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Coordinates: 30°50′25″N 83°19′16″W / 30.840244°N 83.321239°W / 30.840244; -83.321239
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*[[Aaron Taylor (baseball)|Aaron Taylor]], Former professional baseball player ([[Seattle Mariners]])
*[[Aaron Taylor (baseball)|Aaron Taylor]], Former professional baseball player ([[Seattle Mariners]])
*[[Jay Ratliff]], NFL defensive lineman for the [[Dallas Cowboys]].<ref name=nflcom>{{cite web |url=http://www.nfl.com/players/jayratliff/profile?id=RAT586227 |title= NFL official website|accessdate=2008-09-07}}</ref>
*[[Jay Ratliff]], NFL defensive lineman for the [[Dallas Cowboys]].<ref name=nflcom>{{cite web |url=http://www.nfl.com/players/jayratliff/profile?id=RAT586227 |title= NFL official website|accessdate=2008-09-07}}</ref>
*[[Telvin Smith]], NFL linebacker for the [[Jacksonville Jaguars]]
*Jonathan Wiezorek, mixed martial arts fighter.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://espn.go.com/mma/fighter/_/id/2501780/jonathan-wiezorek |title=ESPN Mixed Martial Arts |accessdate=2014-01-20 |work= |publisher=ESPN |date= }}</ref>
*Jonathan Wiezorek, mixed martial arts fighter.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://espn.go.com/mma/fighter/_/id/2501780/jonathan-wiezorek |title=ESPN Mixed Martial Arts |accessdate=2014-01-20 |work= |publisher=ESPN |date= }}</ref>
*[[Greg Reid]], Football player for [[Florida State University]]
*[[Greg Reid]], Football player for [[Florida State University]]

Revision as of 00:34, 4 September 2014

Lowndes High School
Address
Map
1112 North St. Augustine Rd.

Valdosta
,
Lowndes
,
Georgia
31601

United States
Coordinates30°50′25″N 83°19′16″W / 30.840244°N 83.321239°W / 30.840244; -83.321239[1]
Information
Motto"Excellence Every Day"
Established1966
School districtLowndes County School District
PrincipalJay Floyd
Teaching staff153 FTE [2]
Grades9-12
Enrollment2,880[4]
Student to teacher ratio18:1[3]
Color(s)(Official) Crimson, White    (Alternate) Maroon, Gray   
Fight songLHS Fight song (an adaptation of Old Mountain Dew)
SportsFootball, Basketball, Soccer, Track & Field,
MascotViking
NicknamePlowboys
Team nameVikings
PublicationThe Hugin
NewspaperThe Saga
YearbookThe Munin
Telephone(229) 245-2260
Websitehttp://lhs.lowndes.k12.ga.us/

Lowndes High School is a public high school in Valdosta, Georgia, USA. The school is part of the Lowndes school system, which serves Lowndes County except for the city of Valdosta.[3]

History

In 1957, voters in Lowndes County approved an $800,000 bond issue and the board got assistance from the State of Georgia for the construction of a new high school.

Lowndes County High School (LCHS) opened in 1959 in the southern portion of the county below Valdosta and served a totally white enrollment of 671 students. In 1961 students from the black high schools, Lowndes County Training School and Webb-Miller consolidated into Westside High School.

In 1966 LCHS and Hahira High School consolidated to form the new Lowndes High School (LHS) and began with an enrollment of 805. The new school was relocated to its present facility on Norman Drive near I-75 in the western side of Lowndes County. The former facility became Lowndes Middle School.

In 1969, when the county integrated their schools, the former black school, Westside High School was also combined into Lowndes. LHS became a comprehensive high school in 1972 and was classified as a Georgia School of Excellence in 1980.[5]

Lowndes High School is now one of the largest high schools in the state of Georgia with a student enrollment of over 3000 students and 170 faculty members.[6]

Expansion

The facility built in 1966 has undergone multiple expansions to accommodate continued growth in student population.[7]

In 2001, 17 classrooms were added to the freshman building. In January 2002, a $5 million cafetorium was constructed which significantly expanded seating capacity over the former space. The new structure also featured updated cooking and disposal technology and a full multi-purpose stage.[8]

In 2007, a new $8 million 49,549-square-foot (4,603.3 m2) gymnasium was completed. The former gym, built in 1966, seated approximately 1,600, while the new facility seats approximately 3,056. The building also contains five classrooms, locker rooms, and coaches offices.[9] The project was funded through SPLOST II and Manley Spangler Smith Architects was the firm that designed the gym.

