Franklin County High School (Kentucky)
Encyclopedia
Franklin County High School is the largest of three public high schools in Frankfort
, Kentucky
and is one of two high schools operated by Franklin County Public Schools. The campus also houses the Franklin County Career & Technical Center, which offers vocational training. The principal of the school is Sharon Collett.
is named for Benjamin Franklin
, and the high school's mascot, the Flyer, was chosen in honor of Franklin's kite experiment. The mascot itself is a bird named "Freddie Falcon" after Benjamin Franklin.
In 1981, the Franklin County district was split into two high school attendance zones with the opening of Western Hills High School
, with Franklin County High now serving primarily the eastern half of the county, including eastern portions of the city of Frankfort. The central part of the city is served by a separate district, Frankfort Independent Schools, which operates the other public high school in the county, Frankfort High School
.
The school was renovated in 1998, giving it a new facade, band classroom, administrative offices, and expanded classrooms. Another renovation occurred in 2002 which added a second floor hallway to the foyer, parking lot, new entrance and an updated gymnasium.
choices for students: Enrichment, Academic, and Commonwealth Diplomas. The Enrichment Diploma requires 15.5 core units and 11.5 elective units. The Academic option requires 18.5 core units and 10.5 elective units. Finally, the Commonwealth Diploma is considered "strong college preparatory curriculum" and includes 22 units as well as the completion of four Advanced Placement courses with a C or better. Students are graded on a 4-point GPA scale.
at Hearn Elementary, and also participated in the 2007 Inauguration Parade for the current Governor of Kentucky
, Steve Beshear
.
The rifle exhibition team, started in 2005, has performed for the school, a Kentucky State University
football game at halftime, and various elementary schools in the area. A Kitty Hawk Air Society chapter, named the William H. Cornish Chapter, is also in place.
Along with color guard
, drill, and rifle exhibition, the unit also has a Raiders team.
AFJROTC Unit KY-20021 has attended multiple summer leadership schools, and the cadets have won numerous awards.
Dance Team (not governed by KHSAA), softball
, volleyball
The athletics program is led by Tracy Spickard.
The school's gymnasium, tennis court, football stadium/track, baseball, softball and soccer fields are located behind the school. A training facility with locker rooms and a weight room is found beside the football stadium.
The Flyers' main rivals are the Western Hills Wolverines and the Frankfort Panthers.
The Flyers have a rich history in athletics, with multiple teams and individuals competing for statewide championships through its history.
is mostly played at sporting events where the school's band is present, mainly football and basketball games. As the band begins to play the song, fans stand up, clap and sing along with the music.
is not as widely known as the fight song and is mainly played at graduation and other scholarly events. The "Avenue of Trees" referenced in the song describes the tall oak trees lining the shared driveway between the school and Elkhorn Middle School from the entrance at East Main Street. However, this entrance was closed and no longer exists because of traffic re-routing. Both schools now have separate entrances to alleviate traffic.
Unlike many high schools which use re-written lyrics to popular college songs, both Franklin County's Fight Song and Alma Mater are original works by the school's first band director, David Livingston.
Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort is a city in Kentucky that serves as the state capital and the county seat of Franklin County. The population was 27,741 at the 2000 census; by population it is the 5th smallest state capital in the United States...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
and is one of two high schools operated by Franklin County Public Schools. The campus also houses the Franklin County Career & Technical Center, which offers vocational training. The principal of the school is Sharon Collett.
History
Franklin County High was opened in the fall of 1958 and dedicated on November 30 of that year. It consolidated Elkhorn and Peaks Mill High Schools. Franklin CountyFranklin County, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 47,687 people, 19,907 households, and 12,840 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 21,409 housing units at an average density of...
is named for Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
, and the high school's mascot, the Flyer, was chosen in honor of Franklin's kite experiment. The mascot itself is a bird named "Freddie Falcon" after Benjamin Franklin.
In 1981, the Franklin County district was split into two high school attendance zones with the opening of Western Hills High School
Western Hills High School (Frankfort, Kentucky)
Western Hills High School is a secondary school located at 100 Doctors Drive in Frankfort, Kentucky. It is the more recently constructed of the two high schools in the Franklin County Public Schools district, having opened to students in 1981. The first student body selected the Warrior as the...
, with Franklin County High now serving primarily the eastern half of the county, including eastern portions of the city of Frankfort. The central part of the city is served by a separate district, Frankfort Independent Schools, which operates the other public high school in the county, Frankfort High School
Frankfort High School (Kentucky)
Frankfort High School is located at 328 Shelby Street in Frankfort, Kentucky. It is part of the Frankfort Independent School District which consists of Second Street School, Wilkinson Street School, and Frankfort High School. Notable graduates include George C. Wolfe, and the writer, Walter...
.
The school was renovated in 1998, giving it a new facade, band classroom, administrative offices, and expanded classrooms. Another renovation occurred in 2002 which added a second floor hallway to the foyer, parking lot, new entrance and an updated gymnasium.
