Mountain Brook High School
Encyclopedia
Mountain Brook High School (MBHS) is a three-year public high school within the city of Mountain Brook, Alabama
, a residential area of Birmingham
, with approximately 20,600 residents. It is the lone high school in the Mountain Brook School System
and is situated on 25 acres (101,171.5 m²) of land.
Mountain Brook High School serves grades 10
-12
and enrolled 1004 students during the 2007-2008 school year. The MBHS administration comprises principal Vic Wilson along with assistant principals Missy Brooks and Patrick Kellogg. Wilson joined the Mountain Brook High School staff first in 2002 after vacating his previous position as Homewood Middle School assistant principal. In 2006, he was named Homewood High School principal, and returned to Mountain Brook in July 2008 as Principal, succeeding Dicky Barlow who was promoted to Assistant Superintendent. Before joining the MBHS team, assistant principal Missy Brooks served as assistant principal of Homewood High School. Similarly, assistant principal Patrick Kellogg served as assistant principal of Pelham High School before arriving at MBHS.
Mountain Brook High School colors are green
and gold
and the athletic teams are called the Spartans.
The Spartan Creed
Historically, Spartans were known for embracing a standard of excellence defined by a unique blend of individualism and community. Spartans had a reputation for adhering to and acting upon ideals and virtues in which they believed. Spartans sought to make contributions not in empty words or in meaningless monuments, but in the actions of men.
Today, the community of Mountain Brook embodies the best virtues of this ancient civilization. Since the establishment of our high school, we Spartans have held faith in comparable values, achievements, and convictions.
We believe in striving for excellence in all areas of human endeavor.
We believe experience strengthens the soul, inspires ambition, and encourages success.
We believe in the lifelong pursuit of learning which extends far beyond classroom doors.
We believe honor, loyalty, and self-sacrifice create responsible citizens.
We believe in self-discipline, hard work, and resolute convictions.
We believe action defines humanity.
We believe that greatness is not achieved alone, thus we value teamwork and accept leadership.
Because we have faith in these beliefs, we are committed to a life of purpose. By adhering to these principles, we are sculpting our destiny. And while words, monuments and students may disappear, the ideals and virtues of Spartans will stand forever.
This is what a Mountain Brook Spartan is, and this is what we will always be.
Other groups on campus
The Mountain Brook High School tennis teams have been very successful. The boys tennis team has won 23 state championships, the most in the state. The girls tennis team also holds the record for most state championships in the state with 23 wins. Tennis is the varsity sport that has the most state championships of any other at Mountain Brook High School.
Spartan football has also achieved success, winning state championships in 1975 and 1976. Since their first season in 1966, they have had 11 ten-win seasons and 12 state quarterfinal appearances. The current coach is Chris Yeager; his predecessor, Joey Jones, is now the head coach for the South Alabama Jaguars. Although the boys' basketball team has not won a state championship, they reached the Final Four in 2001 and achieved a #3 ASWA ranking in 2010, their highest ever.
Mountain Brook, Alabama
Mountain Brook is a city in southeastern Jefferson County, Alabama, and a suburb of Birmingham. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 20,821. Mountain Brook is a particularly affluent city within the Birmingham metropolitan area and has appeared in several lists...
, a residential area of Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, with approximately 20,600 residents. It is the lone high school in the Mountain Brook School System
Mountain Brook School System
The Mountain Brook School System serves the city of Mountain Brook, an affluent area outside of Birmingham, Alabama. The school system supports a city with approximately 20,600 residents....
and is situated on 25 acres (101,171.5 m²) of land.
Mountain Brook High School serves grades 10
Tenth grade
In majority of the world,Tenth grade is the tenth year of school post-kindergarten. The variants of "10th grade" in various nations is described below.-Australia:...
-12
Twelfth grade
Twelfth grade or Senior year, or Grade Twelve, are the North American names for the final year of secondary school. In most countries students then graduate at age 17 or 18. In some countries, there is a thirteenth grade, while other countries do not have a 12th grade/year at all...
and enrolled 1004 students during the 2007-2008 school year. The MBHS administration comprises principal Vic Wilson along with assistant principals Missy Brooks and Patrick Kellogg. Wilson joined the Mountain Brook High School staff first in 2002 after vacating his previous position as Homewood Middle School assistant principal. In 2006, he was named Homewood High School principal, and returned to Mountain Brook in July 2008 as Principal, succeeding Dicky Barlow who was promoted to Assistant Superintendent. Before joining the MBHS team, assistant principal Missy Brooks served as assistant principal of Homewood High School. Similarly, assistant principal Patrick Kellogg served as assistant principal of Pelham High School before arriving at MBHS.
