Monacan High School

Monacan High School is a public secondary school in Richmond, Virginia, and is a part of Chesterfield County Public Schools. The school was founded in 1979, and its enrollment is roughly 1650 students.

Sports

Monacan High School is a member of the Dominion District in all sports. Monacan competes in Baseball, Boys Basketball, Girls Basketball, Cross Country, Field Hockey, Football, Golf, Boys Soccer, Girls Soccer, Softball, Boys Tennis, Girls Tennis, Outdoor Track, Indoor Track, Boys Volleyball, Girls Volleyball, and Wrestling. The Baseball team is the reigning 2006 State AAA Baseball Champs. Notable moments in Monacan Sports include:

1980 - Boys Cross Country Team wins Group AAA State Championships
1981 - Girls and Boys Cross Country Teams win Group AAA State Championships
1979 - 1986 Boys Cross Country went undefeated in Dual Meets and won 8 straight Dominion District Championships
1985 - Boys Basketball Team beats Number One Ranked Petersburg Team and goes to State Playoffs
1989 - Boys Baseball Team wins Central Region Baseball Championship, Football Team wins Central Region Football Semifinals
1994 - Girls Basketball Team wins Central Region Girls Basketball Championship (63-62)
1998 - Boys Volleyball Team wins State Group 3A Championship

Academics

Monacan's academic departments are Career and Technical Education, English, Fine and Performing Arts, Mathematics, Physical Education, Science, Social Studies, Special Education, and World Languages.

Monacan offers standard core classes along with honors classes, electives, and Advanced Placement Program classes.

Advanced Placement Program classes at Monacan currently include Biology, Calculus AB, Chemistry, Computer Science, English, Environmental Science, Physics, Spanish, Statistics, U.S. History, and U.S. Government.

Advanced Placement classes such as Art History, European History, French, German, Latin, Vergil, Music Theory, and World History are offered on an enrollment basis, if there are enough interested students to create the class.

Monacan's World Language Department offers Latin, Spanish, French, and German. In the past, Japanese and Greek have been taught, but in the 2006-2007 school year, these subjects were not offered.

Center for the Humanities

The Center for the Humanities is a selective specialty center at Monacan High School. Eigth-grade students must apply and be reviewed, which includes an interview. The Center for the Humanities is a rigorous curriculum that requires all of its students to take certain courses and receive an Advanced Studies Diploma. The goal is an enriched, advanced liberal arts education. Requirements include:

Three years of a foreign language
Four years of the course Perspectives on the Human Experience
English 9,10,11, and AP English
World History/Geography up to 1400 BC, World History/Geography 1400BC-Present, AP United States History, AP Government
Four years of science including Biology and either Chemistry or Physics
Two semesters of Health and two semesters of Physical education
Participation in an extended service learning class

One of the foundations of the Humanities Curriculum is the Perspectives on the Human Experience course. The course is unique to the Center for the Humanities, and integrates art, art history, history, and other disciplines.

Another foundation of the Humanities Curriculum is the Socratic Seminar, a student-led group discussion that focuses on one specific topic. Socratic Seminars aim to foster student leadership, communication skills, and discussion techniques.

Extracurriculars

Monacan offers a wide variety of after-school activities, both school sponsored and independent. These include:

The Larry J. Elliot Chapter of the National Honor Society
Academic Team
National Beta Club
Art Club
Gay-Straight Alliance
Latin Club
Spanish Club
French Club
German Club

Steve Murmur Controversy

Monacan High School became internationally known because after art teacher Steve Murmur was suspended from his post following renewed interested in his out-of-school activities. Murmur, an artist, paints floral and abstract pieces using his buttocks and genetalia. He offers the pieces, which are acrylic on canvas, for sale at prices from $400 to $900 at ButtPrintArt.com and is featured in a video demonstration of technique on YouTube. The video is apparently part of a television broadcast from Unscrewed With Martin Sargent that was filmed several years ago. It is unclear whether Murmur approved of the broadcast being posted on YouTube.

Although the Chesterfield County Administration was aware of his activities since 2004, it was not until late 2006 that the issue resurfaced and Murmur faced reprimand. Murmur was told, following his suspension, not to speak to the media. Chesterfield County spokeswoman Debra Marlow stated that teachers were expected to set an example for their students.

Many have noted, however, that Murmur went to lengths to conceal his identity. He is shown in the video clip wearing a fake nose and glasses, and calls himself "Stan Murmur" online.

In the days following his suspension, outraged students called a local news channel and asked them to feature the story. The channel complied and the news media quickly focused on the story.

Murmur was subsequently fired from his teaching post. He publicly stated that teaching was very important to him and that he wanted to let his students know how much he appreciated them. He hopes to teach in the future.

The ACLU has condemned Chesterfield County's School Board for their actions, stating that Murmur's activities are an expression of his First Amendment Rights. The ACLU has advised him in the issue but is currently not representing him in court. The ACLU representatives have said that had Chesterfield County not suspended Murmur, the issue would have blown over within a few days.

Some of Monacan's other highlights included its Step Team, Chorus and Drumline.

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