Elmhurst High School
Encyclopedia
Elmhurst High School was a public high school
with a comprehensive intake and over 1,000 students. Elmhurst High School was part of the Fort Wayne Community Schools
school district, serving those living in the Waynedale
area of Fort Wayne. It received accreditation from the Indiana Department of Education and the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools.
School Board to accept a recommendation of the FWCS administration regarding ways to reduce the 2010 district budget by $15 million. The administration's report included the step of closing Elmhurst High School. The budget moves were required because current economic conditions reduced federal and state funds available to the school district. The closing of Elmhurst has been a highly debated topic over the past several years, and the Board, by an unanimous vote of 7-0, agreed to accept the administration's recommendation. With that action, the 2009/10 school year will be the final year of operations for the school. Returning students will be reallocated to other high schools in the FWCS system.
In 1979, Elmhurst High School underwent drastic renovations in order to better serve its students. The renovations were very costly and took a long time to complete but when they were finally finished, Elmhurst was equipped with an auxiliary gym and 600 seat auditorium. The auditorium was designed to double as a movie theater, with the use of a 20'x20' retractable movie screen to be installed after the construction of the auditorium.
The school has also had a rich tradition of musicians. Annually, the school hosts an ISSMA Jazz Fest. Back in the era of jazz, there were many big names who came to perform at Elmhurst. Among them were: Stan Kenton
, Woody Herman
, the Duke Ellington
Orchestra, Maynard Ferguson
, and many others. The school also had many college bands perform there as well. Along the band room wall, you can see various posters dating back to when the tickets were on sale.
sports including the following for both boys and girls:
cross-country
, soccer, tennis
, basketball
, track and field
, swim and dive, bowling
, and golf
. Football
, wrestling
, and baseball
were also offered for boys, while softball
, volleyball
, gymnastics
, and cheerleading
were offered for girls. All sanctioned sports competed in the Summit Athletic Conference
. In its final year, the Elmhurst Boy's Basketball team won the 3A Regional title.
On March 7, 2009, the Elmhurst Girls Basketball team brought home the first state championship for any team sport in the school's history, defeating Owen Valley
62-59 to win the Class 3A title.
Some clubs included jazz band, band, show choir, creative writing club, theatre and drama, orchestra, winter drum line, speech, marching band, winter guard, dance team, campus life, science, robotics team, French, Spanish, and National Honor Society
.
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
with a comprehensive intake and over 1,000 students. Elmhurst High School was part of the Fort Wayne Community Schools
Fort Wayne Community Schools
The Fort Wayne Community Schools corporation is the Fort Wayne, Indiana area public school district, and is the second largest in Indiana behind only the Indianapolis Public Schools. It operates five high schools, eleven middle schools, and over thirty elementary schools, serving 31,568 students ...
school district, serving those living in the Waynedale
Waynedale, Indiana
Waynedale is a community in the southwest quadrant of Fort Wayne, Indiana in Allen County. The community was founded in 1921 by Abner Elzey, a Methodist preacher from Ossian. Residents signed petitions in 1957 requesting annexation by the City of Fort Wayne...
area of Fort Wayne. It received accreditation from the Indiana Department of Education and the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools.
Closing Elmhurst High School
On March 22, 2010, a vote was taken by the FWCSFort Wayne Community Schools
The Fort Wayne Community Schools corporation is the Fort Wayne, Indiana area public school district, and is the second largest in Indiana behind only the Indianapolis Public Schools. It operates five high schools, eleven middle schools, and over thirty elementary schools, serving 31,568 students ...
School Board to accept a recommendation of the FWCS administration regarding ways to reduce the 2010 district budget by $15 million. The administration's report included the step of closing Elmhurst High School. The budget moves were required because current economic conditions reduced federal and state funds available to the school district. The closing of Elmhurst has been a highly debated topic over the past several years, and the Board, by an unanimous vote of 7-0, agreed to accept the administration's recommendation. With that action, the 2009/10 school year will be the final year of operations for the school. Returning students will be reallocated to other high schools in the FWCS system.