Mountain Brook High School colors are green
Green
Green is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520–570 nanometres. In the subtractive color system, it is not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue, or yellow and cyan; it is considered...
and gold
Gold (color)
Gold, also called golden, is one of a variety of orange-yellow color blends used to give the impression of the color of the element gold....
and the athletic teams are called the Spartans.
The Spartan Creed
The students and community of Mountain Brook High School are defined by a Spartan Creed. The creed was written in the winter of 2009 by a small group of distinguished faculty and student government officers. The creed was officially announced and adopted by the school in May of 2009, when it was unveiled to the student body. The 2009 SGA officers also donated a large, bronze plaque that now hangs at the front of the school. Below is a copy of the creed.The Spartan Creed
Historically, Spartans were known for embracing a standard of excellence defined by a unique blend of individualism and community. Spartans had a reputation for adhering to and acting upon ideals and virtues in which they believed. Spartans sought to make contributions not in empty words or in meaningless monuments, but in the actions of men.
Today, the community of Mountain Brook embodies the best virtues of this ancient civilization. Since the establishment of our high school, we Spartans have held faith in comparable values, achievements, and convictions.
We believe in striving for excellence in all areas of human endeavor.
We believe experience strengthens the soul, inspires ambition, and encourages success.
We believe in the lifelong pursuit of learning which extends far beyond classroom doors.
We believe honor, loyalty, and self-sacrifice create responsible citizens.
We believe in self-discipline, hard work, and resolute convictions.
We believe action defines humanity.
We believe that greatness is not achieved alone, thus we value teamwork and accept leadership.
Because we have faith in these beliefs, we are committed to a life of purpose. By adhering to these principles, we are sculpting our destiny. And while words, monuments and students may disappear, the ideals and virtues of Spartans will stand forever.
This is what a Mountain Brook Spartan is, and this is what we will always be.
Active school groups and events
- American Field ServiceAFS Intercultural ProgramsAFS Intercultural Programs was established in 1915 by A. Piatt Andrew, a onetime economics professor at Harvard University and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Treasury...
- An organization which promotes world peace through understanding other cultures. The Mountain Brook High School AFS chapter sponsors international students throughout the year, as well as sponsoring MBHS students to other countries.
- Debate Team - The Mountain Brook High School Debate Team meets during two periods of the school day and competes on the national circuit in Policy Debate, Lincoln-Douglas Debate, and Public Forum Debate.
- Brookstock - A concert fundraiser held in the fall semester of the school year, Brookstock is traditionally held in the campus parking lot. Through the sale of tickets, concessions, and t-shirts, the fund raiser raises money for service organizations on campus. The performers are all high school bands, not necessarily from MBHS.
- Future Business Leaders of America - An international career and technical student organization which exists to primarily help students transition to the business world.
- Young Democrats
- Young Republicans
- Young Moderates
- Croquet Club
- Key ClubKey ClubKey Club International is the oldest and largest service program for high school students. It is a student-led organization whose goal is to teach leadership through serving others. Key Club International is a part of the Kiwanis International family of service-leadership programs...
- One of the oldest and largest service program for high school students, the Key Club is a student-led organization that teaches leadership through serving others.
- Interact Club - Similar to Key Club, Interact is a national service based organization. At MBHS, Interact each year puts on Relay for LifeRelay For LifeRelay For Life is the main volunteer-driven cancer fundraising event of the American Cancer Society. Originating in the United States, the Relay For Life event has spread to 21 countries. Relay events are held in local communities, campus universities, military bases, and in cyberspace...
, one of the largest Relay for Life events in the state. Teams composed of high school students compete with other teams from around the community to see who can raise the most money. The event lasts through the night, including local bands, sponsored events, and food from local establishments.