Academics
FCHS offers three diplomaDiploma
A diploma is a certificate or deed issued by an educational institution, such as a university, that testifies that the recipient has successfully completed a particular course of study or confers an academic degree. In countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia, the word diploma refers to...
choices for students: Enrichment, Academic, and Commonwealth Diplomas. The Enrichment Diploma requires 15.5 core units and 11.5 elective units. The Academic option requires 18.5 core units and 10.5 elective units. Finally, the Commonwealth Diploma is considered "strong college preparatory curriculum" and includes 22 units as well as the completion of four Advanced Placement courses with a C or better. Students are graded on a 4-point GPA scale.
JROTC
There is an Air Force Junior ROTC Wing at the school. KY-20021 supports the school by providing Color Guards for home football and basketball games. The Color Guard has presented flags flown over the capital for former congressman Ben ChandlerBen Chandler
Albert Benjamin "Ben" Chandler III is the U.S. Representative for , serving since a special election in 2004. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...
at Hearn Elementary, and also participated in the 2007 Inauguration Parade for the current Governor of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, Steve Beshear
Steve Beshear
Steven Lynn "Steve" Beshear is an American politician who is the 61st Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. A Democrat, Beshear previously served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1974 to 1979, was the state's Attorney General from 1980 to 1983, and was Lieutenant Governor from...
.
The rifle exhibition team, started in 2005, has performed for the school, a Kentucky State University
Kentucky State University
Kentucky State University is a four-year institution of higher learning, located in Frankfort, Kentucky, United States, the Commonwealth's capital. The school is an historically black university, which desegregated in 1954...
football game at halftime, and various elementary schools in the area. A Kitty Hawk Air Society chapter, named the William H. Cornish Chapter, is also in place.
Along with color guard
Color guard
In the military of the United States and other militaries, the color guard carries the National Color and other flags appropriate to its position in the chain of command. Typically these include a unit flag and a departmental flag...
, drill, and rifle exhibition, the unit also has a Raiders team.
AFJROTC Unit KY-20021 has attended multiple summer leadership schools, and the cadets have won numerous awards.
Athletics
The school is a member of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA). FCHS offers its students the opportunity to participate in multiple sports:- Boys and girls:
- CheerleadingCheerleadingCheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
(not governed by KHSAA), **BasketballBasketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cross country, golfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, soccerFootball (soccer)Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
, swimmingSwimming (sport)Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
, track and fieldTrack and fieldTrack and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, tennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
- Cheerleading
- Boys:
- BaseballBaseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, footballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, wrestlingScholastic wrestlingScholastic wrestling, sometimes known in the United States as Folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practised at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially Collegiate wrestling with some slight modifications. It is currently...
- Baseball
- Girls:
Dance Team (not governed by KHSAA), softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
The athletics program is led by Tracy Spickard.
The school's gymnasium, tennis court, football stadium/track, baseball, softball and soccer fields are located behind the school. A training facility with locker rooms and a weight room is found beside the football stadium.
The Flyers' main rivals are the Western Hills Wolverines and the Frankfort Panthers.
The Flyers have a rich history in athletics, with multiple teams and individuals competing for statewide championships through its history.
Team Records
| Team | Year | Achievement | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dance Team | 2004 | Jamfest National Champions | ||||
| Softball | 1995–2006 | 11th Most Wins (200) | ||||
| Baseball | 2001 | State Final Four | ||||
| Girls' Basketball | 1998 | 5th Most Rebounds in a Season (1,355) | ||||
| Girls' Golf | 1996 | State Champions | ||||
| Boys' Basketball | 1995 | Sweet Sixteen | ||||
| Girls' Golf | 1995 | State Champions | ||||
| Boys' Golf | 1991 | State Champions | ||||
| Boys' Golf | 1990 | State Champions | ||||
| Boys' Cross Country | 1986 | AA State Champions | ||||
| Girls' Cross Country | 1986 | AA State Runners Up | ||||
| Girls' Cross Country | 1983 | AA State Runners Up | ||||
| Girls' Basketball | 1980 | State Runners Up | Girls' Cross Country | 1977 | AA State Runners Up | |
| Girls' Cross Country | 1975 | AA State Champions | ||||
| Girls' Track and Field | 1972 | AA State Champions | ||||
| Girls' Track and Field | 1972 | AA State Champions | ||||
| Girls' Track and Field | 1971 | AA State Champions |
Individual Records
| Vance Hall | Basketball | 2010 | MVP of 11th Region |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vance Hall | Basketball | 2010 | MVP of KY East-West All Star Game |
