Poolesville High School

Infobox HighSchool
name = Poolesville High School


motto = Truth, Honor, Loyalty
established = Early 1900s
type = Public High School
principal = Deena Levine
city = Poolesville
state = Maryland
classification = 1A West
students = 1,012 (2008)
faculty =
free_label =
free =
country = United States
colors = Black and Gold
homepage = [http://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/poolesvillehs/index.shtm Poolesville High School]

Poolesville High School is a public high school located in Poolesville, Maryland. It is home to the Global Ecology Studies Program, the Math Science/Computer Science Magnet Program, and the Humanities Program.

History

Poolesville High School was founded in the early 1900s. The core of the building was built in 1911 as an elementary school. The school housed Poolesville's middle school and high school up until 1997 when John Poole Middle School was built. [http://www.ci.poolesville.md.us/Draft%20Master-Plan/Master%20Plan-body.htm]

From the school's inception until 2001, the mascot was The Indians, and the logo was the profile of an Indian warrior in full head-dress. Amidst some controversy, the school took a vote on whether to change its mascot to The Falcons in 2001. Even though the student body voted to keep The Indians as their mascot, at the beginning of the 2001-02 school year the administration overruled them and changed the mascot to The Falcons..

As of 2006, it is the only high school in Montgomery County with a declining enrollment. The school buses in nearly 200 students from more populated areas. As a result, the nature of the school has changed dramatically in the past 3 years. [http://www.gazette.net/stories/021506/poolnew162053_31983.shtml]

Academics

Starting in the 2006-2007 school year, each student at Poolesville High School has the opportunity to become a part of one of three "houses": Global Ecology; Humanities; or Science, Math, and Computer Science. Students who test to get in the Magnet Houses are "certificate" and are required to take the standard courses. Students who do not test in are able to become a part of a house, but are "non-certificate" and can choose to take specialized courses.

Humanities House

The Humanities program accepted its first "certificate" students for the 2006-2007 school year. First-year students take Humanities English and U.S. History courses with the other Humanities House students. They also have several specialised courses. "Criticism in the Humanities" attempts to encompass every aspect of the humanities, including ethics, theory of knowledge, and [racism] . "Creative scriptwriting" and "CAP photography" are semester-long courses. The Humanities House is currently headed by Mrs. Emily Sigman

Global Ecology Studies Program

The Global Ecology Studies Program (GESP), currently headed by Joyce Bailey, addresses environmental issues through coursework in science and social studies as well as field experience. In the senior year, each student completes a culminating project. As of 2006, the senior class has about 100 students, and other classes are larger. GESP was co-founded by Mr. Jeff Laws and Mr. Thomas Reichenbaugh in 1990, and began in the fall of 1991 with a class of about 25 students. John Rodgers heads the science department and is famous for his apathetic view towards teaching.

cience, Mathematics, and Computer Science House

The Science, Math, and Computer Science (SMCS) program accepted its first students for the 2006-2007 school year. Modeled on the Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science magnet program at Montgomery Blair High School, it is currently coordinated by former Blair magnet teacher Mark Curran. Other teachers involved in this program are Mrs. Redman who teaches Physics/Chemistry, and Mr. Estep who teaches computer science.

As of May 2008, Mrs. Redman plans to leave the school in the following school year and is planned to be replaced by Dr. Mallow.

Demographics

Transportation

10 buses service Poolesville HS for base-area students.

Extra-curricular activities

*Poolesville Outdoorsman Club/Militia
*Independent Film Club
*SGA (2007 vice president Garrett Frost)
*Drama Club
*Debate Team
*Math team
*Annual Speedball Tournament
*It's Academic
*ELLE (Emerging Leaders Looking for Excellence) Sorority
*Mock Trial
*The Exploration Of Space and Time
* The Poolesville Inquisition (Improv Club)
*The Potomac Floaters
*Kayaking Club
*Graphics club
*Green School
*Model UN
*Gnome Liberation Front
*Mangela Appreciation Society

ports

PHS has many sports teams, including
*Golf
*Cross Country
*Volleyball(men's , women's , and coed )
*Wrestling
*Field Hockey
*Football
*Basketball
*Tennis
*Soccer
*Baseball
*Track
*Swimming

Rivalries

* Clarksburg High School
* Brunswick High School
*Orisini International School

Clarksburg High School

Ever since Clarksburg High School has been established (2006), there has been controversy between them and Poolesville. It all started with the losing of the Poolesville High School Head Coach of the Varsity Football Team. Then, shortly after, many other athletic coaches, and academic teachers left to go to Clarksburg. It has been widely speculated that this is due to better pay. However, this is false as Montgomery County Public Schools is unionized with a standard pay scale for all staff based on highest level of education reached and experience within the school system. The shifting of staff has put a strain on the athletic program mostly, and has led to high levels of tension between the two schools. To the right is the scores of the past football games since 2006, when the rivalry started:

Girls' volleyball

*County Champions in 2005
*Maryland State Finalists in 2002, 2003, and 2005
*State Semi Finalists in 2004
*1A South Region Champions in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005
*Division Champions in 2006Coached by Fran DuVall, Managed by Cody Platt

Notable alumni

* Ricky Samuelson (1942) was awarded the purple heart in WWII for his bravery, and returned as a war hero.Fact|date=February 2008

External links

* [http://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/poolesvillehs/index.shtm Poolesville High School]
* [http://www.mcps.k12.md.us/schools/poolesvillehs/departments/Global/index.html Global Ecology Studies Program]
* [http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/poolesvillehs/departments/Humanities/humanities.html Humanities House]
* [http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/poolesvillehs/departments/SMCS/smcs.html Science, Math, and Computer Science House]
* [http://www.mpssaa.org/Index.html Maryland High School Sports and Projected Enrollment]

References