Mission
The mission of Elmhurst High School was to guarantee that all students were prepared to meet or exceed Indiana Standards by narrowing the achievement gap, by increasing the successful completion of advanced courses, and by improving student achievement.History
Dating back to 1929, Elmhurst High School had nine principals, including three female principals.In 1979, Elmhurst High School underwent drastic renovations in order to better serve its students. The renovations were very costly and took a long time to complete but when they were finally finished, Elmhurst was equipped with an auxiliary gym and 600 seat auditorium. The auditorium was designed to double as a movie theater, with the use of a 20'x20' retractable movie screen to be installed after the construction of the auditorium.
The school has also had a rich tradition of musicians. Annually, the school hosts an ISSMA Jazz Fest. Back in the era of jazz, there were many big names who came to perform at Elmhurst. Among them were: Stan Kenton
Stan Kenton
Stanley Newcomb "Stan" Kenton was a pianist, composer, and arranger who led a highly innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. In later years he was widely active as an educator....
, Woody Herman
Woody Herman
Woodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...
, the Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
Orchestra, Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader. He came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957...
, and many others. The school also had many college bands perform there as well. Along the band room wall, you can see various posters dating back to when the tickets were on sale.
Sports and clubs
Elmhurst's athletic department consisted of more than 20 IHSAAIndiana High School Athletic Association
The Indiana High School Athletic Association is the arbiter of interscholastic competition among public and private high schools in the State of Indiana. It monitors a system that divides athletically-competing high schools in Indiana based on the school's enrollment. The divisions, known as...
sports including the following for both boys and girls:
cross-country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, soccer, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, basketball
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...
, track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, swim and dive, bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
, and golf
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....
. Football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, wrestling
Scholastic wrestling
Scholastic wrestling, sometimes known in the United States as Folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practised at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially Collegiate wrestling with some slight modifications. It is currently...
, and 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...
were also offered for boys, while softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
, gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, and cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
were offered for girls. All sanctioned sports competed in the Summit Athletic Conference
Summit Athletic Conference (IHSAA)
The SAC is a high school athletic conference consisting of the eight high schools located area of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Three of the schools are private, one being a Lutheran academy, and the other two being Catholic preparatories. The rest are public schools, being part of Fort Wayne Community...
. In its final year, the Elmhurst Boy's Basketball team won the 3A Regional title.
On March 7, 2009, the Elmhurst Girls Basketball team brought home the first state championship for any team sport in the school's history, defeating Owen Valley
Owen Valley Community High School
Owen Valley Community High School is a high school located in Spencer, Indiana with 1200 students and more than 80 faculty members. Built in 1971, OVHS is the result of a consolidation of several smaller schools located within Owen County, Indiana. Owen Valley's mascot is the Patriot, and the...
62-59 to win the Class 3A title.
Some clubs included jazz band, band, show choir, creative writing club, theatre and drama, orchestra, winter drum line, speech, marching band, winter guard, dance team, campus life, science, robotics team, French, Spanish, and National Honor Society
National Honor Society
The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries...
.
Notable alumni
- James HardyJames Hardy (American football)James W. Hardy, III is an American football wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft and played college football at Indiana University.-High School career:...
, former professional football player, 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...
Buffalo BillsBuffalo BillsThe Buffalo Bills are a professional football team based in Buffalo, New York. They are currently members of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... - June PeppasJune PeppasJune Peppas is a former first basewoman and pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 5", 145 lb., she batted and threw left-handed.-Early life:...
, former first basewoman and 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...
, All-American Girls Professional Baseball LeagueAll-American Girls Professional Baseball LeagueThe All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a women's professional baseball league founded by Philip K. Wrigley which existed from 1943 to 1954. During the league's history, over 600 women played ball.-History:...
(1948–1954) - David C. TurnleyDavid C. TurnleyDavid C. Turnley is an American photographer. He won the 1990 Pulitzer Prize for photography for images of the political uprisings in China and Eastern Europe, the World Press Photo Picture of the Year in 1988 for a photo taken in Leninakan after the devastating Armenian earthquake and again in...
, Pulitzer PrizePulitzer PrizeThe Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning photojournalist - Peter TurnleyPeter TurnleyPeter Turnley is a photojournalist known for documenting the human condition and current events. Over the past two decades, he has traveled to eighty-five countries and covered nearly every major news event of international significance. His photographs have been featured on the cover of Newsweek...
, Photojournalist