Wichita North High School
Encyclopedia
Wichita North High School, known locally as North, is a fully accredited high school located in Wichita, Kansas
, USA, serving students in grades 9-12. Wichita North was founded in 1929 on the site where the United States government sent Company 'A' of the 10th Division to the forks of the Arkansas River
to protect the incoming cattle drivers from the Indians. Wichita North is a member of the Kansas State High School Activities Association
and offers a variety of sports programs. Athletic teams compete in the 6A division and are known as the "Redskins".
). The school building for North High was completed in 1929.
Due to the high school being located by a river, North is one of the few high schools in the United States that teaches canoeing. During the spring, the students hold an annual water festival called Waterfest which is held right before Wichita's annual Riverfest and it includes floats from the various student organizations. Unique landmarks in close proximity to North are Mead Island and the Minisa Bridge.
Increases in enrollment at North necessitated a number of additions to the building: an auto mechanics shop (1950), girl's gymnasium (1951), and, in the fall of 1957 the three-story extension on the south wing. By 1972, thirteen annexes were in use. In 1975, North was allocated 1.7 million dollars from a bond issue. The funds were used to add a library, classrooms, provide extensive renovations to science classrooms, offices, and the woodworking room, add an extension to the small gymnasium, improve both the boys and girls physical education. dressing rooms and shower areas, and a number of other projects in rooms adjacent to the new or remodeled facilities. The improvements and/or additions made it possible to remove all but three annex buildings.
Acquisition of land across from the school in 1977, 1980, and 1982 enabled the school district to provide ample student parking. Several senior classes have donated funds each year to be used to purchase a marquee sign for the student parking lot. The marquee is used to highlight student activities and provide recognition for worthy accomplishments of students. During the summer of 1988, the cafeteria was relocated to the first floor and classrooms were constructed in the former cafeteria. The change was made to make additional classrooms available to accommodate ninth grade students who started high school as a part of the restructuring plan.
Since about 1977, the senior boys would participate in a rowdy school spirit club known as the "S" Section. The "S" Section is known for making obscure cheers and rants during North High's sporting events and pep rallies. Each member would have a red and white long sleeve t-shirt with the words "North High 'S' Section" on the front. The back would be the member's nickname as well as their graduation year. These would typically be worn by the members on days that pep rallies occurred.
One of the famous pranks of North High students is to attempt to steal "Butch." "Butch" is a buffalo head that is mounted in the main hallway across from the administrative offices. This has been thwarted due to elaborate anti-theft alarms on the mascot. Although a prank with harmless intent, students who have attempted to kidnap "Butch" have been prosecuted.
and are classified as a 6A school, the largest classification in Kansas according to the KSHSAA
. Throughout its history, Wichita North has won 12 state championships in various sports. Many graduates have gone on to participate in Division I, Division II, and Division III athletics.
Wichita Public High Schools
Wichita Private High Schools
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Map
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
, USA, serving students in grades 9-12. Wichita North was founded in 1929 on the site where the United States government sent Company 'A' of the 10th Division to the forks of the Arkansas River
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. The Arkansas generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's initial basin starts in the Western United States in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas...
to protect the incoming cattle drivers from the Indians. Wichita North is a member of the Kansas State High School Activities Association
Kansas State High School Activities Association
The Kansas State High School Activities Association is the organization which oversees interscholastic competition in the state of Kansas at the high school level. It oversees both athletic and non-athletic competition, and sponsors championships in several sports and activities.The KSHSAA was...
and offers a variety of sports programs. Athletic teams compete in the 6A division and are known as the "Redskins".
History
Wichita High School North was the second high school for the city (following Wichita High School EastWichita High School East
Wichita High School East, known locally as East, is a public, co-educational secondary school located near the center of Wichita, Kansas With a student population of 2,200, it is the largest high school in the state. Originally known as Wichita High School, East was the first of eight traditional...
). The school building for North High was completed in 1929.
Due to the high school being located by a river, North is one of the few high schools in the United States that teaches canoeing. During the spring, the students hold an annual water festival called Waterfest which is held right before Wichita's annual Riverfest and it includes floats from the various student organizations. Unique landmarks in close proximity to North are Mead Island and the Minisa Bridge.
Increases in enrollment at North necessitated a number of additions to the building: an auto mechanics shop (1950), girl's gymnasium (1951), and, in the fall of 1957 the three-story extension on the south wing. By 1972, thirteen annexes were in use. In 1975, North was allocated 1.7 million dollars from a bond issue. The funds were used to add a library, classrooms, provide extensive renovations to science classrooms, offices, and the woodworking room, add an extension to the small gymnasium, improve both the boys and girls physical education. dressing rooms and shower areas, and a number of other projects in rooms adjacent to the new or remodeled facilities. The improvements and/or additions made it possible to remove all but three annex buildings.
