Huron High School (Ann Arbor, Michigan) Explained

Ann Arbor Huron High School
Location:2727 Fuller Rd.
City:Ann Arbor
State:Michigan
Country:United States
Coordinates:42.2817°N -83.7033°W
Type:Public high school
Established:September 1969
Locale:Ann Arbor Public Schools
Principal:Ché Carter
Grades:9th-12th
Mascot:River Rat
Website:http://www.a2huron.org
Campus:Urban, 2304NaN4
Enrollment:1,617 (2020-21)[1]
Ratio:14.07
Teaching Staff:114.93 (FTE)

Ann Arbor Huron High School, or Huron High School (HHS), is a public high school located in Ann Arbor, MI, in the U.S. The school is part of the Ann Arbor Public Schools district. Located at 2727 Fuller Road in eastern Ann Arbor near the banks of the Huron River, it serves grades 9 through 12. Huron is one of the three main public high schools in Ann Arbor (along with Pioneer High School and Skyline High School). Newsweek named the school one of America's Best High Schools in 2012, and it was awarded Best Overall Academic Performance in Michigan by BusinessWeek in 2009 and 2010.[2]

The school is shaped like an "H" with two convex wings adjoined by a two floor archway that has become a distinguishing feature of the building. Huron is a Division I member of the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) for athletic competition. The school offers 50 different sports comprising 32 varsity level teams, several of them frequently crowned state champions.

History

Huron High School opened in September 1969.[3] Prior to Huron's opening, the student body at the city's only other public high school, Ann Arbor High, experienced overcrowding. In 1967-68 and 1968-69, before Huron's building was completed, eastside students who were to be designated to the new school shared the Pioneer building in a split schedule. Pioneer students attended classes in the morning from 7:30 A.M. to 12:30 P.M. and Huron students in the afternoon from 1 P.M. to 6 P.M, despite petitions from Huron students to the Board of Education for them to attend school in the morning.[4]

Due to delays from construction strikes and other issues the planned opening date was pushed back two years from 1967 to 1969. In July 1969, Paul K. Meyers, the first principal of Huron High School, and assistant principal Albert Gallup and staff moved in.

When Huron opened, the school board deliberated over what the new high school would be named. After a poll was taken among the school community to determine the name, "River Rats" was suggested as a write-in option. Despite opposition from the school board, the "River Rat" name maintained popularity among students. The press began using the term "River Rats" and eventually the name stuck.[5]

From 1969 to 1979, Paul K. Meyers served as principal, and was succeeded by Ronald Tesch. His goal was to revive and enhance the cooperation and communication between the school faculty and student body. He left the position in 1986, and from 1986 to 1987, Al Gallup served as interim principal. In 1987, Huron saw Dr. Joetta Mial begin her tenure as principal, which she served as until 1993.[6] In 1988, the Ann Arbor Board of Education passed a $31 million renovation and construction program. From 1988 to 1991, Huron underwent major renovations in which library and lunchrooms were expanded, and a band room, science and math wings were added. The athletic wing was also added and included a new pool and gym. Huron's dome gym and athletic department were constructed during these renovations. On May 12, 1993, the auditorium was dedicated to Paul K. Meyers.[7]

After Dr. Joetta Mial's departure, from 1993 to 1994, Jane Johnson served as interim principal. In 1994, Dr. Arthur Williams began his tenure at Huron, and was a strong advocate for reforms. He retired in 2014, after serving as principal for 20 years; he has become Huron's longest-serving principal. From the 2014-2015 school year, Jennifer Hein began serving as principal. Overcrowding became an issue again. Portables were used to house classes outside of the main building. In 2008 Skyline High School was opened and slowly branched off the existing two, starting with only a freshman class.[8]

The movie Jumper was filmed on location at Huron High School and neighboring Gallup Park in February 2007. One hundred students were chosen from Huron to be extras for the movie. The screenplay of Jumper was written by Huron High School graduate David S. Goyer and was released in February 2008.[9]

Academics

Year:2021–22
M-Step Advanced:32.5 / 26.0
M-Step Proficient:25.4 / 26.3
M-Step Pr Proficient:11.5 / 35.3
M-Step Not Proficient:30.7 / 12.5
Sat Total:1101.6
Sat Total Change:-70.2
Ref:[10]

As of the 2015-16 school year, IB courses are being offered.[11] It has been an IB school since 2017.[12]

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

Huron High School is a member of the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA). Huron joined the Southeastern Conference "SEC" in the 2007-2008 school year.

The Huron athletic program offers the following sports:

equestrian, crew, bowling, athletic training, and figure skating

Publications

Notable alumni

Sports

Music and entertainment

Media and literature

Other

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Huron High School. National Center for Education Statistics. October 10, 2020.
  2. News: America's Best High Schools . https://web.archive.org/web/20090118211408/http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/01/0115_best_schools/24.htm . dead . January 18, 2009 . Bloomsburg BusinessWeek . 2009. 2010-02-18.
  3. AADL.org Old News. "Planner Says Huron, King To Open In Fall", The Ann Arbor News, Ann Arbor, 13 March 1969. Retrieved on 9 October 2015.
  4. AADL.org Old News. "Huron Pupils Lose Battle Over Classes", The Ann Arbor News, Ann Arbor, 30 January 1969. Retrieved on 9 October 2015.
  5. Freed, Ben. http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2015/09/did_you_know_how_ann_arbor_hur.html "Did You Know: How Ann Arbor Huron High became the River Rats?", Mlive, 30 September 2015. Retrieved on 9 October 2015.
  6. http://www.a2schools.org/Page/6236 "Huron High School Principals"
  7. http://www.a2schools.org/Domain/1401 "Huron High School History"
  8. Jesse, David. "Skyline High School opening culminates 10 years of efforts to deal with overcrowding", The Ann Arbor News, 26 August 2008. Retrieved on 13 October 2015.
  9. Jenn McKee, "Local teens with bit parts in 'Jumper' will see who made the cut," Ann Arbor News, 10 Feb. 2008.
  10. Web site: MI School Data Annual Education Report. MI School Data. 2023-01-10.
  11. Web site: Knake. Lindsay. As Ann Arbor schools prepares for IB program, classroom changes will start this year. MLive Ann Arbor. MLive. 17 February 2016. 6 September 2015.
  12. Web site: Huron High School . 2023-12-09 . International Baccalaureate® . en.
  13. http://annarboralumni.org/?sitePage=custom&pageURL=school_files/annarboralumni/pages/notable_alumni.html "Ann Arbor Public Schools Notable Alumni
  14. Web site: Nathan Gerbe - Men's Hockey.
  15. Web site: Patrick Kane and that preppy Country Day sport coat. 2020-06-19. NHL.com. en-US.
  16. Web site: 2017-07-12. Ann Arbor's Michael Kosta debuts on 'The Daily Show with Trevor Noah'. 2020-12-28. mlive. en.
  17. Web site: Editor. AAPS News. 2016-09-08. Huron graduate Angel Nafis wins national poetry fellowship. 2020-06-21. AAPS District News. en-US.