Organ Mountain High School Explained

Organ Mountain High School
Streetaddress:5700 Mesa Grande Dr
Zipcode:88012
Principal:Louie Lucero
Grades:9–12
Feeders:Camino Real, Mesa, Sierra, Vista, White Sands
Campus:Suburban
Mascot:Knight
Founded:1988
Enrollment:1,980[1]
Enrollment As Of:2022-23
Teaching Staff:104.10 (FTE)
Ratio:19.02
Conference:NMAA, 6A Dist. 3/4
Website:https://omhs.lcps.net/

Organ Mountain High School (OMHS) is one of four public high schools in Las Cruces, New Mexico. As of the 2021–2022 school year, OMHS serves 1,874 students, grades 9–12.[2] The school is a part of the Las Cruces Public Schools District.

History

Organ Mountain High School was established in 1988 under the name of Oñate High School, eponymously named for Juan de Oñate, the first Spanish governor of New Mexico. It was originally located in what is now Sierra Middle School. Construction of OMHS's current building began in 1991 and was completed in 1993, making it Las Cruces' third public high school after Las Cruces High School (est. 1918) and Mayfield High School (est. 1965). The school's architectural style reflects a castle-like theme, its mascot is the knight, and its colors are black, white, and teal. It houses a planetarium and, at the time of its construction, the largest performing arts center of the Las Cruces' high schools.

The original name of the school, Oñate High School, was chosen by city vote while the school was under construction and the color teal was added to the school by the cheerleaders in order give the school more color. On August 4, 2020, the Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education voted unanimously to rename the school Organ Mountain High School, which took effect the following academic year, 2021–2022.[3] [4]

Academics

School grade

Beginning in the 2010–2011 academic year, the NMPED (New Mexico Public Education Department) replaced the No Child Left Behind Act and AYP testing with a new grading formula. Since then, grades and student performance have been calculated through various forms of testing which also include graduation rates.[5]

Athletics

OMHS competes in the New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA), as a class 6A school in District 3/4. In addition to Organ Mountain High School, the schools in District 3-6A include: Alamogordo High School, Carlsbad High School, Centennial High School, Las Cruces High School, and Hobbs High School.[6]

State championships
Sport Championships Year(s)
Football 1 2002
Boys basketball 1 2011
Boys golf 1 2013
Girls track and field 3 1990, 1991, 1992
Total 6

Notes and References

  1. Web site: ONATE HIGH. National Center for Education Statistics. July 21, 2024.
  2. https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?ID=350150000720
  3. Web site: 2021-07-08. Formerly Oñate High School, Organ Mountain name change takes effect. 2021-09-11. KTSM 9 News. en-US.
  4. https://www.lascrucesbulletin.com/stories/school-board-votes-to-rename-oate-high-school,4496
  5. Web site: School Grading . 2013-12-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120114235448/http://webapp2.ped.state.nm.us/SchoolData/SchoolGrading.aspx . 2012-01-14 . dead .
  6. https://www.nmact.org/file/Section_4.pdf