Lake Orion High School
Encyclopedia
Lake Orion High School is a public secondary institution located in Orion Township, Michigan
Orion Township, Michigan
Orion Charter Township is a charter township of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 35,394 at the 2010 census. The official motto of the township and village is "Where living is a vacation". Orion Township contains the much smaller village of Lake Orion...

. It is a part of Lake Orion Community Schools
Lake Orion Community Schools
Lake Orion Community Schools is a school district headquartered in Lake Orion, Michigan, attracting students from all of Lake Orion and Orion Township; and small parts of Oxford Township, Oakland Township, and Independence Township.-Elementary schools:...

.

The large campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...

 (377,756 square feet) features a centralized commons area, which serves as a distribution center to the wings. The commons area features the cafeteria
Cafeteria
A cafeteria is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school; a school dining location is also referred to as a dining hall or canteen...

 and student store (LO Stop N' Shop), as well as the main office. Each wing features classrooms, computer labs, student lockers, and faculty offices. The school is the second largest in the state of Michigan.

The campus also features a gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...

nasium, natatorium
Natatorium
A natatorium is a term given for a building containing a swimming pool. In Latin, a cella natatoria was a swimming pool in its own building, although it is sometimes also used to refer to any indoor pool even if not housed in a dedicated building...

, and auditorium
Auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...

; all of which are suitable for state-level competitions or productions. The Information Resource Center is a reconceptualized vision of a library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...

, featuring computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...

s, tech-ed labs, and studio classrooms.

The immediate area around the school has been developed into residential neighborhoods, but is still dominated by Bald Mountain Recreation Area
Bald Mountain Recreation Area
Bald Mountain Recreation Area is a state park located near Lake Orion, Michigan off M-24. It consists of some of most the rugged terrain in southeastern Michigan....

 to the north, east, and southeast.

As of the 2010-2011 school year, Lake Orion High School has the 8th highest enrollment in the state of Michigan, and the 2nd highest in Oakland County after Clarkston High School (when Clarkston off-campus freshman are included). Since opening at the current location in 1997, LOHS has added close to 1,000 students to the enrollment.

History

The first building to house Lake Orion students was built in 1893 and served grades K-12
K-12
K–12 is a designation for the sum of primary and secondary education. It is used in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand where P–12 is also commonly used...

. It was demolished in the 1930s by a Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...

 project as part of the program designed by the Franklin Roosevelt administration as a way to provide jobs. In 1927 a new building was constructed that would house students for the next 30 years. Located within the Village of Lake Orion, that building is still in use today as the Ehman Center, and is used by various businesses.

The next building to house LOHS is located near the current school, and is now used as a Community Education Resource Center. It is commonly referred to as the "CERC Building". Opened in 1957, it housed classes for high school students for 40 years. During the 1980s and 1990s the building became so limited in space that it eventually only served grades 10-12, and also required the use of portable classrooms. During that time, the building was known as Lake Orion Senior High School, and was fed by Lake Orion Junior High School (grades 8 and 9).

The current site of LOHS opened in the Fall of 1997, with much of the school uncompleted as construction was behind schedule. Students began classes while construction crews completed the main entrance, gym, weight room, auditorium
Auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...

, parking lot, baseball fields, and natatorium
Natatorium
A natatorium is a term given for a building containing a swimming pool. In Latin, a cella natatoria was a swimming pool in its own building, although it is sometimes also used to refer to any indoor pool even if not housed in a dedicated building...

. As a result, students and staff used secondary entrances and were bused to the former high school for gym classes (and the first pep rally to include all 4 classes in years).

In 2000, LOHS was honored as a New American High School showcase site by the United States Department of Education
United States Department of Education
The United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...

.

Athletics

LOHS offers 27 varsity sports, and competes in the Oakland Activities Association
Oakland Activities Association
Oakland Activities Association is a Southeast Michigan high school athletics conference. It is made up of 29 schools located throughout Oakland County....

 or "OAA". At the state level, the school is classified as "Class A" or "Division 1", competing against those schools with the largest enrollments. Recently, Lake Orion has added ice hockey (2001), lacrosse (2007), and bowling to the list of varsity sports offered.

The grounds surrounding the school feature Dragon Stadium, which houses the football field and track
Track and field
Track 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...

. The football field is composed of AstroTurf
AstroTurf
AstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...

 GameDay Grass XPe, an artificial surface constructed to resemble grass
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...