- Student Government Association - A student organization dedicated to social and organizational activities of the student body
Other groups on campus
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Mu Alpha Theta Mu Alpha Theta is a United States mathematics honor society for high schools and two-year colleges. It has over 89,000 student members in more than 1,800 schools worldwide. Its main goals are to inspire keen interest in mathematics, develop strong scholarship in the subject, and promote the... 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... Spanish National Honor Society Spanish National Honor Society is an academic honor society focused on Spanish language excellence in secondary education and promotes a continuity of interest in Spanish studies. The group, which was established in 1953 in the United States is sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of... |
Pi Delta Phi Pi Delta Phi is the French National Honor Society for undergraduate and graduate students at accredited public and private colleges and universities in the United States. The society was admitted to membership in the Association of College Honor Societies in 1967.Pi Delta Phi was founded as a... |
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Athletics
The Mountain Brook Spartans compete in Class 6A, Alabama's largest classification. The sports teams have enjoyed a great deal of success, and the school holds more state championships (122) than any other in the state. In fact, the girls' cross country team has won eight state championships in a row, a streak dating back to 2003, and the boys have won the last three state championships. The tennis teams, outdoor and indoor track teams, golf teams, and swim and dive teams have also contributed to the total, among many othersThe Mountain Brook High School tennis teams have been very successful. The boys tennis team has won 23 state championships, the most in the state. The girls tennis team also holds the record for most state championships in the state with 23 wins. Tennis is the varsity sport that has the most state championships of any other at Mountain Brook High School.
Spartan football has also achieved success, winning state championships in 1975 and 1976. Since their first season in 1966, they have had 11 ten-win seasons and 12 state quarterfinal appearances. The current coach is Chris Yeager; his predecessor, Joey Jones, is now the head coach for the South Alabama Jaguars. Although the boys' basketball team has not won a state championship, they reached the Final Four in 2001 and achieved a #3 ASWA ranking in 2010, their highest ever.
Accomplishments
- United States Department of EducationUnited States Department of EducationThe United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...
Blue Ribbon SchoolBlue Ribbon Schools ProgramThe Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States government program created in 1981 to honor schools which have achieved high levels of performance or significant improvements with emphasis on schools serving disadvantaged students. The program centers around a self-assessment conducted by the...
; 1983-84, 1992-93. - United States Department of EducationUnited States Department of EducationThe United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...
Secondary Schools Recognition Program. - Selected by RedbookRedbookRedbook is an American women's magazine published by the Hearst Corporation. It is one of the "Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines.-History:...
magazine as one of 155 schools honored for "overall excellence" - Recognized by NewsweekNewsweekNewsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
magazine as one of the nation's top 100 high schools. - Honored by The College BoardCollege BoardThe College Board is a membership association in the United States that was formed in 1900 as the College Entrance Examination Board . It is composed of more than 5,900 schools, colleges, universities and other educational organizations. It sells standardized tests used by academically oriented...
for academic excellence and outstanding support and participation in Advanced Placement ProgramAdvanced Placement ProgramThe Advanced Placement program is a curriculum in the United States and Canada sponsored by the College Board which offers standardized courses to high school students that are generally recognized to be equivalent to undergraduate courses in college...
. - Mountain Brook has graduated three Rhodes ScholarsRhodes ScholarshipThe Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as...
. - Mountain Brook has won more Alabama state athletic championships (119) than any other public school in the state.
- In October 2006, Mountain Brook High School's drama department, under the direction of Pat Yates, combined with Fairfield High Preparatory School to present Christopher Sergel's dramatization of Harper LeeHarper LeeNelle Harper Lee is an American author known for her 1960 Pulitzer-Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird, which deals with the issues of racism that were observed by the author as a child in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama...
's To Kill a MockingbirdTo Kill a MockingbirdTo Kill a Mockingbird is a novel by Harper Lee published in 1960. It was instantly successful, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and has become a classic of modern American literature...
. The joint production received local and eventually national attention, and was featured on NBC's Today Show and NBC Nightly NewsNBC Nightly NewsNBC Nightly News is the flagship daily evening television news program for NBC News and broadcasts. NBC Nightly News has aired from Studio 3B, located on floors 3 of the NBC Studios is the headquarters of the GE Building forms the centerpiece of 30th Rockefeller Center it is located in the center...