Acquisition of land across from the school in 1977, 1980, and 1982 enabled the school district to provide ample student parking. Several senior classes have donated funds each year to be used to purchase a marquee sign for the student parking lot. The marquee is used to highlight student activities and provide recognition for worthy accomplishments of students. During the summer of 1988, the cafeteria was relocated to the first floor and classrooms were constructed in the former cafeteria. The change was made to make additional classrooms available to accommodate ninth grade students who started high school as a part of the restructuring plan.
Since about 1977, the senior boys would participate in a rowdy school spirit club known as the "S" Section. The "S" Section is known for making obscure cheers and rants during North High's sporting events and pep rallies. Each member would have a red and white long sleeve t-shirt with the words "North High 'S' Section" on the front. The back would be the member's nickname as well as their graduation year. These would typically be worn by the members on days that pep rallies occurred.
One of the famous pranks of North High students is to attempt to steal "Butch." "Butch" is a buffalo head that is mounted in the main hallway across from the administrative offices. This has been thwarted due to elaborate anti-theft alarms on the mascot. Although a prank with harmless intent, students who have attempted to kidnap "Butch" have been prosecuted.
Athletics
The Redskins compete in the Greater Wichita Athletic LeagueGreater Wichita Athletic League
The Greater Wichita Athletic League, more commonly known around the state simply as The City League, is a league of member schools of the Kansas State High School Activities Association...
and are classified as a 6A school, the largest classification in Kansas according to the KSHSAA
Kansas State High School Activities Association
The Kansas State High School Activities Association is the organization which oversees interscholastic competition in the state of Kansas at the high school level. It oversees both athletic and non-athletic competition, and sponsors championships in several sports and activities.The KSHSAA was...
. Throughout its history, Wichita North has won 12 state championships in various sports. Many graduates have gone on to participate in Division I, Division II, and Division III athletics.
State Championships
| State Championships | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Sport | Number of Championships | Year |
| Fall | Soccer, Boys | 1 | 1981 |
| Winter | Bowling, Girls Bowling Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule... |
1 | 2008 |
| Swimming and Diving, Boys Swimming (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... |
5 | 1932, 1933, 1934, 1939, 1946 | |
| Wrestling Wrestling Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position... |
2 | 1933, 1941 | |
| Basketball, Boys Basketball Basketball 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... |
2 | 1954, 1987 | |
| Basketball, Girls Basketball Basketball 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... |
2 | 1975, 1977 | |
| Spring | 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... |
3 | 1949, 1950, 1966 |
| Golf, Boys Golf Golf 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.... |
3 | 1940, 1947, 1948 | |
| Golf, Girls Golf Golf 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.... |
2 | 1973, 1974 | |
| Total | 21 | ||
Notable alumni
- Class of ?: Don EnochDon EnochDonald Kirk Enoch was an American politician who served as the 61st Mayor of Wichita, Kansas, from 1969 until 1970. Enoch also served as Wichita's City Commissioner for three separate terms:...
, Mayor of Wichita 1969-1970 - Class of 1995: Tara SnyderTara SnyderTara Snyder is a former tennis player from the United States, who started a professional career in May 1995. She reached her highest individual ranking in the WTA Tour on November 16, 1998, when she was ranked No. 33 in the world...
, Senior US Open Tennis Champion - Class of 1988: Gaylon NickersonGaylon NickersonGaylon H. Nickerson is an American professional basketball player, formerly in the NBA. He attended Wichita State University, Butler Community College, Kansas State University, and Northwestern Oklahoma State University.Nickerson was selected in the second round of the 1994 NBA Draft by the...
, professional basketball player - Class of 1986: Barry SandersBarry SandersBarry Sanders is a former American football running back who spent all of his professional career with the Detroit Lions in the NFL. Sanders left the game just short of the all-time rushing record...
, 1988 Heisman TrophyHeisman TrophyThe Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winner, former NFLNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
running backRunning backA running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running... - Class of 1983: Brian HolmanBrian HolmanBrian Scott Holman is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is now the Managing Director and Principal for Ronald Blue & Co.'s branch office in Kansas City, Kansas....
, MLBMinor league baseballMinor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
pitcherPitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the... - Class of 1977: Lynette Woodard, first female GlobetrotterHarlem GlobetrottersThe Harlem Globetrotters are an exhibition basketball team that combines athleticism, theater and comedy. The executive offices for the team are currently in downtown Phoenix, Arizona; the team is owned by Shamrock Holdings, which oversees the various investments of the Roy E. Disney family.Over...
- Class of 1975: Martha DavisMartha Davis (author)Martha F. Davis is a professor of law at Northeastern University in Boston. She authored the book Brutal Need, a study of the welfare rights movement of 1960 to 1973, and is a native of Kansas....
, author and scholar of human rights and women's rights law. - Class of 1970: Don CalhounDon CalhounDonald Clevester Calhoun is a former professional American football running back who played for nine seasons in the National Football League for the Buffalo Bills, the New England Patriots, and the Philadelphia Eagles...
, former NFLNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
running backRunning backA running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running... - Class of 1956: Curtis McClintonCurtis McClintonCurtis McClinton is a former collegiate and professional American football player.McClinton attended Wichita High School North in Wichita, Kansas before attending the University of Kansas. A three-time All-Big Eight selection as a Jayhawk, McClinton led the team in rushing in 1959 and rushed for...
