Technical High School (Tech) was a public

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

that was located at 3215 Cuming Street in

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

, United States. Opened in 1923, the school was said to be the largest high school west of Chicago. It was the largest in the Omaha area before it was closed in 1984. Today the building serves as the headquarters of

Omaha Public Schools Omaha Public Schools (OPS) is the largest school district in the state of Nebraska, United States. This public school district serves a diverse community of about 52,000 students at over 80 elementary and secondary schools in Omaha. Its district ...

About

The five-winged building and large athletic field occupied three city blocks between Burt and Cuming Streets, from 30th to 33rd Streets in

North Omaha North Omaha is a community area in Omaha, Nebraska, in the United States. It is bordered by Cuming and Dodge Streets on the south, Interstate 680 (Iowa-Nebraska), Interstate 680 on the north, North 72nd Street on the west and the Missouri River a ...

. The new school opened on October 15, 1923, with nearly 2,400 pupils. By 1940 enrollment had reached 3,684. As a high school focused on

technical education In the United States, a technical school is a type of two-year college that covers specialized fields such as business, finance, hospitality, tourism, construction, engineering, visual arts, information technology and community work. Associa ...

, Tech had many amenities designed to teach students in specific areas. It had two large gymnasiums and a swimming pool, which was for many years the only pool in any Omaha public school. The roof of the building featured a deck with a canopy that housed an exercise area. An entire floor was dedicated to classrooms for

home economics Home economics, also called domestic science or family and consumer sciences, is a subject concerning human development, personal and family finances, consumer issues, housing and interior design, nutrition and food preparation, as well as texti ...

. There were extensive wood and metal shops, as well as scientific laboratories and a greenhouse. The building had 124 rooms. As early as 1947, there were 2,700 students and 100 teachers. Developed with high

academic standards Academic standards are the benchmarks of quality and excellence in education such as the rigour of curricula and the difficulty of examinations. The creation of universal academic standards requires agreement on rubrics, criteria or other systems ...

, the school was a forerunner in vocational high schools by offering students who largely chose not to go to college the opportunity to learn a

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

profession A profession is a field of work that has been successfully ''professionalized''. It can be defined as a disciplined group of individuals, '' professionals'', who adhere to ethical standards and who hold themselves out as, and are accepted by ...

. There was a

high school radio High school radio are radio stations located at high schools and usually operated by its students with faculty supervision. The oldest extant high school AM radio station is AM 1450 KBPS in Portland, Oregon. Portland radio station KBPS, first li ...

station at Tech in the 1920s, whose call letters were KFOX. The auditorium at the school was built to accommodate 2600 people (legal

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

was listed at 2120).

John Philip Sousa John Philip Sousa ( ; November 6, 1854 – March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era known primarily for American military marches. He is known as "The March King" or the "American March King", to dist ...

and his marching band appeared in October 1928.

Cornelia Otis Skinner Cornelia Otis Skinner (May 30, 1899 – July 9, 1979) was an American writer and actress. Biography Skinner was the only child of actor Otis Skinner and actress Maud Durbin. After attending the all-girls' Baldwin School and Bryn Mawr College ...

made her first high school appearance at Tech in January 1930. In November 1926 the

Metropolitan Opera Company The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is opera ...

of New York gave a performance.

Helen Hayes Helen Hayes MacArthur ( Brown; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress whose career spanned 80 years. She eventually received the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and was the second person and first woman to have w ...

and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. also gave performances at Tech. In the 1960s the

Black Association for Nationalism Through Unity The Black Association for Nationalism Through Unity, or BANTU, was a youth activism group focused on black power and nationalism in Omaha, Nebraska in the 1960s. Its name is a reference to the Bantu peoples of Southern Africa. It was reportedl ...

was unsuccessful in starting a chapter at Tech, although one of its leaders became a student government official.

Present

After the school closed in 1984, the building was completely renovated for use as the

' central office. It also serves as a home for the Career Center and Adult Education programs, serving over 700 students daily.

Opera Omaha Opera Omaha is a major regional opera company in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1958, the professional company is widely known for the International Fall Festival events it held in the 1980s and 1990s, which garnered international attention and served ...

performed at Tech before they had facilities at the Orpheum Theater.History of Opera Omaha.

Notable graduates

* John Beasley, actor and acting coach; co-starred in the Academy Award-winning film ''The Apostle'' *

Ron Boone Ronald Bruce Boone (born September 6, 1946) is an American former professional basketball player. He had a 13-year career in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA). Boone set a record for most consecuti ...

