Lloyd V. Berkner High School
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Lloyd V. Berkner High School is a
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 ...
in
Richardson Richardson may refer to: People * Richardson (surname), an English and Scottish surname * Richardson Gang, a London crime gang in the 1960s * Richardson Dilworth, Mayor of Philadelphia (1956-1962) Places Australia * Richardson, Australian Cap ...
, in the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, with a 2008 enrollment of 2,755 and a student/teacher ratio of 16.7. It is one of four high schools in the
Richardson Independent School District Richardson Independent School District (RISD) is a school district based in Richardson, Texas (USA). RISD covers and serves the city of Richardson and portions of the cities of Dallas and Garland (60 percent of RISD is in North Dallas, with 3 ...
.


History

The school was founded in 1969 and is named for U.S. physicist and founding president of the University of Texas at Dallas (actually in Richardson),
Lloyd Berkner Lloyd Viel Berkner (February 1, 1905 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin – June 4, 1967 in Washington, D.C.) was an American physicist and engineer. He was one of the inventors of the measuring device that since has become standard at ionospheric stations ...
. For the first year, students were housed on the campus of the now-closed Richardson Junior High School. The current facility on Spring Valley Road opened for the 1970–1971 school year; it served grades 9–11 in its opening year. Grades 10–12 were then served until the end of the 2004–2005 school year. During the 1974–1975 school year, Berkner served Freshmen in order to relieve over-crowding at Richardson Jr. High while the new Liberty Jr. High was completed for the following Fall. From 1976–1979, Berkner again served Freshman in order to relieve over-crowding at Liberty Jr. High. A massive expansion and renovation gave way to the addition of ninth grade in the 2005–2006 school year.


Statistics (per 2011)

The attendance rate for students at the school is 95%, compared with a state average of 96%. 44% of the students at Berkner are economically disadvantaged, 17% enroll in special education, 4% enroll in gifted and talented programs, 24% are enrolled in career and technology programs, and 21% are considered "limited English proficient." The ethnic makeup of the school is 23.58%
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
, 27.76%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 27.62%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, non-Hispanic, 16.01%
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
/
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, and less than 1% Native American. The average class sizes at Berkner are 25 students for
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
, 21 for
foreign language A foreign language is a language that is not an official language of, nor typically spoken in, a given country, and that native speakers from that country must usually acquire through conscious learning - be this through language lessons at schoo ...
, 27 for
math Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
, 23 for
science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
, and 24 for social studies. Teachers at the school carry, on average, 10 years of teaching experience, and 7% of the teachers on staff are first-year teachers.


Awards

In 2007 the school won the Excellence in Education Award for the state of Texas. It was honored by the Texas Successful School Awards System in 2000 and 2001. Berkner was also named a
National Blue Ribbon School The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States Department of Education award program that recognizes exemplary public and non-public schools on a yearly basis. Using standards of excellence evidenced by student achievement measures, ...
in 1988–1989. Berkner is ranked #1017 in the Top 1300 high schools in the U.S. by ''Newsweek'' magazine.


Academics

Berkner ranks its students based on a weighted
GPA Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...
, in which
Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. American colleges and universities may grant placement and course ...
classes and Pre-AP classes add 10 and 5 points, respectively, to each students' final average in that class. In contrast to a decision by a selection committee, the
valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution. The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...
and
salutatorian Salutatorian is an academic title given in the United States, Armenia, and the Philippines to the second-highest-ranked graduate of the entire graduating class of a specific discipline. Only the valedictorian is ranked higher. This honor is tradi ...
are the first and second highest averages of each graduating class, with the Top 10 receiving special gratitude at a reception dinner.


