced a state champion in chess two times.
State Championships | |||
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Division | Name | Number of Championships | Year |
5A | Shyamal Chandra, Digeng Du, Nate Mayer, Jacob Shook | 2nd place | 2001[14] |
All Divisions | Digeng Du | 2 | 2001, 2002 |
Total | 2 | ||
Forensics
State Championships | ||
---|---|---|
Type | Number of Championships | Year |
Humorous Interpretation | 1 | 2008 |
Extemporaneous Speaking | 3 | 2000, 2008, 2019 |
Total | 4 | |
Theatre
In 2010, Pittsburg High School's fall play, Crimes of the Heart, tied for first place in a statewide theatre competition. The show was performed at the Kansas State Thespian Conference in January 2011. In 2018, their musical "Urinetown" was performed at both the Kansas State Thespian Festival in January 2018 and the International Thespian Festival in June 2018. In 2020, Pittsburg High School's Musical Repertory Theatre musical "Pippin", performed at the Kansas State Thespian Festival in January of 2020.
In October of 2021, Pittsburg High School was honored with the "Best Performing Arts High School in Kansas" award by the KSHSAA. This award was given based on excellence in theatre, drama, debate, vocal music, instrumental music, and technical direction. Pittsburg High is widely acclaimed across the state of Kansas for its excellence in theatre and performing arts, with various awards and honors received in past years.
Athletics
Pittsburg High School offers many different sports and extracurricular programs for its students. Some of the programs include: football, basketball (men's and women's), volleyball, soccer, softball, baseball, wrestling, dance team, and cheer-leading. The Purple Dragons are classified as a 5A school according to the Kansas State High School Activities Association. Additionally, the Purple Dragons have won multiple district and state championships in both athletic and non-athletic programs.
Track and Field
Track and Field was established at Pittsburg High shortly after the school was founded. Throughout the years, many students have won individual state titles and have set numerous school records.
National awards
- National Champions, 2000 NASA Great Moonbuggy Race, High School Division [18]
Notable alumni
- Brad Franchione (1992), college football coach
- Hugh Gillin (1943), actor
- Dylan Meier (2002), former Kansas State quarterback
- Kerry Meier (2005), former NFL wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons, former quarterback/slotback for the University of Kansas
- Shad Meier (1996), retired NFL tight end who played for the Tennessee Titans and New Orleans Saints
- Russ Pennell (1979), head men's basketball coach at Grand Canyon University
- Bill Russell (1966), former shortstop, coach, and manager for the Los Angeles Dodgers
- Gary Zukav (1960), New York Times bestselling author and frequent guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show
Gallery
- Hutchinson Field
- Hutchinson Field
- Hutchinson Field
References
- "GNIS Detail - Pittsburg High School". USGS.
- "PITTSBURG COMMUNITY SCHOOLS USD250 - HOME". usd250.org.
- USD 250 Administration
- SUNY. "High School CEEB Code Search - SUNY". suny.edu.
- "School Search - Pittsburg HS". Kansas State High School Activities Association. Retrieved 22 November 2011.
- "Pittsburg High". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
- KSHSAA School Classification List
- KSHSAA School District List Archived 2010-09-23 at the Wayback Machine
- Schmidt, Samantha (April 5, 2017). "These high school journalists investigated a new principal's credentials. Days later, she resigned". Washington Post. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
- Williams, Mará Rose. "New Pittsburg, Kan., High School principal resigns after student journalists question her credentials". Kansas City Star. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- Mathew, Gina; Poenitske, Kali; Baden, Maddie; Paul, Trina; Balthazor, Connor; Sullivan, Patrick (March 31, 2017). "District Hires New Principal - Background called into question after discrepinces arise". Booster Redux. No. 98–2. Pittsburg High School. pp. 1D–2D. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
- Chappell, Bill (April 5, 2017). "Student Newspaper's Fact-Check Results In New Principal's Resignation". NPR. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
- Mele, Christopher (5 April 2017). "High School Journalists Land a Scoop, and the Principal Resigns". The New York Times.
- "Newspaper Archives -". Morning Sun. Retrieved 2019-11-23.
- "Huskers Sign Five to 2008-09 Wrestling Squad" (English). Retrieved 2011-05-31.
- "TOP 10 OF '10: Pittsburg High wrestling 8th at state tourney in 2010". Archived from the original (English) on 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2011-06-01.
- "State Records & State Champions". Archived from the original (English) on 2009-04-21. Retrieved 2010-02-05.
- NASA Press Release; 2000
External links
- School
- Maps
- Pittsburg City Map, KDOT
- Crawford County Map, KDOT