Along with the gym, in 2007 a new main road entrance to the school was opened on Norman Drive, along with a new front parking lot, and office entrance. The old entrance on St. Augustine Road was closed due to congestion but is still used for large events. JCI Construction of Moultrie built the gym and Rountree Construction of Valdosta built the new entrance on Norman and the new parking lot and portico.[10]

Death of Kendrick Johnson

Main article: Kendrick Johnson

In January 2013, three sport athlete Kendrick Johnson was encountered deceased at the school in a rolled up wrestling mat.[11][11][12][13] On October 31, 2013, the U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Georgia announced they will open a formal review in the death of Johnson.[14]

National Principal of the Year

On August 26, 2010 Lowndes High Principal Wes Taylor was named the 2011 MetLife/NASSP National High School Principal of the Year.[15] In April, Taylor was named the 2011 Principal of the Year by the Georgia Association of Secondary School Principals and in July was named one of six finalists for the national honor.[16] Taylor received a $5,000 grant to use for either professional development or school improvement projects. The event featured guests such as State Rep. Amy Carter, Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives David Ralston, and Brad Bryant, state superintendent of schools.[17]

Sports

Football

With the arrival of head coach Randy McPherson in 2002 the Lowndes High football program has undergone tremendous growth. The Lowndes High School Vikings, were ranked by ESPN at #2 in the United States on 18 August 2008.[18] The team has been the Georgia State 5A Champions in 1980, 1999, 2004, 2005, and 2007, and region champions ten times.[19] They were undefeated in 2004 for a perfect 15-0, and the 2008 regular season.[20]

In the summer of 2008 Valdosta, Georgia was featured on ESPN as a candidate for Titletown USA.[21] The month-long segment on ESPN started in the Spring of 2008 and continued through July. Fans nominated towns and cities across the country based on their championship pedigree. A panel reviewed the nominees and fan voting in May determined the 20th finalist. SportsCenter visited each city in July, and fan voting July 23–27 determined the winner.[22] On Monday, July 28, 2008 Valdosta was named Titletown, USA by ESPN. The history of athletic accomplishments at Lowndes was a factor in Valdosta achieving the title.

Martin Stadium

The home field of the Lowndes football team is Martin Stadium, named to honor former Lowndes County Schools Superintendent A.B. "Sonny" Martin. He served 20 years (1960–1980) as the Superintendent of the Lowndes County School System. Prior to that he had served as a teacher, coach and principal of Hahira High School for 10 years. The stadium, nicknamed "The Concrete Palace," was built in 1966 and has been expanded over the years to hold 12,365 fans.[19]

Basketball

The girls basketball team at Lowndes has won 4 National Championships (1977, 1978, 1979, 1980), 4 State Championships, and 18 Region Titles. The boys basketball team has also won three region championships.[6]

Baseball

Lowndes won the 1980 and 2000 Class AAAA baseball State Championships. The team finished second in the state in 1975 and 2001. The Vikings have won 13 region championships.[23]

Golf

The boys golf team won the 2011 Class AAAAA state championship at Summit Chase Country Club in Snellville, Georgia. The state title was the school's first in golf. Lowndes High finished second at the state tournament in 2008.[24][25]

Music

Georgia Bridgemen

The Lowndes High marching band, known as The Georgia Bridgemen, are a nationally recognized musical ensemble numbering over 475 members that performs at all Lowndes varsity football games.[26]

Over the past two decades, the Bridgemen have received national recognition from participation in parades across the country such as:

Lowndes High Jazz Ensemble

The jazz band at Lowndes High School performs throughout the school year at many local and state level functions.[38] The group has recorded four CD's since 2004. Each produced by New York-based professional musician and record producer and former Lowndes High band student J Chris Griffin in Nashville, Tennessee.[39] The last CD was released in 2010 and are sold locally to support the band.