Extracurricular activities

Berkner's mascot is the Ram and the team shares Ram-Wildcat Stadium (capacity 11,000) with
Lake Highlands High School Lake Highlands High School (LHHS) is a secondary school serving grades 9-12 in the Lake Highlands area of northeastern Dallas, Texas, United States, primarily serving the Lake Highlands community. The school is part of the Richardson Independent Sc ...
. The athletics program has improved in recent years, as in 2005, BHS had the best football season in school history, finishing 12–1 after a loss to
A&M Consolidated High School A&M Consolidated High School, also known as "Consol", is a public high school located in the city of College Station, Texas, United States. It is classified as a 5A school by the UIL. The school is part of the College Station Independent School D ...
in the quarterfinals of the Class 5A division. In the spring of 2006, the boys' basketball team made the state semifinals for the first time in school history. Berkner prides itself on its fine arts programs. The marching band has received 50 consecutive first Division ratings in
University Interscholastic League The University Interscholastic League (UIL) is an organization that creates rules for and administers almost all athletic, musical, and academic contests for public primary and secondary schools in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the largest organi ...
marching contests. The Orchestra Program has won the TMEA Honor String Orchestra award in 1987 under Ruth Kurtis – and most recently won the same award in 2007 under Craig Needham. The theatre program provides one of the area's only technical theatre programs. The school's student newspaper is the ''Berkner Rampage.'' The inter-school radio and television station is KRAM-FM and KRAM-TV Channel 6. The "Mighty Ram Band" has approximately 300 students in its program. In the spring semester, the band splits into five bands; Symphonic Band I, Symphonic Band II, Symphonic Band III, Concert Band I, and Concert Band II. Other classes offered during the school day include a Music Theory Course, a Jazz Ensemble, a Percussion Ensemble, a Varsity and a Junior-Varsity Drum Line, and two sections of Color Guard / Winter Guard. The band was honored by the
John Philip Sousa Foundation The John Philip Sousa Foundation is a non-profit foundation dedicated to the promotion of band music internationally. The foundation administers a number of projects and awards supporting high quality band performance, conducting, and composition ...
with the Sudler Flag of Honor in 1984 and 2004 to recognize its high standards of excellence in its concert activities over several years. The Berkner Band has been invited to perform at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic twice in 2011 and 2019, and has been named the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) Honor Band for the state of Texas in 1974, 1987, and 1991, 2nd place in 2002, 2011, and 2013 and 5th place in 2000 and 2015. The Berkner Marching Band has advanced to the Texas UIL State Marching Contest numerous times. TEXAS UIL STATE MARCHING CONTEST PLACING 1994 5A-6th place, 1998 5A-7th place*, 2000 5A-7th place*, 2002 5A-3rd place* Bronze Medal Winner, 2004 5A-14th place, 2006 5A-9th place*, 2008 5A-11th place, 2010 5A-8th place*, 2012 5A-9th place*, 2014 6A-18th place, 2016 6A-21st place ''*finalist'' The Berkner Marching band also participates in the Bands of America marching contests and the Band of America Super Regional. The school is also notable for hosting an annual battle of the bands held in the auditorium. It is one of the larger BOBs held in the area and features mostly rock and punk bands. There is the occasional appearance of rap and hip-hop groups. Despite the requirement of having a band member be a Berkner High student to compete, bands from across the metroplex have performed. One notable guest band includes
Bowling for Soup Bowling for Soup (abbreviated as BFS) is an American rock band formed in Wichita Falls, Texas, in 1994. The band consists of Jaret Reddick (lead vocals, guitar), Chris Burney (guitar, backing vocals), Gary Wiseman (drums, percussion, backing voc ...
. The event is held typically in April or May. The event is sponsored by Peer Helpers and the Berkner Exchange Club. Since 2005, the 'house' band has been 'Old Skool', Berkner's own all-faculty cover band. Old Skool performs at the conclusion of the competition while the judges are tabulating the scores. The Berkner High School
Academic Decathlon The Academic Decathlon (also called AcDec, AcaDeca or AcaDec) is an annual high school academic competition organized by the non-profit United States Academic Decathlon (USAD). The competition consists of seven objective multiple choice tests, tw ...
team has advanced to the Texas State Academic Decathlon competition every year since 2003–2004. The Berkner High School drill team, known as the Bandoleras, have performed with excellence over the past several decades. They have won major competitions at a national level, including the Starmakers series of drill team events. Their Spring Shows consistently sell out the BHS auditorium and is a regular draw on the Richardson arts scene. In 2012, the Bandoleras were given the opportunity to travel to Ireland to be in the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin. In addition to the Bandoleras, the hand-picked Comedy Troop draws many to the show because of its humorous skits. Berkner tennis team members won third place in district competition in 2007–2008. The team itself has consistently produced tennis players with Super-Champion rankings in the TTCA.


