Southwestern High School (Indiana)

Southwestern High School is located in Hanover, Indiana. There are approximately 480 students in grades 9 through 12.

History

Southwestern High School was founded in 1960 with the consolidation of Saluda and Hanover high schools. Since the two schools were located in the southwestern region of Jefferson County, Indiana, the school was officially named "Southwestern Jefferson County Consolidated High School". Originally, the school was located in the edifice of the old Hanover High School. However, the old school was severely damaged in the April 3, 1974 tornado Super Outbreak that ravaged much of the Midwest. The current building was built over the following year.

Athletics and Activities

Southwestern is a member of the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) and its mascot is the Rebels. Its athletic teams are a part of the Ohio River Valley Conference.

Southwestern holds a strong tradition in Indiana boys' and girls' high school basketball. During the school's initial years, its boys' basketball team was consistently among the strongest programs in the state, although under Indiana's one-class system, by which schools competed for the state championship regardless of school size, the Rebels never made it past the semi-state level. When Indiana adopted the 4-class system in 1997, however, Southwestern saw great success and in 1998, the boys' team was the 1998 Class AA Indiana Boys' Basketball State runners-up. Subsequent seasons have failed to match that initial success, and the boys' basketball team has not since made it further than the sectionals finals.

Southwestern High School's girls' basketball team was the 2002 Class AA Indiana State Champions as well as the 2003 Class AA Indiana State Runners-up. Donna Cheatham, the coach of the girls' basketaball team, is the most successful coach in Indiana high school girls' basketball history. Prior to her arrival at Southwestern in 1997, Southwestern hosted a forgettable girls' program, but in the years since it has remained a powerhouse, not only in Class AA, but also among all schools in the state, with wins over Class AAA and AAAA powerhouses such as Jeffersonville and New Albany. Despite regional losses in 2005 and 2006, the team remains among the state's most respected programs and consistently ranks near to top of AA state polls.

Soutwesten's baseball team has not been highly successful over the past several years, but it looks to improve with the hiring of its new coach. Despite their lowly past several seasons, sectional championships are not far out of reach. They have had strong teams in the past and have promising upcoming players.

Southwestern is home to the Rebel Regiment, a marching band affiliated with the Indiana State School Music Association (ISSMA). Because the school does not have a football team, the Rebel Regiment is purely competitive. In 1998, the Rebel Regiment attended its first state finals with the ISSMA and earned tenth place in Class D, a class for small schools. Two years later, in 2000, it earned third place honors.

Southwestern High School is also home to the award-winning "Esprit" show choir. They travel around the state to compete as well as to several surrounding states.

Speech: in the 2005-06 year the team sent several members to state, including a freshman, in foreign extemporaneous; a sophomore, in oratorical interpretation, for the second time; a junior, in foreign extemporaneous, also for the second time; and a senior in poetry interpretation, second time. At the end of the year, four members graduated, and the coaches moved to Rhode Island. The team continues this year coached by students from the local college, on a somewhat reduced scale. Track: in the 2006 season the team had a good year with a very devoted team. No one got to state, unfortunately, but several members got to regionals. Several school and track records were set, particularly by Zack Scrogham broke a 33 year old discus record, Miles Courtney-sprinter, and Derick Clark-mid and long distance.

Over the past couple years, the Southwestern Soccer team has improved greatly. In 2005, the Rebels posted their first winning season in years. After a dominate season, the team won the first round sectional game, heading to the semifinal round. After a very tough game, Southwestern lost to archrival Madison 1-0. After the season, coach Steve Drossart resigned, and current coach Dave Bramer moved from the middle school to the high school. In 2006, the Rebels proved themselves again by being a winning team. Two winning soccer seasons in a row was unheard of until just recently. After the successful season, the Rebels marched to sectionals with very high expectations. After a hard fought match, the Rebels were onced again held back by Madison. Southwesterns Soccer team has come a very long way, 5 years ago they only had ten players on the team, now they are a strong contender in this year's sectionals. The Southwestern Soccer program has grown rapidly and still has a great chance to continue growing.

The Rebel Regiment marching band won MidStates Class A Championship during 2005. They also received superior ratings in concert band.

The Rebel Regiment competed in Midstates once again in 2006. They won the pre-lim competition and went on to place 3rd at Finals and win the title of best percussion.

In 2007 the Regiment again competed in the Midstates circuit, winning first place at every competition they attended including pre-lims and the finals competition.