Liberty High School (Maryland)

Liberty High School (LHS) is a four-year public high school in Eldersburg in Carroll County, Maryland, United States at 5855 Bartholow Road. The principal of the school is Kenneth Goncz.

About the School

Liberty High School was established in 1980 in Eldersburg, Maryland as part of the Carroll County Public Schools system.

The school's first graduation ceremony was held in 1981.

Liberty High School's mascot is a lion. It is represented as an African lion; in comparison, Penn State College's mascot, the Nittany Lions, is shown as a mountain lion, a species native to the United States. The school's colors are the complementary colors royal blue and gold, or more accurately blue and yellow. The school motto is "''Strive for Excellence''".

As of 2022, Liberty has been ranked 14th in the state, and 696th i
National Rankings
for education. As of June 2014, Liberty High School is ranked 59th in Maryland in administering Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) tests to students.

In addition, LHS has five pillars of excellence, which consist of: Academics, Arts, Athletics, Community, and Service.

Students

Liberty High School enrolls 1,002 students as of the 2021–2022 school year.

Faculty

Liberty High School currently has a faculty of 132 teachers and staff. Liberty's staff includes teachers that have worked at the school since its founding in 1980, and several teachers and staff that are graduates of the school.

Administration

*Kenneth Goncz, Principal
*Meghan Brown, Assistant Principal
*Christopher Merson, Assistant Principal
*Brian Tombs, Academic Facilitator
*Ed DeVincent, Athletic Administrator

Departments

*Administration
*Business & Marketing
*English
*ESOL
*Family and Consumer Science
*JROTC
*Math
*Performing & Visual Arts
*Phys Ed & Health
*School Nurse
*Science
*Social Studies
*Special Education
*Support Staff
*Technology Education & Agriculture
*World Languages

Extracurricular activities

Liberty High School has a wide range of extracurricular activities and sports. Students are allowed to join as many clubs and sports as they wish, however are only permitted to be President (or equivalent) of a single club. Each club is sponsored by a member of the faculty who advises the club and helps direct its activities. Liberty High School is no longer the only school in Carroll County to host a robotics team, but has had the longest running robotics team in the county, since 2007.

Sports

*Fall
**Cheerleading
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Cross-Country
***Boys JV/Varsity
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Field Hockey
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Football
***Boys JV/Varsity
**Golf
***JV/Varsity
**Soccer
***Boys JV/Varsity
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Volleyball
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Corollary Bocce Ball
*Winter
**Basketball
***Boys JV/Varsity
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Cheerleading
***JV/Varsity
**Indoor Track and Field
***Boys JV/Varsity
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Wrestling
***Boys JV/Varsity
**Bowling
*Spring
**Baseball
***Boys JV/Varsity
**Lacrosse
***Boys JV/Varsity
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Softball
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Tennis
***Boys JV/Varsity
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Outdoor Track & Field
***Boys JV/Varsity
***Girls JV/Varsity
**Corollary Corn Toss

State championships

* Girls' Soccer: 1996
* Boys' Cross Country: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
* Girls' Cross Country: 2014, 2019

Clubs

*As of the 2022-2023 school year there are 34 clubs and organizations offered at Liberty High School.

Robotics

FIRST Robotics Competition Team 2199, the Robo-Lions, is a student run team that was founded as a Liberty High School sports team in the fall of 2006 following the collapse of the county wide team, 1464. However, the current relationship between the school and the team is a loose affiliation, with no legal ties, and the team is now open for membership from anyone living in Carroll County, Maryland.

Affiliations

In 2011, parents and teachers formed the non-profit PIE3 to fund robotics programs throughout Carroll County.

In 2012, the Robo-Lions became a member of the Freedom Area Recreation Council.

Currently, the team is working with Carroll County Public Schools to create a legal partnership with the school district.

Public outreach

The team focuses not only on the robot, but also on public outreach to promote the growth of STEM in Carroll County. Currently, the team is mentoring 6 elementary and middle school age FIRST LEGO League robotics teams, and the Robo-Lions have run the regional FLL Regional Competition, the Roar of the Robots, for the past 4 years. Additionally, team members also volunteer at competitions for FLL, FTC, and FRC.

In 2012, the Robot-Lions started a summer Lego Fun Camp; students age 7-11 learn to work with the FLL technology to complete basic tasks, as well as engaging in other engineering related activities and crafts. Initially the team only offered one session, however in 2013 (their second year running the camp) the team expanded the sessions offered to 3 due to popular demand. The team also offers a mentor training session for parents and teachers interested in mentoring FLL teams.

Public outreach also extends to community events, such as elementary and middle school science fairs, public library events, craft fairs, the American Cancer Society's Freedom Area Relay for Life, and events coordinated through the Freedom Area Recreation Council.

Additionally, the team works with Liberty High School clubs and organizations, including the drama club and the special education classroom, Learning for Independence. In 2010 the team built a robotic lamp post for the drama club's production of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe; in 2011, the team constructed a robotic crocodile for the drama club's production of Peter Pan (the robot won a Cappie for best prop).

The Robo-Lions have also been featured on Fox 45 News, twice.

Competitions and awards

* 2013: Entrepreneurship Award, Richmond Regional
* 2013: Regional Chairman's Award, Chesapeake Regional (Quarterfinalists)
* 2013: FIRST Championship

Marching band

The Liberty High School Marching Band is known as the "Lions' Pride". In the past three years, the marching band has scored in the top two of their Atlantic coast competition circuit, the Tournament of Bands. The Lions' Pride marching band is currently an open class, Group 3 band, and is ranked first in its local Chapter 5 region of the TOB tournament area. In addition, it hosts the highest-scoring Drum Major in the Atlantic Coast Championship of 2014.

In the years of 2018 and 2019 the Lions Pride Band broke TOB history by being the first Maryland band to win the Atlantic Coast Championship (ACC) back to back. In 2018 the Lions Pride Band Won ACCs for the first time ever with a score of 98.0 and awards for high music, visual and, drum major

Following up that season in 2019 for the first time in TOB history a Maryland band won the Atlantic Coast Championships back to back. They came away with a score of 96.2 and an award for high bras

References

External links

US News and Worlds Reports on Liberty
*
Sports schedules and scoresAthletic Boosters siteRobo-Lions WebsitePIE3 WebsiteLiberty Drama WebsiteLiberty Music Website

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Educational institutions established in 1980
Eldersburg, Maryland
Public high schools in Maryland
Liberty High School
1980 establishments in Maryland