, former NFLNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
running backRunning backA running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
, scored 1st AFLAmerican Football LeagueThe American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
TD in Super Bowl ISuper Bowl IThe First AFL-NFL World Championship Game in professional American football, later known as Super Bowl I and referred to in some contemporary reports as the Supergame, was played on January 15, 1967 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.The National Football League ... - Class of 1954: Judy BellJudy BellJudy Bell is an American amateur golfer and golf administrator. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2001 in the Lifetime Achievement category, which honors people who have made an exceptional contribution to the sport in areas outside of tournament wins.Bell was born in Wichita,...
, first female President of US Golf AssociationUnited States Golf AssociationThe United States Golf Association is the United States' national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the Rules of Golf. The USGA also provides a national handicap system... - Class of 1953: Phil RuffinPhil RuffinPhillip G. Ruffin is an American businessman. His business interests lie largely in casinos, greyhound racing tracks, oil production, convenience stores, and real estate. Ruffin lives in Las Vegas, Nevada....
, businessman and self-made billionaire - Class of 1948: Vera MilesVera MilesVera Miles is an American film actress who gained popularity for starring in films such as The Searchers, The Wrong Man, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Psycho and Psycho II.-Early life:...
, Actress - Class of 1944: Vernon L. SmithVernon L. SmithVernon Lomax Smith is professor of economics at Chapman University's Argyros School of Business and Economics and School of Law in Orange, California, a research scholar at George Mason University Interdisciplinary Center for Economic Science, and a Fellow of the Mercatus Center, all in Arlington,...
, Nobel Memorial Prize winner in economics - Class of 1942: James JabaraJames JabaraJames "Jabby" Jabara was the first American jet ace in history. Born in Oklahoma, he lived in Kansas where he enlisted as an aviation cadet at Fort Riley after graduating high school. Jabara attended four flying schools in Texas before he received his pilot's wings and was commissioned as a ...
, first American jet aceFlying aceA flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more... - Class of 1940: Richard Cowan (soldier), Congressional Medal of Honor World War II
- Class of 1936: W. Eugene SmithW. Eugene SmithWilliam Eugene Smith was an American photojournalist known for his refusal to compromise professional standards and his brutally vivid World War II photographs.- Life and work :...
, photojournalistPhotojournalismPhotojournalism is a particular form of journalism that creates images in order to tell a news story. It is now usually understood to refer only to still images, but in some cases the term also refers to video used in broadcast journalism...
See also
- Greater Wichita Athletic LeagueGreater Wichita Athletic LeagueThe Greater Wichita Athletic League, more commonly known around the state simply as The City League, is a league of member schools of the Kansas State High School Activities Association...
Wichita Public High Schools
- Wichita East High School
- Wichita Heights High SchoolWichita Heights High SchoolWichita Heights High School, known locally as Heights, is a coeducational secondary school located in Wichita, Kansas, USA, serving students in grades 9-12. The school is part of the USD 259 public school system. The school principal is Mr. Bruce Deterding, who replaced Mr. Mark Christian after...
- Wichita Northeast Magnet High SchoolWichita Northeast Magnet High SchoolWichita Northeast Magnet High School, known locally as Northeast, is a magnet high school located in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is in the Wichita School District. The current principal is Gil Alvarez. Wichita Northeast Magnet High School is the first magnet high school in Kansas. The magnet...
- Wichita Northwest High SchoolWichita Northwest High SchoolWichita Northwest High School, known locally as Northwest, is a fully accredited public high school located in Wichita, Kansas, USA that serves over 1500 students in grades 9-12.-History:The school opened in 1978...
- Wichita South High SchoolWichita South High SchoolWichita South High School, known locally as South, is a fully accredited high school, serving students in grades 9-12, located in Wichita, Kansas, USA. It is also known as Wichita High School South. The school colors are blue and red and the enrollment for the 2009-2010 school year is 1,657...
- Wichita Southeast High School
- Wichita West High SchoolWichita West High SchoolWichita West High School, known locally as West, is a fully accredited high school located in Wichita, Kansas, serving students in grades 9-12. The high school is located close to downtown Wichita, and is near U.S. Route 54...
Wichita Private High Schools
- Bishop Carroll Catholic High SchoolBishop Carroll Catholic High SchoolBishop Carroll Catholic High School, sometimes called Carroll or BC, is a private high school located in Wichita, Kansas. Along with Kapaun Mt. Carmel High School, it is one of two Catholic high schools in the city. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wichita. Bishop Carroll graduates...
- Kapaun Mt. Carmel High SchoolKapaun Mt. Carmel High SchoolKapaun Mt. Carmel Catholic High School, sometimes called Kapaun, is a private, four year, co-educational, secondary school operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wichita. The mission of the school is to form the total person in the image of Jesus Christ...
External links
- Official school website
- USD 259, school district
Photos
State
Map