. A separate soccer field is located next to the stadium. There are several baseball
Baseball
Baseball 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...

 and 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...

 diamonds, some of which feature dugout
Dugout (baseball)
In baseball, the dugout is a team's bench area and is located in foul territory between home plate and either first or third base. There are two dugouts, one for the home team and one for the visiting team. In general, the dugout is occupied by all players not prescribed to be on the field at that...

s or bleacher
Bleacher
Bleachers is an American term used to describe the raised, tiered rows of seats found at sports fields or at other spectator events...

 seating. Lighted tennis courts are located adjacent to the school. Many of these facilities are suitable for regional, state-wide, and AAU
Amateur Athletic Union
The Amateur Athletic Union is one of the largest non-profit volunteer sports organizations in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs.-History:The AAU was founded in 1888 to...

 competitions.

The athletic teams are known as "The Dragons
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...

". The "Dragons" (or Lady Dragons) name is used by all athletic teams at all educational levels throughout the school system. The chief rival to Lake Orion is the Clarkston High School Wolves, located in the township directly west of Orion. The two districts border one another and share many of the same demographics and enrollment. A previous rival to Lake Orion was Oxford High School
Oxford High School (Michigan)
Oxford High School is a coed public secondary institution located in Oxford, Michigan within the Oxford Community Schools district. The school draws from an area of The Village of Oxford and Oxford Township, as well as portions of Oakland Township, Dryden Township, and Metamora Township...

, located in the township directly north. Beginning with the 2010 fall sports season, Lake Orion will again face Oxford in sporting events as Oxford moved to the OAA. The football teams compete for the "Double-O" trophy each season.

The boys and girls ski teams compete at Pine Knob
Pine Knob
Pine Knob is a downhill ski area in Clarkston, Michigan. It is best known for its snow-making and marquee run, "The Wall." Pine Knob is the home mountain to a number of local high school ski racing teams, including Clarkston, Detroit Country Day School, Rochester Adams High School, Cranbrook...

. The ice hockey team predominately competes at the Detroit Skating Club.

Lake Orion baseball has had 6 players drafted in the Major League Baseball Draft. From 1996-1998, the baseball team was coached by former major leaguer Dave Collins
Dave Collins
David S. Collins is a former outfielder in Major League Baseball from to .Collins is one of three players to have made it to the major leagues who played for the storied Rapid City Post 22 American Legion baseball program in Rapid City, SD...

.

The Lake Orion soccer field served as home field for the Michigan Bucks
Michigan Bucks
Michigan Bucks is an American soccer team based in Pontiac, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1995, the team plays in the USL Premier Development League , the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Great Lakes Division of the Central Conference.The team plays its home games at the...

 of the USL Premier Development League
USL Premier Development League
The USL Premier Development League is the amateur league of the United Soccer Leagues in the United States, Canada, and Bermuda, forming part of the American Soccer Pyramid...

 in 2007 and 2008.

State Championships
  • 1990 - Wrestling (Class A/Division 1)
  • 2007 - Girls Golf (Division 1)
  • 2007 - Baseball (Division 1)
  • 2008 - Power Lifting (Club) (Class A)
  • 2009 - Power Lifting (Club) (Class A)
  • 2010 - Football (Division 1)

Activities

Currently active clubs and student organizations at the high school include:
  • Art Club
  • Business Professionals of America
    Business Professionals of America
    Business Professionals of America is a career and technical student organization that is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. BPA aims to develop leadership, academic, and technological skills in the workplace among students and leaders within the community...

  • DECA
    DECA (organization)
    DECA, also known as Collegiate DECA on the college level) is an international association of students and teachers of marketing, management and entrepreneurship in business, finance, hospitality, and marketing sales and service . DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing,...

  • Cleaner (Hip Hop) Club
  • Cultural Outreach
  • Drama Club (a chapter of the International Thespian Society
    International Thespian Society
    The International Thespian Society is an honorary organization for high-school and middle-school theatre students located at more than 3,600 affiliated secondary schools across the United States, Canada, and abroad. The International Thespian Society was founded in Fairmont, West Virginia...

    )
  • Earth Club
  • Forensics
  • Key Club
    Key Club
    Key Club International is the oldest and largest service program for high school students. It is a student-led organization whose goal is to teach leadership through serving others. Key Club International is a part of the Kiwanis International family of service-leadership programs...