The Jazz Band has performed for Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue on multiple occasions, as well as for Georgia Secretary of State Ms. Cathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Ms. Kathy Cox, Georgia Congressman Mr. Sanford Bishop, and US Secretary of Education Ms. Margaret Spellings. In 2006 these musicians were invited to perform in Pasadena, California for the “Tournament of Roses Executive Committee Luncheon” by Tournament President Mrs. Libby Evans-Wright and for the 2006 parade grand marshall Supreme Court Justice Ms. Sandra Day O’Connor.[28]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ^ "Free US Geocoder". Retrieved 2008-09-07.
  2. ^ "school-stats.com". Retrieved 2008-09-07.
  3. ^ a b "Yahoo Real Estate". Retrieved 2008-09-07.
  4. ^ "Lowndes County Schools". Lowndescounty.cyberschool.com. 2012-06-30. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  5. ^ [1][dead link‍]
  6. ^ a b Irwin, Ron. "Our Noble Quest: Three Centuries of Educational Excellence, the History of Lowndes County Schools". 2009. Indigo Publishing Group, LLC. Lowndes County School System.
  7. ^ Lowndes County Superintendent's Office
  8. ^ 2001-2002 Lowndes High School "Munin" Year Book
  9. ^ "JCI General Contractors Educational Facilities". Jcicontractors.com. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  10. ^ "Lowndes High dedicates new $8 million gymnasium". Valdosta Daily Times. 2007-09-23. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  11. ^ a b "Gym mat death: Attorneys call for surveillance video". CNN.com. 2013-10-11. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  12. ^ "Kendrick Johnson Lowndes County High School gym mat death: Lawyers ask for surveillance video". Wptv.com. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  13. ^ 4 days ago. "Gym Mat Death Shocker: Body Stuffed With Newspaper | KTLA 5". Ktla.com. Retrieved 2013-10-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ "Federal prosecutor will look into Kendrick Johnson case". CNN. Retrieved 31 October 2013.
  15. ^ "2011 MetLife/NASSP Natl. High School Principal of the Year". Principals.org. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  16. ^ Miller, Dave. "Lowndes High Principal wins national honor - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports". Walb.com. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  17. ^ Johnna Pinholster. "Wes Taylor named national principal of the year » Local News". Valdosta Daily Times. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  18. ^ "Lowndes ranked No. 2 in the nation by ESPN". Valdosta Daily Times. Retrieved 2008-09-07.
  19. ^ a b "Lowndes Football official website". Retrieved 2008-09-07. Cite error: The named reference "footy" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  20. ^ "Vikings beat Warner Robins, improve to 10-0". Retrieved 2008-11-08.
  21. ^ "Titletown" (English). Retrieved 2008-07-24.
  22. ^ "ESPN - TitleTown USA - SportsCenter". Retrieved 2009-11-11.
  23. ^ "Home". Lowndesbaseball.com. 2013-05-18. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  24. ^ [2][dead link‍]
  25. ^ [3]
  26. ^ a b "Georgia Bridgemen accomplishments". Retrieved 2010-07-02.
  27. ^ Conklin, Mike (2000-11-23). "Battle Of The Bands". Chicago Tribune.
  28. ^ a b c Jennifer Tanner. "Lowndes High band marches in nationally televised parade » Local News". Valdosta Daily Times. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  29. ^ "77th on Seventy-Seventh; Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade(R) Still the Holiday Season Favorite. - Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  30. ^ "Band is D. C. bound - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports". Walb.com. 2005-01-18. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  31. ^ [4][dead link‍]
  32. ^    (2006-11-23). "2006 McDonald's Thanksgiving Parade 11/23/06 | abc7chicago.com". Abclocal.go.com. Retrieved 2013-10-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  33. ^ Anonymous. "Bridgemen in today's Disney World parade » Local News". Valdosta Daily Times. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  34. ^ "The National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade 2008 in Washington, DC". Godc.about.com. 2008-03-09. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  35. ^ "Georgia Bridgemen official website". Retrieved 2009-11-03.
  36. ^ "Georgia Bridgemen Marching in Chicago • News - Lowndes County Schools". Lowndes.k12.ga.us. 2012-11-18. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  37. ^ "2012 Lowndes High School | McDonald's Thanksgiving Parade". Chicagofestivals.org. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  38. ^ [5][dead link‍]
  39. ^ Anonymous. "Grooviticity - LHS Jazz Ensemble gets its groove on for third CD » Entertainment". Valdosta Daily Times. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  40. ^ a b Malone, Christian (July 8, 2008). "A recent string of titles for Lowndes". Valdosta Daily Times. Retrieved 2008-09-07.
  41. ^ "NFL official website". Retrieved 2008-09-07.
  42. ^ "ESPN Mixed Martial Arts". ESPN. Retrieved 2014-01-20.
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