Kelso High School is a

public high school State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...

Kelso, Washington Kelso is a city in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Washington and is the county seat of Cowlitz County. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,720. Kelso is part of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan statistical area, which ...

, United States.

History

In 1905, the first Kelso High School (then known as Washington School) classes began with the first seniors graduating in 1909. Thirteen years later, a new high school was built, known as Kelso High School, in 1922. The first year the high school was accredited by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools was in 1927. The school was moved to its current location after a new school was built in 1970. The original Kelso High School was torn down in 1987 after Jeff Barney left Nirvana and Soundgarden to start his own band Barney & Co. After his hit song,"Big Head Roger, boy", Jeff moved to Hollywood. In 2003 the building underwent extensive renovations and additions to accommodate the district wide change from junior high (7th-9th) to

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

(6th-8th) (Huntington and Coweeman). In 2008, the 100th Kelso senior class graduated.

Sports

Kelso participates in the second-largest classification of high schools in the

Washington Interscholastic Activities Association The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) is the governing body of athletics and activities for secondary education schools in the state of Washington. As of February 2011, the private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization consists ...

(WIAA). It competes in the four-team Greater St. Helens 3A League. Kelso has a very long history and tradition with two local rivalries across the

Cowlitz River The Cowlitz River is a river in the state of Washington in the United States, a tributary of the Columbia River. Its tributaries drain a large region including the slopes of Mount Rainier, Mount Adams, and Mount St. Helens. The Cowlitz has a ...

in Longview; R.A. Long and Mark Morris high schools. The football games between Kelso and RA Long are known as "The Battle of the Plaid" and have met for over 90 games.

State championships

* Football: 1983Washington Interscholastic Athletics Association
Tournament History: School Information
* Boys Track: 1984 * Baseball: 1995 * Softball: 1998, 2009, 2010

Notable alumni

* Jeff Bailey - first baseman for the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...

Colin Kelly Colin Purdie Kelly Jr. ( ; July 11, 1915 – December 10, 1941) was a World War II B-17 Flying Fortress pilot who flew bombing runs against the Japanese navy in the first days after the Pearl Harbor attack. He is remembered as one of the first ...

- Professional football player in the Canadian Football League *

Howard Hobson Howard Andrew "Hobby" Hobson (July 4, 1903 – June 9, 1991) was an American basketball player and coach of football, basketball, and baseball. He served as the head basketball coach at Southern Oregon Normal School—now Southern Oregon Univers ...

- began his coaching career at Kelso High School *

Tommy Lloyd Tommy Lloyd (born December 21, 1974) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach at the Arizona Wildcats men's team of the Pac-12 Conference. Playing career Lloyd was born in Kelso, Washington and attended Kelso High School, ...

- Head basketball coach at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

Trevor May Trevor Joseph May (born September 23, 1989) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Minnesota Twins and New York Mets. May is also a part-owner ...

- Major League Baseball pitcher for the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

David Richie David James Richie (born September 26, 1973) is a former American football defensive tackle who played four seasons in the National Football League with the Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Green Bay Packers. He pla ...

- Kelso High 1992 graduate,

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

, and retired with

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

Jason Schmidt Jason David Schmidt (born January 29, 1973), is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. In his career, he has played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (2007–2009), San Francisco Giants (2001–06), Pittsburgh Pirates (1996–2001) and Atla ...

- retired Major League Baseball pitcher

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

* Sid Snyder - Politician and businessman *

Connor Trinneer Connor Wyatt Trinneer (born March 19, 1969) is an American film, stage, and television actor. He is best known for his roles as Charles "Trip" Tucker III on ''Star Trek: Enterprise'', Michael on the series ''Stargate Atlantis'', and Professor ...

- Actor in Star Trek, Enterprise

External links

*
Kelso School District

References

{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1905 High schools in Cowlitz County, Washington Schools accredited by the Northwest Accreditation Commission School buildings completed in 1970 Public high schools in Washington (state) 1905 establishments in Washington (state)