, professional basketball player *

Bob Boozer Robert Louis Boozer (April 26, 1937 – May 19, 2012) was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Boozer won a gold medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics and won an NBA Championship as a member of the ...

, college and professional basketball player and Olympic gold medalist in 1960 * Sen.

Ernie Chambers Ernest William Chambers (born July 10, 1937) is an American politician and civil rights activist who represented North Omaha's 11th District in the Nebraska State Legislature from 1971 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2021. He could not run in 2 ...

, 11th District,

Nebraska State Legislature The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the small ...

in 1955 * Captain Alfonza W. Davis,

Tuskegee Airman The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...

James Dworak James J. Dworak (January 4, 1925 Omaha, Nebraska - November 6, 2002 California) was mayor of Omaha, Nebraska, from 1961 to 1965. Private and business life Mr. Dworak was born in Omaha and graduated from Omaha Technical High School in 1943. He ...

, former Omaha mayor *

Bob Gibson Robert Gibson (born Pack Robert Gibson; November 9, 1935October 2, 2020) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals (1959–1975). Nicknamed "Gibby" and "Hoot" ( ...

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

r for the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

and Creighton University stand-out *

Mel Harder Melvin Leroy Harder (October 15, 1909 – October 20, 2002), nicknamed "Chief", was an American right-handed starting pitcher, coach and manager in Major League Baseball, who played his entire career with the Cleveland Indians. He spent 36 season ...

, professional baseball player * Fred Hare, former college and professional basketball player *

Louis Hartz Louis Hartz (April 8, 1919 – January 20, 1986) was an American political scientist, historian, and a professor at Harvard, where he taught from 1942 until 1974. Hartz’s teaching and various writings —books and articles— have had an importan ...

, former

political scientist Political science is the science, scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of politics, political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated c ...

and influential proponent of the idea of

American exceptionalism American exceptionalism is the belief that the United States is inherently different from other nations.Jim Houston James Edward Houston (November 3, 1937 – September 11, 2018) was an American American football, football linebacker who played 13 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Cleveland Browns. He was elected to the College Football H ...

, national rodeo champion *

Roman Hruska Roman Lee Hruska () (August 16, 1904April 25, 1999) was an American attorney and politician who served as a Republican U.S. senator from the state of Nebraska. Hruska was known as one of the most vocal conservatives in the Senate during the 1960 ...

, former US Senator *

Johnny Rodgers Johnny Steven Rodgers (born July 5, 1951) is an American former football player. He played college football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and won the Heisman Trophy in 1972. Rodgers played professionally in the Canadian Football League (CFL) ...

, former

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

superstar,

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

winner, and voted the

University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

's "Player of the Century" * Johnny Rosenblatt, former Omaha mayor *

Jack Urban Jack Elmer Urban (December 5, 1928 – June 26, 2006) was an American professional baseball pitcher who appeared in 69 games in the Major Leagues, 37 as a starter, for the Kansas City Athletics (–) and St. Louis Cardinals (). Listed as tall ...

, former

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player (

Kansas City Athletics The history of the Athletics Major League Baseball franchise spans the period from 1901 to the present day, having begun as a charter member franchise in the new American League in Philadelphia before moving to Kansas City in 1955 for 13 seas ...

) * Brigadier General Kenneth Walker, US Army Air Corps, posthumous recipient of the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

in World War II, and pioneer in military aviation * Les Webster, college and professional football player for the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

Lucille Wilson Lucille may refer to: People People with the given name "Lucille": * Lucille Bailie (born 1969), Australian basketball player * Lucille Ball (1911–1989), American actress best known for the television series ''I Love Lucy'' * Lucille Berrien ( ...

, three-time member of US women's track team in the Olympics * Phil Wise, college and professional football player

References

External links

Historic picture of Technical High School

Historic postcard of Tech H.S.

Related publications

* Brookins, J. (1925) "Drama in a Technical High School," ''Peabody Journal of Education. 2''(4) pp. 190–196 {{Authority control Defunct schools in Omaha, Nebraska History of North Omaha, Nebraska Schools in North Omaha, Nebraska Educational institutions established in 1921 1921 establishments in Nebraska 1984 disestablishments in Nebraska Educational institutions disestablished in 1984

About

Present

Notable graduates

See also

References

External links

Related publications