. Even Harper LeeHarper LeeNelle Harper Lee is an American author known for her 1960 Pulitzer-Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird, which deals with the issues of racism that were observed by the author as a child in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama...
herself took notice, as the normally private author agreed to meet with the cast. - Mountain Brook was named the top athletic program in Alabama for the 2006-2007 season by Sports IllustratedSports IllustratedSports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
.
Notable graduates
- Courteney CoxCourteney CoxCourteney Bass Cox is an American actress, she is best known for her roles as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom Friends, Gale Weathers in the horror series Scream and as Jules Cobb in the ABC sitcom Cougar Town, for which she earned her first Golden Globe nomination....
, actress (FriendsFriendsFriends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
, ScreamScream (film series)Scream is a series of American horror slasher films created by Kevin Williamson and Wes Craven. The films star Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette. The series has grossed over $600 million in worldwide box-office receipts and consists, to date, of four motion pictures...
, Cougar TownCougar TownCougar Town is an American television sitcom that premiered on ABC on September 23, 2009. The series focuses on a recently divorced woman in her forties facing the often humorous challenges, pitfalls and rewards of life's next chapter, along with her son, ex-husband, and friends who together make...
, DirtDirt (TV series)Dirt is an American television serial broadcast on the FX network. It premiered on January 2, 2007 and starred Courteney Cox as Lucy Spiller, the editor-in-chief of the first-of-its-kind "glossy tabloid" magazine DirtNow, which was previously two separate publications: drrt and Now Dirt (styled...
) - Natalee HollowayNatalee HollowayNatalee Ann Holloway disappeared on May 30, 2005, during a high school graduation trip to Aruba, a Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. An American student from Mountain Brook, Alabama, Holloway graduated from Mountain Brook High School on May 24, 2005, shortly before the trip...
, an 18-year-old who mysteriously disappeared while in Aruba with friends in 2005. She has not been seen or heard from since. - Alan Hunter, MTV Veejay
- David JaffeDavid JaffeDavid Jaffe is a video game designer originally from Birmingham, Alabama and currently residing in San Diego, California. He is divorced and has two children. Jaffe graduated from Alabama's Mountain Brook High School, located in Mountain Brook, AL, a suburb of Birmingham. Jaffe then attended the...
, video game designer (God of War, Twisted MetalTwisted MetalTwisted Metal is a series of vehicular combat video games published by Sony Computer Entertainment, and developed by various companies during its tenure. The series began on the PlayStation in 1995 and currently features seven games, with an eighth installment currently in production...
) - Pat Du Pré, semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 1979 and a quarter finalist in the U.S. Open. 1979-1981 he was ranked in the top 20 in the world, reaching as high as 12th.
- Jared WeinsteinJared WeinsteinJared Weinstein is an American student, and former government official. He served as the special assistant and personal aide to U.S. President George W. Bush from 2006 - 2009. Prior to this post, he served as an aide to White House Chiefs of Staff Andy Card and Josh Bolten. After President Bush...
, Special Assistant and Personal Aide to U.S. President George W. Bush from 2006 - 2009. - Graeme McFarlandGraeme McFarlandGraeme "The Ox" McFarland , is a collegiate American football quarterback most recently for the Indiana University Hoosiers of the Big Ten Conference. He played football collegiately at Indiana University from 2003 to 2007....
, football player (Indiana UniversityIndiana UniversityIndiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
) - John Halsey Wood Jr., Fulbright Scholar.
- Emeel Salem, All-American baseball player at the University of AlabamaUniversity of AlabamaThe University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, currently playing for the Tampa Bay RaysTampa Bay RaysThe Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays are a member of the Eastern Division of MLB's American League. Since their inception in , the club has played at Tropicana Field...
(6th round draft pick 2007) - William Vlachos, center for the University of AlabamaUniversity of AlabamaThe University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
National Championship Team in 2009 - Tribble Reese, star of Country Music TelevisionCountry Music TelevisionCountry Music Television, or CMT, is an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming includes music videos, taped concerts, movies, biographies of country music stars, game shows, and reality programs...
’s Sweet Home Alabama and backup quarterback for Clemson UniversityClemson UniversityClemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States.... - Major Ogilive, running back at the University of Alabama, member of 3 Conference Championship teams, 2 National Championship teams.