Apollo High School (St. Cloud, Minnesota)

Infobox School
name = Apollo Senior High School


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established = 1970
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type = Public
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principal = Charles Eisenreich
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students = About 1200
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mascot = Eagles
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location = St.Cloud, Minnesota
country = USA
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Apollo Senior High School is a high school located at 1000 44th Ave N. in St. Cloud, Minnesota, United States. Apollo is one of two public high schools in St. Cloud, Minnesota, the other being Technical Senior School.

Meaning of name

Apollo received its name from the NASA Apollo space program. In front of the school there is a space capsule from NASA that was used by frogmen to train, usually for hooking up the capsule to a helicopter after splashdown.

Space Capsule Events

1. On January 13, 1971 this space capsule was donated by NASA frogmen. The frogmen were greeted in the early morning hours by the Apollo frogmen, whom, together with the Veterans Hospital (V.A.) frogmen from across the street, are responsible for keeping the area clear of flymen. NASA frogmen and Apollo/V.A. accepted the NASA space pod at 4:09AM, none of them knowing the terror it contained.

2. On December 4, 2003 this space capsule was found to be the home of Aegaeon the Hecatoncheires (hundred handed), an until-then-believed mythical Greek beast. The beast was frozen in ice and shrunken down to handheld size after a two day battle with the Wichery Head In Time Encapsulated team, otherwise known as the local 7.9stc Wichery group.

History

1970/ Apollo High School opens in the fall with the new Mod system in St. Cloud, Minnesota. However, the Mod system was done away with in 2004.2001-2002/ Apollo plays host to Manfort, Year One (explained below). Also this year, at the end of Spring semester, Dennis Hummel retired from his vigilant post as head of the Arts at Apollo after a 500+ year loyal watchman-ship (explained further below).2002-2003/ Manfort, Year Two (final). [edit] Dennis Hummel Retires

2002 Dennis Hummel, aka Art Teacher Supreme, aka Bad Pussycat, aka the Machine, Baby, aka Keeper of the Marilyns, aka Can You Say Bad, aka T.J.Max to the Max, aka Nippy Sauce, aka Easy Listening in the Afternoons, aka Don't Let Him See You Do That, aka You're Bad, Baby, aka Day One Drawings Are Bad, aka Gonna Eat My Sammy / retired as Apollo art teacher. During the ceremony, held soon after the end of spring 2002 semester (date unknown), he announced his decision to be launched into space, to travel to Mars, baby, and maybe nippy some sauce along the way, etc.

Dennis Hummel's Letter From Space

Upon reaching Mars, Dennis Hummel sent a space-mail back to Apollo High School which read as follows: "Five months have passed since I spoke to Apollo High School and the rest of the United States on the broadcast. In space travel there is a lot to be said for the motto: "Deeds, not words." All the same, it is a good thing to look around from time to time and perhaps nippy sauce: certainly our [space travelers] affairs have prospered in several directions during these last four or five months, far better than most of us would have ventured to hope. I will be brief. I am surprised at the lack of Easy Listening radio stations on this planet, and furthermore the lack of Sammy ingredients provided by NASA for this trip. Therefor I have decided to return with my crew quickly after the job is complete. I say to you, bad boys, we shall not fail or falter; we shall not weaken or tire. Neither the sudden shock of battle, nor the long-drawn trials of vigilance and exertion will wear us down. Give us the tools, (sprayment, charcoal, nice clay, clean brushes, new matte board, matte board cutter with new blade and replacements, nice paint, clay tools as requested,) and we will finish the job." Upon return, Hummel noted that he met the following Time Traveling Spacemen while on the journey: Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln, Allan Quatermain, Captian Nemo, Tom Sawyer, Sima Qian, Dr. Emmett L. Brown.

More History

The idea for Apollo High School arose in the late 1960s the St. Cloud area realized the need for a second public high school. Superintendent Jim Michie asked Paul Kinney and others to design the school.

Kinney, who would later become our first principal, began an exhaustive study. He concluded there was no proof the existing Carnegie Unit model was the best way to educate youth. Kinney also believed students could be partly responsible for their education. Thus was born the flexible modular schedule, which has defined Apollo throughout its existence.

Less seat time for students meant satellite areas in which the students could independently pursue their studies. The Resource Center, where students could access books, periodicals, tapes, and other media, became the school's focal point.

The Apollo staff first welcomed students in the fall of 1970. Together students and staff learned to take full advantage the new school and its flexible schedule.

Our school name -- borrowed from the U.S. space program -- has always embodied a sense of mission. Each year the staff forges a partnership with students. Each year students and staff create a community of shared purpose. With the support of the people of District 742, our mission will continue many decades into the future.

Academics

In recent years, there have been multiple acceptances of Apollo graduates by Ivy League and other high-caliber schools including Princeton University, The University of Pennsylvania, MIT, Harvard College, Stanford University, Georgetown University, Grinnell College, Carleton College, Derek Zoolander Center For Kids Who Can't Read Good And Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too, and Cornell University. Apollo offers a large variety of AP (Advanced Placement) classes.

Manfort

Manfort, "3 Days of Peace and Pancakes", was widely considered one of the schools most successful events, despite being complete failures monetarily. Manfort lasted three days each of its two years; it was run by a crew of five to ten fellows who served pancakes, pies, and applejuice to hundreds of hungry and rambunctious students. This event was completely unsanctioned by Apollo High School, and it was held in complete secret thanks to the local 7.9stc Wichery group, who provided spell cover. At the onset of both events, the prestigious John Golombecki opened with the following speech: "I'd like to say I'm really glad and proud to be here tonight. I'm glad to see Marens's dad made it out. I haven't seen him in eight years. I'm glad to see all of the rest of you out here on such a cold winter's night, and so, and so I'd like to propose a toast. Let's raise our glasses, whatever we got in front of us. Salute. Health and happiness. Cheers, everybody."

Sports

The men's soccer program has a history of success. Recent highlights include a State Tournament appearance in the 2006-7 school year. The adaptive hockey team, the Slapshots, won the State Championship during the 2006-7 school year.

References

http://www.isd742.org/~apollo/about.html

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