Lamar High School (Arlington, Texas)

Infobox School2
name = Mirabeau B. Lamar High School


motto =
established = 1970
type = Public High School
locale =
grades = 9-12
head_name = Principal
head = Jeff Provence
head_name2 =
head2 =
city = Arlington
state = Texas
country = United States
students = 2683 (2006-2007 academic year)
faculty =
athletics = UIL District 4-5A
school_colors = Navy Blue, Gold
mascot = Vikings
free_label =
yearbook = Valhalla
website = [http://www.arlington.k12.tx.us/Lamar/ Lamar High School]

Mirabeau B. Lamar High School is a secondary school in Arlington, Texas. It is named for Mirabeau B. Lamar, the second president of the Republic of Texas, and located at 1400 West Lamar Boulevard.

The school, which handles grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Arlington Independent School District. The current principal is Jeff Provence, who replaced Jimmy Jones in 2006 after Jones retired at the end of the 2005-06 school year. The school mascot is a viking, and the school colors are navy blue and gold. As of May 21, 2007, 2,683 students attend the school, making it the third largest high school in the city. [http://www.aisd.net/pdf/GradeTally/gt052107.pdf]

Lamar was recognized in 1995 as one of the nation's top 50 high schools by "U.S. News and World Report". Lamar boasts an unusually strong alumni base and has several outside websites related to its extracurricular and alumni activities.

Lamar High School serves areas of Northern Arlington and Northwestern Grand Prairie.

Fight song

Fight on, oh Vikings, for our fame.

Fight on to victory.

We hold your colors blue and gold

On high for all to see.

Fight! Fight!

Fight on, oh Vikings brave and bold.

Your honor will be told.

Forever more we sing to thee,

Oh, navy blue and gold!

Alma mater

Lamar High School, we love you,

Your light shines ever true;

It shows the way to follow

Great gold and navy blue.

We pledge our faith forever,

Our Vikings fail us never;

Lamar, our Alma Mater,

Forever more.

Sports

Lamar High School's American football team regularly plays deep into the state playoffs, with the best finish coming in 1990. That year, the Vikings reached the Class 5A Regular Division (now Class 5A-Division II) state championship game, where they lost to Aldine, 27-10, at the Houston Astrodome. The game was broadcast nationally on ESPN.

On two occasions, the Vikes reached the state semi-finals before suffering a season-ending loss. The 2000 team lost to Tyler John Tyler in the Class 5A-Division II semi-finals at Texas Stadium. In 2003, the Vikings fell in the Class 5A-Division I semi-finals to The Woodlands at Round Rock ISD Stadium.

Lamar reached the state playoffs for thirteen consecutive seasons from 1988 to 2000, setting an Arlington ISD record for post-season consistency.

Lamar's playoff teams: [http://www.lamarvikings.com/playoffs.htm]

Notable alumni

*Karen Borta: News anchor for KTVT CBS 11 in Dallas, TX
*James Duff: Creator, executive director and head writer of TNT's The Closer
*Mike Hamilton: Former Major League Baseball catcher for Texas Rangers, current coach and scout for Colorado Rockies
*John "Jack of all trades" Gapa: You name it, he's done it.
*Reggie Harrell: Former NFL wide receiver (2005-06) for New York Jets and Chicago Bears; played collegiately at TCU
*Scott McGarrahan: Former NFL defensive back (1998-2005) for Green Bay Packers, Miami Dolphins, Tennessee Titans, San Diego Chargers and Detroit Lions
*Chris Mycoskie: Sports anchor for WGMB FOX 44 and WVLA NBC 33 in Baton Rouge, LA
*Scott Peach: Arlington High School head football coach (and son of Lamar head football coach Eddy Peach, who has been the school's only head football coach since its opening)
*Kenny Perry: James Bowie High School head football coach
*Joe Walker: Former NFL defensive back (2001-02) for Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts; played collegiately at University of Nebraska
*Shawn Walters: Former University of Southern California running back
*Jeremy Wariner: Gold medalist in 400 meters and 4x400 relay at 2004 Summer Olympics, and 2008 Summer Olympics
*Mitch Willis: Former NFL defensive lineman (1985-90) for Oakland Raiders, Atlanta Falcons and Dallas Cowboys; played collegiately at SMU

Feeder school

The Feeder Schools for Lamar High School are Shackelford Junior High (which is fed by Pope, Butler, Wimbish and Speer elementary schools) and Nichols Junior High (which is fed by Ellis, Sherrod, Larson, Roquemore and Webb elementary schools).

External links

* [http://www.arlington.k12.tx.us/Lamar/ Lamar High School]
* [http://www.lamarvikings.com/ Lamar Vikings Football]
* [http://www.aisd.net/ Arlington Independent School District]
* [http://www.soundsoflamarhighschool.org/ Lamar Instrumental Program]