Hereford High School, Parkton
Encyclopedia
Hereford High School is a four-year public high school located in the rural northern Baltimore County
town of Parkton
, Maryland
, USA
, as part of the Baltimore County Public Schools
. The school was established in 1954.
The school's district is the Hereford Zone
. The Hereford Zone covers 233 square miles (603.5 km²) and makes up over a third of Baltimore County by area. Like those of most public schools in the region, Hereford students are transported by a busing
system.
Hereford is notable for its agriscience
program. It was the only one of its kind among the county's public high schools. Hereford's base feeder school, Hereford Middle School, also has a smaller agricultural program.
, Maryland
in 1909 and had its first graduating class in 1912. The name was changed to Sparks High School around 1920, and it was converted into an elementary school
in 1953. Hereford High School was established in Hereford, Maryland to replace Sparks High School in 1954. It originally was home to a large population of farmers' children, due to the fact that at one time, Hereford's economy was almost entirely agriculture based. Since then, the disappearance of small farms and the growth of suburban housing development has caused the high school's agrarian roots to be carried on mostly by local tradition and its agricultural courses.
Along with its counterpart female choral group, Ladies Fare, the Bulltones perform at a variety of events, visiting schools in the vicinity as well as competing in notable locations such as Boston, Montreal, and Nashville.
In 2007, the Hereford High School Symphonic Band performed Chorus Angelorum by composer Samuel R. Hazo
. The piece was commissioned for the Symphonic Winds section two years prior, after the death of Joey and Audrey Baseman (whose siblings and grandchildren were in the band).
), Best Female Vocalist (Katherine Crowe in Pirates of Penzance and Julienne Gede in The Secret Garden
), Best Cameo Actor (Gregory Kufera in Seussical
), Best Costumes (Abby Urbanas, Steph Parks, Hannah Morgan in The Secret Garden
and Kaitlin Philipp, Laura Pederson in Pippin
) and, under the direction in past years of Lee Waters, members of the theatre program as well as the program as a whole won a number of awards at the All State Theatre Festival, held annually at Magruder High School in Montgomery County. Because of this continually evolving program, the actors have been able to perform songs on the Hippodrome Stage. They have also won awards at the yearly trip to the Pennsylvanian Renaissance Festival. Other theatre related extracurricular activities include Improv Troupe and Drama Club.
, due to the region's rich agrarian
history.
The school has won 50 state athletic championships including 20 since the year 2000. : Hereford High School has won more State Championships then any other school in Baltimore county. (Hereford-46; Dulaney-28, Loch Raven-27, Towson-26) Hereford has also won the second most State Championships in the Baltimore Metro area. (Oakland Mills-56; Centennial-39; Glenelg-36).
, run in the end of September, which is one of the largest East Coast
cross country running
events, attracting over 100 schools from surrounding states. The course is noted for its hills, twists, turns and a steep ravine known as "The Dip", all making for what has been called "The Toughest Three Miles in Cross-Country" by John Dye of DyeStat
.
The 2009 Boys Hereford Cross Country team was involved in a well publicized dispute over the Baltimore County Cross Country Championships. After winning the title by several points over rivals Towson and Dulaney, another team's coaches notified officials that one Hereford runner had violated a national high school running rule by wearing black compression shorts with white stitching on each side. The Hereford team member, who had finished fourth overall, was disqualified, costing the team the championship. There was much debate over the fairness of this ruling, since minor violations to the national rules occur frequently, many of which were at the very same race. The disqualified runner, a Hereford senior, was featured in an interview article by the New York Times.
In 2010, Hereford High School hosted and swept the championship meet with first-place finishes for both boys and girls. Freshman Erin Causey led the girls with a surprise top finish, followed by a matching performance by senior Mason Rivera. The girls seized their first state championship in five years, while the boys brought back championship cross country to Hereford that had been absent for thirty-two years. Varsity senior Sam Cornwell continued a family legacy, since his father, John, and uncles led Hereford to various cross country titles in the 1970's.
, a wheelchair athlete, had assisted team-mate Smith by pacing her. The consequential disqualification of McFadden and Smith by the Jury of Appeals of the State Games Committee cost defending champion Atholton High School
the title.
External links=
Baltimore County, Maryland
Baltimore County is a county located in the northern part of the US state of Maryland. In 2010, its population was 805,029. It is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Towson. The name of the county was derived from the barony of the Proprietor of the Maryland...
town of Parkton
Parkton, Maryland
Parkton is a rural area in the northern part of Baltimore County, Maryland, USA. It borders southern York County, PA, and this border forms part of The Mason-Dixon Line...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, as part of the Baltimore County Public Schools
Baltimore County Public Schools
Baltimore County Public Schools is the school district in charge of all public schools in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The nation's 25th largest school system as of 2005, it is managed by the Board of Education, headquartered in Towson. The Superintendent is Dr. Joe A...
. The school was established in 1954.
The school's district is the Hereford Zone
Hereford Zone, Maryland
The Hereford Zone is an area in Northern Baltimore County, Maryland, United States, constituting 20% of all of the land in Baltimore County. It includes Hereford, Parkton, Monkton, Freeland, Sparks, White Hall, Jacksonville, Upperco, and Glyndon....