  • The Light (Christian
    Christian
    A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

     club)
  • National Honor Society
    National Honor Society
    The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries...

  • Rainbow Alliance
    Gay-straight alliance
    Gay–straight alliances are student organizations, found primarily in North American high schools and universities, that are intended to provide a safe and supportive environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth and their straight allies .-Goal:The goal of most, if not all,...

  • FIRST Robotics
  • Science Olympiad
    Science Olympiad
    Science Olympiad is an American elementary, middle, or high school team competition which tests knowledge of various science topics and engineering ability. Over 6,200 teams from 49 U.S. states compete each year. Most teams compete in three levels of competition: regionals, states, and nationals...

  • Ski Club
  • Youth in Government
    YMCA Youth and Government
    YMCA Youth and Government, or Y&G is a YMCA civic engagement and service-learning program in the United States that offers high school students the opportunity to serve in a model government process at the local, state, national, and international levels...

  • Video Game Club


The school also sponsors extracurricular clubs that are not necessarily specific to an academic environment. These are known as "Dragon GAP", featuring clubs such as Dungeons & Dragons, Flag Football League, Movie Club, Paintball Club, Ultimate Frisbee Club, Writing Club, and Video Game Design.

The school does not officially sponsor, but rarely punishes students for, Senior Skip Day
Senior Skip Day
International Ditch Day is a tradition in most American and Canadian high schools and junior high schools where most of the senior class skip school on a pre-determined day, typically the 111th day of school...

. Usually held the day of, before, or near the spring prom
Prom
In the United States and Canada, a prom, short for promenade, is a formal dance, or gathering of high school students. It is typically held near the end of the senior year. It figures greatly in popular culture and is a major event among high school students...

 or final examination
Final examination
A final examination is a test given to students at the end of a course of study or training. Although the term can be used in the context of physical training, it most often occurs in the academic world...

s, most senior students choose to skip classes for the day. Teachers and administrators generally support a day of skipping, however underclassmen (if caught) could face punishment. Senior Skip Day is sometimes accompanied by a Senior Prank
Senior prank
A senior prank is a type of organized prank pulled by the senior class of a school, college, or university to cause chaos throughout the institution. The pranks are usually carried out at the end of the senior school year as a going away mark on the school, and in some cases have become something...

, which commonly includes "painting the rock" outside of the school, among other things.

LOHS holds graduation
Graduation
Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, where students become Graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as Graduands. The date of graduation is often called degree day. The graduation itself is also...

 and commencement ceremonies at the Meadow Brook Music Festival in nearby Rochester Hills, Michigan
Rochester Hills, Michigan
Rochester Hills is an affluent city in northeast Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 70,995. The city of Rochester is bounded on the north, south, and west by Rochester Hills...

. LOHS Recently moved the graduation ceremony to Pontiac but due to construction issues it has been moved back to the original location.

In 1998, the Dragon yearbook
Yearbook
A yearbook, also known as an annual, is a book to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school or a book published annually. Virtually all American, Australian and Canadian high schools, most colleges and many elementary and middle schools publish yearbooks...

 won the National Pacemaker Award for excellence in journalism.

Band

The band competes at state-level competitions in which they are judged on a variety of factors. In the 2006 season, they placed third in Flight I with a score of 82.6, the second highest score for Lake Orion ever. In the 2007 season, they placed 2nd in Flight I at the MCBA State Finals with a score of 89.15 which is the highest score in the history of the marching band. In 2008, they placed 2nd at state finals and was awarded the trophy for best marching. That was also the first year the band made their way to BOA Grand Nationals, hosted in Indianapolis, Indiana, in the brand new Lucas Oil Stadium. The band placed 48th in the country. In 2009, the band took fourth place with their show Over the River and Through the Woods.

Lake Orion also has three talented concert bands: Campus (freshmen), Concert, and Symphonic(audition only). At MSBOA Festival and Solo &Ensemble, high ratings are common every year.

The latest addition to Lake Orion's championship teams is the LOHS Winter Drumline; meaning they compete during the winter season as in indoor unit. The winter line was first formed in 2009-2010 season and they eventually went on to take states their very first year.

Notable alumni

  • Matthew Blackmer
    Matthew Blackmer
    Matthew Blackmer is an American pair skater. With partner Britney Simpson, he is the 2011 JGP Poland champion...

