Kokomo High School
Encyclopedia
| Principal | Mr. Remaly |
| Founded | 1872 |
| School type | Public school (U.S.) |
| Religious affiliation | None |
| Location | Kokomo Kokomo, Indiana Kokomo is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States, Indiana's 13th largest city. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Howard and Tipton counties.... , Indiana Indiana Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
| Enrollment | 2,137 students |
| Campus surroundings | Suburbs |
| Mascot | Wildkat |
| School colors | Red Red Red is any of a number of similar colors evoked by light consisting predominantly of the longest wavelengths of light discernible by the human eye, in the wavelength range of roughly 630–740 nm. Longer wavelengths than this are called infrared , and cannot be seen by the naked eye... , Blue Blue Blue is a colour, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nm. It is considered one of the additive primary colours. On the HSV Colour Wheel, the complement of blue is yellow; that is, a colour corresponding to an equal... |
Kokomo High School (merged with Haworth High School in 1984) is a four-year comprehensive secondary school in Kokomo
Kokomo, Indiana
Kokomo is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States, Indiana's 13th largest city. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Howard and Tipton counties....
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. The school is the only high school in the Kokomo-Center Township School Corporation. The school is located at 2501 S. Berkley Road, Kokomo, IN.
History
The earliest Kokomo High School found in records was in existence from about 1872 to 1916. The downtown campus (originally the only) Kokomo High School, first known as Howard County's Central School Building, was dedicated on October 19, 1917. http://kokomo.newspaperarchive.com/PdfViewer.aspx?pubdateid=11366376&src=browse Located at 303 East Superior Street, this building now houses Central Middle School.http://blackboard.kokomoschools.com/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_395_The current campus of Kokomo High School was built in 1968 Previously, the downtown campus was known as Kokomo High School and the south campus was named Haworth High School. However, in 1983 the Kokomo-Center Township Board of Trustees decided that two high schools were no longer necessary. Consequently, in 1984 Haworth High School was closed and the former Haworth students began attending Kokomo High School. After the reorganization, Kokomo High School was split into two campuses. The downtown campus had 8th and 9th grade students, and the south campus (the former Haworth High School) had 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. After the south campus was expanded, the south campus became the primary location and served 9th to 12th grade students. The downtown campus later became Central Middle School in 1998.
Kokomo High School still has visible reminders of the building's history, including a framed portrait of C.V. Haworth and a case featuring Haworth's mascot, the Haworth Huskies. The C.V. Haworth award is also given to Seniors who show "exceptional ability in writing and speaking". The C.V. Haworth Memorial Scholarship Fund is available to capable seniors from Kokomo High School who are entering a bachelor's degree program at Indiana University at either the Kokomo or Bloomington campuses. http://www.cfhoward.org/images/annualreport99
School song
(sung to the tune of On, Wisconsin)Onward Kokomo
Onward Kokomo
Dear old red and blue
We your sons and daughters love you
our loyalty is true
Onward Kokomo
Onward Kokomo
We'll Fight for your fame!
Fight, fellows, fight, fight, fight!
Win this Game!
(yell)
K-K-K-O-K
O-O-O-M-O
K-O-K
O-M-O
Go Kokomo Go!
Basketball History
Kokomo High School has one of the most prestigious programs throughout the entire history of Indiana High School Basketball. The Wildkats (spelled uniquely with a "k") have won one boys state championship. This came in 1961 in a thrilling 68-66 overtime win against Indianapolis Manual, capping a 28-1 season. The girl's team has featured even more success with three state championships in 1992, 1993, and 2003. They came close to a 3-peat in 1994, falling to Lake Central 44-42 in the championship game after holding a 10 point fourth quarter lead.To go with the championships, the Wildkats also appeared in the "Final 4" in 1925, 1941, 1944, 1959, 1962, 1989, and 1997. In 1925, 1944, 1959,1989, and 2011 they finished as state runner-up. The 1997 appearance was celebrated as part of the last true Indiana High School Basketball State Tournament before the watered down version of class basketball, which divides schools into four separate classes by enrollment, was implemented for the 1997-98 season. Kokomo's girl's team also has final 4 appearances in 1996, 1999, 2001, 2005, and 2006 to go with their 3 championships. The girl's team is regarded as one of the top programs in the state of Indiana year-in and year-out. The 1993 squad featured four Indiana All-Stars in its starting line-up, and was ranked #1 in the Nation by USA Today for two weeks. The 2003 Girl's team also featured the first undefeated season by a Kokomo basketball team, boys or girls, in school history. They accomplished feat in the same season that KHS celebrated the 100th anniversary of the first team being fielded in 1903.
Kokomo has had two players named "Mr. Basketball" in the state of Indiana. The award is given to the top 12th grade player in the state of Indiana for that specific season. Kokomo's Tom Schwartz won the award in 1944, and Jimmy Rayl won the award in 1959.