. The Hereford Zone covers 233 square miles (603.5 km²) and makes up over a third of Baltimore County by area. Like those of most public schools in the region, Hereford students are transported by a busing
School bus
A school bus is a type of bus designed and manufactured for student transport: carrying children and teenagers to and from school and school events...
system.
Hereford is notable for its agriscience
Agricultural science
Agricultural science is a broad multidisciplinary field that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. -Agriculture and agricultural science:The two terms are often confused...
program. It was the only one of its kind among the county's public high schools. Hereford's base feeder school, Hereford Middle School, also has a smaller agricultural program.
School history
Agricultural High School opened in SparksSparks, Maryland
Sparks is an unincorporated community that is located in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It is situated approximately 20 miles north of Baltimore, Maryland and is considered to be a suburb of the City of Baltimore...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
in 1909 and had its first graduating class in 1912. The name was changed to Sparks High School around 1920, and it was converted into an elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
in 1953. Hereford High School was established in Hereford, Maryland to replace Sparks High School in 1954. It originally was home to a large population of farmers' children, due to the fact that at one time, Hereford's economy was almost entirely agriculture based. Since then, the disappearance of small farms and the growth of suburban housing development has caused the high school's agrarian roots to be carried on mostly by local tradition and its agricultural courses.
Additional Programs
- Agriscience
- Technology
- Family Studies
- Physical Education
- Business Education
- School to Career (AVID)
Music
The music programs of Hereford include the following:- Concert (freshman) and Symphonic (upperclassman) Orchestra
- Concert (freshman) and Symphonic (upperclassman) Band (Winds)
- Chorus (men's, women's) (freshmen, upperclassman)
- Chamber Choir (for upperclassmen only)
- Bulltones (by audition, male choir)
- Ladies Faire (by audition, female choir)
- Jazz Ensemble
- Guitar
- AP Music Theory
- various music technology courses
- Pep Band (for Basketball and Football games)
- Pit Orchestras (for the Winter musical)
Along with its counterpart female choral group, Ladies Fare, the Bulltones perform at a variety of events, visiting schools in the vicinity as well as competing in notable locations such as Boston, Montreal, and Nashville.
In 2007, the Hereford High School Symphonic Band performed Chorus Angelorum by composer Samuel R. Hazo
Samuel Hazo
Samuel Robert Hazo is an American composer of primarily music for concert band.-Career:Samuel R. Hazo resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with his wife and children. In 2003, Mr. Hazo became the first composer in history to be awarded the winner of both composition contests sponsored by the...
. The piece was commissioned for the Symphonic Winds section two years prior, after the death of Joey and Audrey Baseman (whose siblings and grandchildren were in the band).
Art
The National Art Honor Society chapter provides services such as face-painting for the homecoming dance, sponsorship of Youth Art Month activities, assistance at after-school art programs in the area, a House of Ruth art supply fund, and more. It also hosts the high school's annual art auction and show, which exhibits student work.Theatre
Several levels of Theatre classes are available to schedule. The department usually produces two to three shows each school year. Currently, Hereford partakes in the Cappies program in the Baltimore Area. In the past, they have won awards for Best Musical (PippinPippin (musical)
Pippin is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Roger O. Hirson. Bob Fosse, who directed the original Broadway production, also contributed to the libretto...
), Best Female Vocalist (Katherine Crowe in Pirates of Penzance and Julienne Gede in The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was initially published in serial format starting in the autumn of 1910, and was first published in its entirety in 1911. It is now one of Burnett's most popular novels, and is considered to be a classic of English children's...
), Best Cameo Actor (Gregory Kufera in Seussical
Seussical
is a musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty based on the books of Dr. Seuss that debuted on Broadway in 2000. The play's story is a rather complex amalgamation of many of Seuss's most famous books. After a Broadway run, the production spawned two US national tours and a UK tour...
), Best Costumes (Abby Urbanas, Steph Parks, Hannah Morgan in The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was initially published in serial format starting in the autumn of 1910, and was first published in its entirety in 1911. It is now one of Burnett's most popular novels, and is considered to be a classic of English children's...
and Kaitlin Philipp, Laura Pederson in Pippin
Pippin (musical)
Pippin is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Roger O. Hirson. Bob Fosse, who directed the original Broadway production, also contributed to the libretto...
) and, under the direction in past years of Lee Waters, members of the theatre program as well as the program as a whole won a number of awards at the All State Theatre Festival, held annually at Magruder High School in Montgomery County. Because of this continually evolving program, the actors have been able to perform songs on the Hippodrome Stage. They have also won awards at the yearly trip to the Pennsylvanian Renaissance Festival. Other theatre related extracurricular activities include Improv Troupe and Drama Club.
Athletics
The mascot of Hereford is the bullBull
Bull usually refers to an uncastrated adult male bovine.Bull may also refer to:-Entertainment:* Bull , an original show on the TNT Network* "Bull" , an episode of television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation...
, due to the region's rich agrarian
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
history.