    , American
    United States
    The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

     pair skater
    Pair skating
    Pair skating is a figure skating discipline. International Skating Union regulations describe pair teams as consisting of "one lady and one man." The sport is distinguished from ice dancing and single skating by elements unique to pair skating, including overhead lifts, twist lifts, death spirals,...

  • Matthew Dear
    Matthew Dear
    Matthew Dear is an American music producer, DJ and electronic avant-pop artist.-History:Texas- born Dear moved to Michigan as a teenager, where he was inspired by the sound of Detroit Techno...

    , electronic avant-pop musician
  • Andrew J. Feustel
    Andrew J. Feustel
    Andrew J. Feustel is an American Geophysicist and a NASA astronaut. His first spaceflight in May 2009, named STS-125, lasted just under 13 days . This was a mission with six other astronauts to repair the Hubble Space Telescope, aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis. Feustel performed three spacewalks...

    , NASA
    NASA
    The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

     astronaut
    Astronaut
    An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....

  • Tom Gillis
    Tom Gillis
    Thomas Charles Gillis is an American professional golfer.Gillis was born in Pontiac, Michigan, and graduated from Lake Orion High School in Lake Orion, Michigan...

    , professional golfer
    Professional golfer
    In golf the distinction between amateurs and professionals is rigorously maintained. An amateur who breaches the rules of amateur status may lose his or her amateur status. A golfer who has lost his or her amateur status may not play in amateur competitions until amateur status has been reinstated;...

  • Sebastian Harris
    Sebastian Harris
    Sebastian 'Seb' James Harris is an American soccer player, currently playing for Michigan Bucks in the USL Premier Development League.-College and amateur:...

    , professional soccer player
  • Frederick Henderson
    Frederick Henderson
    Frederick Arthur "Fritz" Henderson was President and Chief Executive Officer of General Motors. Prior to his appointment as CEO on March 31, 2009, Henderson was the Vice President of General Motors and has been with the company since 1984...

    , former CEO of General Motors
    General Motors
    General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...

  • Zak Keasey
    Zak Keasey
    Zak Keasey is an American football fullback who is currently a free agent in the National Football League....

    , professional football player
  • Chris "Hot Wings" Michels
    The Free Beer and Hot Wings Show
    The Free Beer and Hot Wings Show is a syndicated talk radio show based at WGRD-FM in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The show is hosted by Gregg "Free Beer" Daniels and Chris "Hot Wings" Michaels with Eric "Zane" Zeitunian, "Producer" Joseph Gasmann, Jr, Assistant Producer Steve McKiernan, and Robot. The...

    , syndicated radio show host
  • Jamie Milam
    Jamie Milam
    Jamie Milam is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for the AIK of HockeyAllsvenskan.-External links:...

    , professional hockey player
  • Troy Milam
    Troy Milam
    Troy Milam is a professional hockey player, who is currently employed by Tampa Bay Lightning for Norfolk Admirals.-Career:On 25 November 2009 signed for Ässät after has been injured since last season....

    , professional hockey player
  • Raymond Plouhar
    Raymond Plouhar
    Raymond James Bryon Anthony Charles Plouhar was a Staff Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps killed by a roadside bomb in the Anbar Province of Iraq, while serving in the Iraq War on June 26, 2006...

    , staff sergeant, USMC
    United States Marine Corps
    The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

  • Ryan Stone
    Ryan Stone
    Ryan Adam Stone is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre currently under contract with the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League .-Playing career:...

    , professional hockey player
  • Ron Tripp
    Ron Tripp
    Ron Tripp Battle Creek, Michigan, is a World Sambo and Judo champion and the current general secretary of USA Judo. He is also a member of the board of directors of the United States Olympic Committee....

    , World Sambo
    Sambo (martial art)
    Sambo is a Russian martial art and combat sport. The word "SAMBO" is an acronym for SAMooborona Bez Oruzhiya, which literally translates as "self-defense without weapons". Sambo is relatively modern since its development began in the early 1920s by the Soviet Red Army to improve their hand to hand...

     and Judo
    Judo
    is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...

     Champion; President of USA Judo
  • Cynthia Watros
    Cynthia Watros
    Cynthia Michele Watros is an American television actress, who also starred in films and on stage. She is known for her roles as Libby on the ABC TV series Lost, Kellie in The Drew Carey Show, Erin in Titus, and Annie Dutton in Guiding Light...

    , actress
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