Notable alumni

*
Naser Jason Abdo Naser Jason Abdo (born April 1, 1990) is an American former United States Army private first class who was arrested in 2011 for attempting to commit a terrorist attack against a restaurant frequented by soldiers from Fort Hood, Texas. He was con ...
- Former
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
Soldier, attempted terrorist *
Jensen Ackles Jensen Ross Ackles (born March 1, 1978) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Dean Winchester in The WB/The CW, CW dark fantasy drama series ''Supernatural (American TV series), Supernatural'' (2005–2020) and appearing in ...
, actor *
Rogers Cadenhead Rogers Cadenhead (born April 13, 1967) is a computer book author and web publisher who served from 2006 to 2008 as chairman of the RSS Advisory Board, a group that publishes the RSS 2.0 specification. He graduated from Lloyd V. Berkner High Schoo ...
, author * Laurie Corbelli, former Olympic volleyball player and current college volleyball head coach *
Jillian Edwards Jillian Anita Chapman, known professionally as Jillian Edwards, is an American singer-songwriter who primarily plays indie folk and indie pop. She has released five albums; ''Galaxies & Such'' in 2009, ''Headfirst'' in 2011, ''Daydream'', ''All ...
, musician *
Keenan Evans Keenan Evans (born August 23, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for Žalgiris Kaunas of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball at Texas Tech University. College career A 6’3†...
(born 1996), college basketball player for Texas Tech, professional basketball player in the
Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl ( he, ליגת העל, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is the top-tier level league of professional sports, professional competition in Israeli sports club, club basketball, making ...
*
Trevis Gipson Trevis Gipson (born June 13, 1997) is an American football defensive end for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Tulsa. College career During high school, Gipson played high school football at C ...
, attended freshman through junior years * Maggie Haney, head coach of Monmouth Gymnastics in NJ and head coach to 2016 Olympic gold medal gymnast Laurie Hernandez *
Melissa Henderson Melissa Suzanne Keeling (; born August 23, 1989) is an American retired soccer forward who last played as a midfielder with the Houston Dash. Early life Born in Dallas to Kelly and Kathy Henderson, Melissa grew up in Garland, Texas, and attended ...
, former professional soccer player *
Toddrick McIntosh Toddrick Poole McIntosh (January 22, 1972 – September 5, 2014) was a National Football League (NFL) defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints. He played college football at Florida State. Early years McI ...
, former NFL defensive lineman *
Ryan Miller (musician) Ryan Matthew Miller (born November 21, 1972) is an American musician. He is the lead singer for the alternative rock band Guster playing guitar, piano and bass. Life and career Ryan was born on November 21, 1972, in Lubbock, Texas, to Ross and C ...
, member of alternative rock band
Guster Guster is an American alternative rock band from Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Founding members Adam Gardner, Ryan Miller, and Brian Rosenworcel began practice sessions while attending Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, and fo ...
(10 September 2006)
Band seeks Texas fans for its ever changing style
''
The Galveston County Daily News ''The Daily News'', formerly the ''Galveston County Daily News'' and ''Galveston Daily News'', is a newspaper published in Galveston, Texas, United States. It was first published April 11, 1842, making it the oldest newspaper in the U.S. state of ...
'', Retrieved November 27, 2010 ("After Miller graduated from Berkner in 1991 he decided to attend college at Tufts University near Boston....")
* Mo3 (rapper), rapper * Kevin Murphy, former NFL linebacker *
Aqib Talib Aqib Talib (born February 13, 1986) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at the University of Kansas, where he received consensus All-American honors, and was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first rou ...
,
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
player * Aundra Thompson, NFL wide receiver *
Frank Ticheli Frank Ticheli (born January 21, 1958) is an American composer of orchestral, choral, chamber, and concert band works. He lives in Los Angeles, California, where he is a Professor of Composition at the University of Southern California. He was ...
, composer *
Everson Walls Everson Collins Walls (born December 28, 1959) is a former American football defensive back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, the New York Giants, and the Cleveland Browns. During his 14 se ...
, NFL defensive back


References


External links

*
Richardson Independent School District
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berkner Educational institutions established in 1969 High schools in Richardson, Texas Richardson Independent School District high schools 1969 establishments in Texas