| Vance Hall | Basketball | 2010 | Kentucky-Ohio All Star Game. |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 1999 | State Champion - 50 Yard Freestyle |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 2000 | State Champion - 50 Yard Freestyle |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 2001 | State Champion - 100 Yard Butterfly |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 2001 | State Champion - 200 Yard Individual Medley |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 2001 | All American - 100 Yard Butterfly |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 2001 | Kentucky Female Swimmer of the Year |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 2002 | State Champion - 100 Yard Butterfly |
| Elizabeth Foster | Swimming | 2002 | Kentucky High School Coaches Association Outstanding Female Athlete |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2006 | Runner-up Mr. Kentucky |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2006 | 2nd Team All-State |
| Nathan Newland | Football | 2006 | All-State Honorable Mention |
| DeRon Hicks | Football | 2008 | Kentucky All-Star/ East All-Star |
| Oakley Watkins | Football | 2008 | Kentucky All-Star/ East All-Star |
| DeRon Hicks | Football | 2008 | All-State Honorable Mention |
| Oakley Watkins | Football | 2008 | 2nd Team All-State |
| Barrett Meyer | Basketball | 2008 | All-State Honorable Mention |
| Andy Donovan | Basketball | 2008 | All State Honorable Mention |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2006 | Kentucky All Star |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2006 | The State Journal Athlete of the Year |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2003–2006 | The State Journal All-County MVP |
| Kaelin Ammons | Baseball | 2005 | The State Journal All-County MVP |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2003–2006 | 4th Most Yds. Passing - Career(10,058) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2003–2006 | 3rd Most Pass Att. - Career (1,193) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2003–2006 | 4th Most Pass Comp. - Career (676) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2003–2006 | 23rd Highest Comp. % - Career (56.7) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2003–2006 | 9th Most TD Passes - Career (109) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2003–2006 | 3rd Most Consecutive Games w/ TD Pass (35) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2006 | 29th Most Yds. Passing - Season (3,211) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2006 | 19th Most Pass Att. - Season (369) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2006 | 26th Most Pass Comp. - Season (207) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2005 | 23rd Most Yds. Passing - Season (3,366) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2005 | 20th Most TD Passes - Season (41) |
| Kaelin Ammons | Football | 2005 | 15th (t) Most TD Passes - Half Game (5) |
| Football | 2005 | 21st Most Yds. Rec. - Game (253) | |
| Shane McDonald | Football | 2005 | 17th Most Rec. - Game (13) |
| Shane McDonald | Football | 2005 | 6th (t) Most TD - Game (4) |
| Matthew Stiles | Football | 2005 | (t) Most Fumble Recoveries - Game (3) |
| Allison Story | Girls' Basketball | 1998 | 6th Most Rebounds in a Season (482) |
| Allison Story | Girls' Basketball | 1998 | 12th (t) Most Rebounds in a Game (28) |
| Chad Haydon | Wrestling | 1998 | State Champion (103 lb.) |
| Ginger Watkins | Girls' Cross Country | 1991 | AA State Champion |
| Joey Bowman | Boys' Cross Country | 1990 | AA State Champion |
| Chad Dawson | Boys' Golf | 1990 | State Champion |
| Ginger Watkins | Girls' Cross Country | 1989 | AAA State Champion |
| Ginger Watkins | Girls' Cross Country | 1988 | AAA State Champion |
| Ron Skufca | Boys' Cross Country | 1987 | AA State Champion |
| Kim Tyrer | Girls' Golf | 1987 | State Champion |
| Carmello Benassi | Boys' Golf | 1973 | State Champion |
Fight song
The Franklin County High Fight SongFight song
A fight song is primarily an American and Canadian sports term, referring to a song associated with a team. In both professional and amateur sports, fight songs are a popular way for fans to cheer for their team...
is mostly played at sporting events where the school's band is present, mainly football and basketball games. As the band begins to play the song, fans stand up, clap and sing along with the music.
Lyrics
-
- Fight, fight, fight, blue, white and gold
- We're going to fly right in and make that goal
- Hail to the Flyer team, more glory to our name
- Rah, rah, rah
- Up, up, way up in the sky
- To win a Flyer victory
- For win, lose, we will choose
- Dear Franklin County High
- F-C-H-S
Alma mater
The school's Alma MaterAlma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
is not as widely known as the fight song and is mainly played at graduation and other scholarly events. The "Avenue of Trees" referenced in the song describes the tall oak trees lining the shared driveway between the school and Elkhorn Middle School from the entrance at East Main Street. However, this entrance was closed and no longer exists because of traffic re-routing. Both schools now have separate entrances to alleviate traffic.
Unlike many high schools which use re-written lyrics to popular college songs, both Franklin County's Fight Song and Alma Mater are original works by the school's first band director, David Livingston.
Lyrics
-
- Our alma mater here's to thee,
- In our green Avenue of Trees.
- Standing beneath the eastern sky,
- To thrill each heart that passes by.
- In our memory you will be,
- Ever present and dear to me.
- Through the years it will be my constant plea,
- Franklin County Stand by me.
Notable alumni
- Elizabeth Hulette, better known as the wrestlingProfessional wrestlingProfessional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
valet Miss ElizabethMiss ElizabethElizabeth Ann Hulette , best known as Miss Elizabeth, was an American professional wrestling manager. She gained international fame from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation, and the mid-1990s in World Championship Wrestling in her role as the manager to the late...