KHS holds the state record with 69 sectional championships in the 97 years of the IHSAA state tournament, and they have only once had a drought of at least 4 year between titles. The Wildkats have also won 33 regional championships, 7 Semi-State championships, and 14 North Central Confernence titles. The North Central Conference is generally regarded as the toughest high school basketball conference in the state, if not the whole country. It has been dubbed "The Conference of Champions" as conference members have won 30 Indiana High school Boys basketball state championships, including Muncie Central (8) and Marion (7), who are ranked 1-2 in total championships by school in state history. The conference also has numerous runner-up and final four appearances as well. Nine state championship games have featured two NCC teams at the same time, by far the most of any conference in the state. This was capped in 1952 when the NCC, a 10 school conference at the time, went a perfect 50-0 against teams outside the conference in the state tournament. All 10 teams won sectionals that year, and each was defeated by another member school until the State Championship game, which featured Muncie Central defeating fellow NCC foe Indianapolis Tech 68-49. http://www.nccsports.org/
Kokomo's girls basketball team has more than its own share of success, and indeed can be considered more successful than the boys' program. In the 31 year history of the girl's IHSAA tournament, Kokomo has won 19 (tied 3rd all-time) sectionals, 12 (1st all-time) regionals, and 5 (second all-time) semi-states, and has won 3 state titles (Second all-time, but it should be noted that Ft. Wayne Luers' 5 championships have all come since the change to class sports). The Lady Wildkats have also won 12 North Central Conference championships (1st all-time), all since 1991. Under coach Charlie Hall (1997-8 season through 2003-04 season, plus the 2005-06 season) the Wildkats compiled an astounding 54-1 record against North Central Conference opponents on their way to winning the Conference championship all 8 seasons.
The program has been the subject of at least five books. One, "Yea Wildcats," was a fictional work of art written in the 1960s. The last book, "Kats with a K," was a historical book highlighting the first 100-years of the Kokomo Wildkat basketball program, and was written by KHS graduate Dean Hockney, a local sports editor.
Campus
Kokomo High School occupies the original two-story building and the two expansions, as well as the Kokomo Area Career Center (KACC). Kokomo High School also has many athletic facilities. The campus features two indoor gymnasiums, a swimming and diving pool, four soccer fields, a footballAmerican 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...
/track stadiums, ten 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...
courts, two 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...
diamonds and one 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...
diamond. The high school competes in the North Central Conference
North Central Conference of Indiana
The North Central Conference, or NCC, is a high school athletic conference which is located in north central and east central Indiana. This conference serves many high schools located in Cass County; Delaware County; Grant County; Henry County; Howard County; Huntington County; Madison...
for athletics. Construction began on the school after the end of the 2006-2007 term. Expansion will be made on the school and the Career Center.
Notable alumni
- Rupert BonehamRupert BonehamRupert Boneham is an American mentor for troubled teens who became known to reality television audiences in 2003 as a contestant on Survivor: Pearl Islands where he placed 8th. He later appeared on the All Stars and Heroes vs. Villains seasons of Survivor, placing 4th and 6th respectively...
, competitor on the reality TV show Survivor, graduated from Haworth High School (not Kokomo High School alumnus).
- Jimmy RaylJimmy RaylJimmy Rayl is a former professional basketball player in the ABA.-1956-1959:Jimmy, the "Splendid Splinter", went to Kokomo High School, located in Kokomo, Indiana. He was named the 1959's Indiana "Mr...
, Indiana high school Mr. Basketball, Trester Award Winner, Indiana University record-holder and collegiate All-American, Indiana Pacer.
- Tom UnderwoodTom UnderwoodThomas Gerald Underwood was a pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies , St...
, former Major League Baseball player for multiple baseball teams including the Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals.
- Pat UnderwoodPat UnderwoodPatrick John Underwood was a Major League Baseball Pitcher from to .Underwood was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 1st round of the 1976 Major League Baseball Draft, as the second pick overall....
, high school All-American baseball player, taken #2 in Major League Baseball draft in 1976 by the Detroit Tigers.
- Joe ThatcherJoe ThatcherJoseph Andrew Thatcher is Major League Baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres. Nicknamed "The Prime Minister, and The Throw'in Kokomoan" he is 6'2" tall and weighs . In college, he pitched for Indiana State University...
, relief pitcher for the San Diego Padres.
- Steve KroftSteve KroftSteve Kroft is an American journalist and a longtime correspondent for 60 Minutes. His investigative reporting has garnered him much acclaim, including three Peabody Awards and nine Emmy awards, one of which was an Emmy for Lifetime Achievement.-Early life:Born on August 22, 1945 in Kokomo,...
, correspondent for 60 Minutes60 Minutes60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
attended Kokomo High School.
- Norman BridwellNorman BridwellNorman Bridwell is an American author and cartoonist, best-known for the Clifford the Big Red Dog series of children's books. Bridwell attended John Herron School of Art in Indianapolis, Indiana and Cooper Union in New York City. He currently resides on Martha's Vineyard, MA, where he continues to...
, author of Clifford the Big Red DogClifford the Big Red DogClifford the Big Red Dog is an American children's book series first published in 1963. Written by Norman Bridwell, the series helped establish Scholastic Books as a premier publishing company....
- Jim "Goose" Liggin, Basketball
- Dean Hockney, Author of "Kats with a K," presented with Distinguished Hoosier Award by Indiana governor
- Quatico Brown, Basketball