The school has won 50 state athletic championships including 20 since the year 2000. : Hereford High School has won more State Championships then any other school in Baltimore county. (Hereford-46; Dulaney-28, Loch Raven-27, Towson-26) Hereford has also won the second most State Championships in the Baltimore Metro area. (Oakland Mills-56; Centennial-39; Glenelg-36).
- Men's Cross CountryCross country runningCross 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...
: 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 2010 - Women's Cross Country: 1978, 1979, 1980, 2004, 2005
- Field HockeyField hockeyField Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
: 1979, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2009 - FootballAmerican footballAmerican 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...
: 1997, 2001, 2002 - Men's Indoor Track: 1980
- Men's LacrosseLacrosseLacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
: 1977, 1982, 1988, 1996, 2000, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 - Women's Lacrosse: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2009
- Men's Soccer: 1987, 1988, 1989
- Women's Soccer: 2000
- VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball 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...
: 1975, 1979 - WrestlingWrestlingWrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
: 1970 - Men's Track & Field: 1971, 1972
Cross country
Hereford High is the host of the annual Bull Run Invitational Cross Country MeetBull Run Invitational Cross Country Meet
Bull Run Invitational is a Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association sanctioned high school cross country invitational. The race is hosted by Hereford High School on their rural campus in northern Baltimore County. The invitational has become one of the east coast's most popular cross...
, run in the end of September, which is one of the largest East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
cross country running
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...
events, attracting over 100 schools from surrounding states. The course is noted for its hills, twists, turns and a steep ravine known as "The Dip", all making for what has been called "The Toughest Three Miles in Cross-Country" by John Dye of DyeStat
DyeStat
DyeStat is a website that is self-described as "The Internet Home of High School Track & Field". It was founded in 1998 by John Dye, and now features his wife as the features editor, senior editor Steve Underwood, assistant editor Dave Devine, two California co-editors and one business/marketing...
.
The 2009 Boys Hereford Cross Country team was involved in a well publicized dispute over the Baltimore County Cross Country Championships. After winning the title by several points over rivals Towson and Dulaney, another team's coaches notified officials that one Hereford runner had violated a national high school running rule by wearing black compression shorts with white stitching on each side. The Hereford team member, who had finished fourth overall, was disqualified, costing the team the championship. There was much debate over the fairness of this ruling, since minor violations to the national rules occur frequently, many of which were at the very same race. The disqualified runner, a Hereford senior, was featured in an interview article by the New York Times.
In 2010, Hereford High School hosted and swept the championship meet with first-place finishes for both boys and girls. Freshman Erin Causey led the girls with a surprise top finish, followed by a matching performance by senior Mason Rivera. The girls seized their first state championship in five years, while the boys brought back championship cross country to Hereford that had been absent for thirty-two years. Varsity senior Sam Cornwell continued a family legacy, since his father, John, and uncles led Hereford to various cross country titles in the 1970's.
Track and field
In May 2006, Hereford High School initiated a controversial appeal of a ruling in the Class 2A state championship in girls' track. The initial ruling had upheld the victory of Alison Smith in the 1600-meter race, denying a claim that Paralympic medalist Tatyana McFaddenTatyana McFadden
Tatyana McFadden is a Paralympian athlete from America competing mainly in category T54 sprint events.-Early life:Tatyana was born with spina bifida in St. Petersburg, Russia and was abandoned in an orphanage where she spent the first six years of her life. She was not expected to live...
, a wheelchair athlete, had assisted team-mate Smith by pacing her. The consequential disqualification of McFadden and Smith by the Jury of Appeals of the State Games Committee cost defending champion Atholton High School
Atholton High School
Atholton High School is a high school in Columbia, Maryland and is a part of the Howard County public school system. The school opened in 1966, is scheduled for a major systemic renovation in FY12 and hosts a JROTC program. The mascot is the Raider and colors are green and white. It features...
the title.
Football
The Hereford High School varsity football team is well known throughout the state of Maryland. The Bulls have won three state titles in recent years (1997, 2001, 2002)Tennis
In 2009 Hereford Tennis defeated one of Maryland's top tennis teams, Pikesville High, in the county tournament. Hereford ended Pikesville's string of victories that had lasted for over a decade. This was the Hereford tennis' first county championship.Statistics
- Total students: 1,376
- Classroom teachers: 79
- Student/teacher ratio: 17 students per teacher
- White (non-Hispanic) 95%, African American 3%, Asian/Pacific Islander 1%, Hispanic 1%, American Indian/Alaskan Native 0%
Notable alumni
- Matthew McKaig, a 1992 graduate of Hereford High School, and United States ArmyUnited States ArmyThe United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
soldier who guarded the Tomb of the UnknownsTomb of the UnknownsThe Tomb of the Unknowns is a monument dedicated to American service members who have died without their remains being identified. It is located in Arlington National Cemetery in the United States...
at Arlington National CemeteryArlington National CemeteryArlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
for 1,121 shifts, exceeding a decade-old record of 1,119. - The school was in the news when two alumni, Lance Cpl. Norman W. Anderson III and Marine Cpl. Joshua D. Snyder, were killed in IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
in just over a month in 2005.
External links=